Hungary IBAN
A Hungary IBAN is 28 characters long and Hungary is in SEPA.
HU and two check digits open every Hungary IBAN; its remaining 24 form the BBAN (Basic Bank Account Number).
Example Hungary IBAN
Electronic format
HU42117730161111101800000000
Print format
HU42 1177 3016 1111 1018 0000 0000
IBAN structure for Hungary
Major banks in Hungary
8 banks in Hungary that support IBAN-based international transfers:
Format reference: SWIFT IBAN Registry.
Hungary IBAN questions
What is the IBAN format for Hungary?
A Hungarian IBAN is exactly 28 characters long — one of the longest in Europe. It starts with HU, 2 check digits, and then the full 24-digit domestic Giro account number, which itself includes a 3-digit bank code, 4-digit branch code, 1 check digit, a 15-digit account number, and a final check digit. Example: HU42 1177 3016 1111 1018 0000 0000.
Why is the Hungarian IBAN 28 characters?
Hungary's IBAN is 28 characters because the domestic Giro account number used for all Hungarian bank accounts is 24 digits long. The IBAN wraps the entire 24-digit domestic number with the HU country code and 2 check digits, resulting in the full 28-character format.
Is Hungary part of SEPA?
Yes, for euro payments, as an EU member. The forint stays the account currency, though, so a euro credit to a HUF account is converted on arrival unless the recipient has a euro account with its own IBAN.
What bank codes do OTP Bank, K&H Bank and Erste Bank Hungary use?
The first three digits after HU and the check digits are the bank's own code — OTP Bank's is 117, which is why OTP account numbers begin 117 — and the next four identify the branch. Your bank prints both as the first eight-digit block of the domestic account number.
How do I find my IBAN at a Hungarian bank?
Hungarians usually know their account as two or three eight-digit blocks (the pénzforgalmi jelzőszám). The 28-character HU IBAN is the 24-digit form of that number with HU and two check digits in front; OTP SmartBank, K&H mobilbank and Erste's George show it under the account's details.
Can someone abroad pay my Hungarian mobile-number alias?
No. A mobile number, e-mail address or tax number registered as a secondary account identifier works only for instant forint transfers inside Hungary. A payer abroad needs the full HU IBAN and, for forints or a non-SEPA payment, the bank's BIC.
Can I receive HUF from abroad via SEPA?
No. SEPA carries euros only. Forints from abroad travel over SWIFT with HUF as the payment currency, and the sender needs your HU IBAN and your bank's BIC. Some international services do not pay out in HUF, in which case receiving euros and converting locally may be the only option.
What is Hungary's instant payment system and does it use IBAN?
The Azonnali Fizetési Rendszer (AFR), which the MNB launched on 2 March 2020, moves forint between Hungarian accounts within seconds, around the clock. Banks address it by the account number or IBAN, or by a registered mobile number, e-mail address or tax number.
Hungary: forint accounts, GIRO aliases and five-second AFR transfers
A Hungarian account number (pénzforgalmi jelzőszám) is 16 or 24 digits, written in blocks of eight; the 28-character HU IBAN is the 24-digit form with HU and two check digits in front. Hungary keeps the forint, and the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB) sets the rules for forint payments between Hungarian accounts.
- The MNB's instant payment system went live on 2 March 2020 to move forint between Hungarian payment accounts within seconds, 24 hours a day, every day of the year. It covers single forint transfers initiated electronically; a payment arriving from abroad is not an AFR transfer, whatever its speed.
- Inside Hungary a payer can address an instant forint transfer to a mobile number, e-mail address or tax number that the recipient has registered with their bank as a secondary account identifier, which GIRO matches to the account in a central register. These aliases work only for instant transfers, so a sender outside Hungary still needs the full HU IBAN.
- Hungarian banks follow the non-euro timetable of the EU instant-payments rules: incoming instant euro payments from 9 January 2027, outgoing ones and payee name checks from 9 July 2027.
- Many Hungarian accounts are held in forints only. A SEPA euro transfer into one is converted to HUF on arrival at the receiving bank's rate, a cost the sender's SEPA confirmation does not show, so ask the recipient whether a euro account with its own IBAN exists.
Sources: MNB: instant payment service; GIRO: payment requests and secondary identifiers; ECB: Instant Payments Regulation timetable.
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