SEPA

Introduction If you send or receive money within Europe, chances are you already use SEPA transfers—often without realizing it. SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) made euro payments across participating countries as simple as domestic transfers: fast, inexpensive, and standardized. Yet, beneath that simplicity lies a well-defined set of schemes, rules, message formats, timelines, and compliance requirements that matter to consumers, businesses, and developers alike. This guide provides a detailed overview of SEPA transfers, including how they work, the differences between standard and instant SEPA payments, the file and API standards (ISO 20022), fees and timelines, compliance considerations, and practical code examples for validation and payment initiation. ...