Faster and safer instant euro payments become a reality

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

From today, sending money across the euro area will be faster and safer than ever. Thanks to new EU rules on instant payments, people and businesses can now transfer money in euro within seconds, anytime – day or night, weekdays or weekends – whether within their own country or across the euro area.

Since January 2025, payment service providers (PSPs) in the euro area are obliged to offer their clients the possibility to receive euro instant payments. As of today, PSPs are also obliged to offer their clients the service of sending instant payments in euro and, in order to combat payment fraud in euro credit transfers, the service of payee verification (VoP). This makes instant payments more widely available, safer, and more affordable for everyone across the euro area.

Instant payments will boost Europe’s economy and bring major benefits for citizens and companies. For citizens, money is available immediately, making it far easier to deal with emergencies or splitting bills in social settings. For companies, cash flow management will be improved, as will customer service: by providing an additional payment method to customers, they will save time and reduce costs.

What changes:

• Money moves instantly: Transfers in euro will no longer take days – they will reach the recipient’s account in seconds, at all times – nights, weekends and holidays included.
• Same price as regular transfers: Banks and other payment service providers must not charge more for an instant payment than for a standard credit transfer.
• Stronger protection against fraud and errors: Before a payment is made, providers must verify whether the name of payee (or recipient) matches the IBAN provided, helping people avoid mistakes and scams. This service shall be provided free of charge to the payer.
• Lower costs to process payments: New rules also enable payment and e-money institutions to directly participate in payment systems, so they can provide their payment services, including instant payments, more efficiently.

Next steps

From January 2027, payment service providers outside the euro area will also be required to allow their clients to send and receive instant payments in euro and verify the beneficiary.

The Commission will closely monitor how charges for instant payments evolve and whether there are any other outstanding obstacles to the availability and use of instant payments, and will report to the EU co-legislators to ensure that they remain affordable and accessible.

Background

The Instant Payments Regulation (March 2024) updates the 2012 rules on euro credit transfers to reflect technological progress and the needs of citizens and businesses today.

The rules have been rolled out gradually to ensure a smooth transition for payment service providers. Since 9 January 2025, PSPs in the euro area are prohibited from charging higher fees for instant payments than those applicable to regular transfers. Additionally, providers that do not yet offer instant payments in euro have had to make it possible for their clients to receive them.