EU Instant Payments Now Mandatory: Eurozone Banks Must Offer 10-Second Euro Transfers
What's the EU Instant Payments Regulation?
Regulation (EU) 2024/886, adopted March 13, 2024 and in force since April 8, 2024, mandates that all payment service providers in the eurozone must offer instant euro transfers. The regulation amends the original SEPA Regulation (260/2012).
Key requirements:
- 10-second settlement: The recipient's account must be credited within 10 seconds. If confirmation isn't received in time, the transaction automatically reverses.
- 24/7/365 availability: Instant payments must be available at all times — no business-hours restrictions.
- No premium pricing: Charges for instant transfers cannot exceed charges for standard SEPA transfers. Banks can no longer charge extra for speed.
- Mandatory offering: Any bank that offers standard SEPA transfers must also offer instant.
- Verification of Payee (VoP): Free service confirming the recipient's name matches the account before execution.
Implementation timeline
| Requirement | Eurozone banks | Non-eurozone EU banks |
|---|---|---|
| Receive instant (EUR) | January 9, 2025 ✅ | January 9, 2027 |
| Send instant (EUR) | October 9, 2025 ✅ | July 9, 2027 |
| Equal charges | January 9, 2025 ✅ | January 9, 2027 |
| Verification of Payee | October 9, 2025 ✅ | July 9, 2027 |
Eurozone banks have had to send instant payments since October 2025. Non-eurozone EU members (Romania, Poland, Sweden, Hungary, Czech Republic, Denmark) have until 2027 for euro payments; Bulgaria joined the euro on January 1, 2026.
What this means for sending money to Europe
If you're sending EUR to a eurozone country (Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Austria, etc.), your transfer should now arrive within 10 seconds via SEPA Instant — at no extra charge over standard SEPA.
Providers like Wise and Revolut already route through SEPA Instant when available. The regulation ensures every eurozone bank now supports it.
Transaction limits: the scheme's former EUR 100,000 cap was removed in October 2025; providers may set their own limits. In non-euro states, providers may limit euro instant transfers sent from national-currency accounts outside business hours, but to no less than EUR 25,000 per transfer.
Non-eurozone EU countries: Romania, Poland, Sweden
These countries use their own currencies (RON, PLN, SEK) but are SEPA members for euro payments. The regulation only applies to euro-denominated payments:
- Euro transfers to/from Romanian, Polish, or Swedish EUR accounts will be instant by 2027
- Local currency transfers (RON, PLN, SEK) continue using national payment systems and are not covered by this regulation
- For the cheapest way to send to these countries, see our Romania guide and Poland guide
UK senders: what changes?
The UK remains in the SEPA geographic scope (grandfathered post-Brexit) but is not bound by this regulation. UK banks can choose to adopt SEPA Instant voluntarily, but there is no legal deadline.
For live rates from the UK to Europe, use our comparison tool and choose GBP to EUR.