SEPA Instant Checker
Check whether a specific bank supports SEPA Instant payments (SCT Inst), which clearing scheme they're on, and whether they can send and receive instant euro transfers 24/7.
SEPA Instant (SCT Inst) transfers complete in under 10 seconds, 24/7, up to EUR 100,000. Both the sending and receiving bank must be enrolled. Scroll down to learn the difference between TIPS and RT1.
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Want guaranteed instant euro transfers? Wise uses SEPA Instant rails for most EUR payments:
TIPS vs RT1: The Two SEPA Instant Infrastructures
TARGET Instant Payment Settlement
Operated by the European Central Bank. Settles in central bank money (TARGET2 reserves). Available 24/7/365. Over 2,000 PSPs reachable. ECB charges EUR 0.002 per transaction. Most euro-area banks connect through TIPS. Mandatory for EU banks from 2025 under EU Instant Payments Regulation.
Real-Time 1 (EBA Clearing)
Operated by EBA Clearing, a private company owned by major European banks. Also 24/7/365. Originally launched in 2017. Wider non-euro SEPA country reach (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, UK through some banks). Many banks use both TIPS and RT1. Interoperable with TIPS since 2022.
TIPS and RT1 are interoperable since July 2022. A payment initiated via TIPS can reach a bank only on RT1, and vice versa. For practical purposes, a bank enrolled in either scheme can exchange instant payments with banks on the other.
SEPA Instant Status: Major European Banks
Click any row for full details. Green badge = SEPA Instant enabled.
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What Is SEPA Instant Payment?
SEPA Instant Credit Transfer, formally known as SCT Inst, is a euro payment scheme created by the European Payments Council (EPC) that enables transfers between enrolled accounts to complete in under 10 seconds. Unlike standard SEPA Credit Transfer (SCT) which processes only on banking business days and can take up to one business day to clear, SEPA Instant operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, including weekends and public holidays. The maximum transaction amount is EUR 100,000.
SEPA Instant was launched in November 2017 and has seen rapid adoption across the eurozone and wider SEPA area. The EU Instant Payments Regulation, which came into force in 2024, mandates that all euro-area payment service providers must support the sending and receiving of SEPA Instant transfers by specific deadlines. This means that within the next few years, SEPA Instant will effectively become the default payment method for euro transfers within Europe.
For a SEPA Instant transfer to work, both the sending bank and the receiving bank must be enrolled in SCT Inst. If the receiving bank is not on SEPA Instant, the sending bank's system either rejects the request or automatically falls back to a standard SEPA Credit Transfer. Digital banks like Wise, Revolut, and N26 built their euro payment architecture around SEPA Instant and typically offer instant EUR transfers as the default.
How to Know If a Transfer Will Be Instant
Three conditions must all be true for a SEPA Instant transfer to clear in under 10 seconds. First, the sending bank must be enrolled in SCT Inst and offer instant as a payment option. Second, the receiving bank must also be enrolled and reachable via the SEPA Instant infrastructure. Third, the amount must be within the scheme maximum of EUR 100,000 and the individual bank limits set by both banks.
Even when both banks support instant, some transactions are declined in real time. Banks run their own risk and fraud checks on every instant payment. A payment might clear at 3am on a Sunday without issue, or it might be flagged and delayed even during business hours. The scheme guarantees that if accepted, the transfer completes in 10 seconds, but acceptance is not guaranteed.
The easiest way to verify whether a specific bank supports SEPA Instant is the tool above, which checks against the EPC SCT Inst participant register. You can also check directly at the EPC website or ask your bank.
Check if a country is SEPA eligible with our SEPA Eligibility Checker. Validate IBANs with our IBAN Validator. Look up German BLZ codes with our German BLZ Checker.
SCT Inst participant data sourced from EPC (European Payments Council) SCT Inst participant register. Data last updated: January 2025. The EPC updates this list frequently. Check epc-cep.eu for the latest.
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Frequently Asked Questions
SEPA Instant (SCT Inst) enables euro transfers between enrolled accounts in under 10 seconds, 24/7/365, up to EUR 100,000. Both sending and receiving banks must be enrolled. Operated via TIPS (ECB) and/or RT1 (EBA Clearing).
Most major European banks now support SEPA Instant. In Germany: Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, DKB, ING Germany, N26, Sparkassen. Netherlands: ING, Rabobank, ABN AMRO. France: BNP Paribas, Societe Generale. Spain: Santander, BBVA. Digital banks like Wise, Revolut, and N26 use SEPA Instant as default. Use the checker above for any specific bank.
Yes. SEPA Instant operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year including weekends and public holidays. Both the sending and receiving bank must be enrolled in SCT Inst for a transfer to clear instantly at any time of day.
The scheme maximum is EUR 100,000 per transaction. Individual banks may set lower limits. Check your bank's app for their specific instant limit. Some banks cap it at EUR 15,000 or EUR 25,000 for consumer accounts.
TIPS is operated by the European Central Bank and settles in central bank money. RT1 is operated by EBA Clearing (private). Both process SCT Inst in under 10 seconds and have been interoperable since 2022. A bank may connect to either or both.
SEPA Instant must complete within 10 seconds. In practice most transfers settle in 2 to 5 seconds. This is much faster than standard SEPA Credit Transfer (up to 1 business day), UK Faster Payments (up to 2 hours), and comparable to Brazil's PIX system.
Yes. For a transfer to clear instantly, both sending and receiving banks must be enrolled in SCT Inst. If the receiving bank is not enrolled, the sending bank falls back to standard SEPA Credit Transfer (up to 1 business day) or rejects the instant request.