IBAN Numbers
- What is IBAN?
- Use of IBAN
- IBAN Standard
- IBAN Terms and definitions
- Registration Authorities for IBAN
- How to find IBAN for Bank Account Number?
- What does IBAN Contains?
- List of IBAN Compliant Countries
- What Is the Difference Between IBAN and SEPA?
- IBAN, SWIFT and BIC
- How International Payments Transferred without IBAN?
International Bank Account Numbers(IBAN)
IBAN stands for International Bank Account Number. It is the ISO 13616 international standard for numbering bank accounts. In 2006, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) designated SWIFT as the Registration Authority for ISO 13616.
Before International Bank Account Numbers were adopted, different European countries had different bank account number formats, and this discrepancy led to errors in cross-border transactions. Then in 1997, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) proposed a new system of global money movement. Today, this international standard is known as ISO 13616-2:2007. With the implementation of IBAN, there are very less chances of error in cross border financial transactions. IBAN system has resulted in safe, secure, accurate and timely execution of wire transfers.
IBAN system has implemented a validation check, to find the correctness of the beneficiary IBAN. Payment is not allowed to transferred if the IBAN validation fails.
Use of IBAN
The ISO 13616 IBAN Standard
Structure
The IBAN structure is defined in ISO 13616-1 and consists of a two-letter ISO 3166-1 country code, followed by two check digits and up to thirty alphanumeric characters for a BBAN (Basic Bank Account Number) which has a fixed length per country and, included within it, a bank identifier with a fixed position and a fixed length per country. The check digits are calculated based on the scheme defined in ISO/IEC 7064 (MOD97-10).Terms and definitions
Bank identifier
The identifier that uniquely identifies the financial institution and, when appropriate, the branch of that financial institution servicing an account In this registry, the branch identifier format is shown specifically, when present.BBAN
basic bank account number: The identifier that uniquely identifies an individual account, at a specific financial institution, in a particular country. The BBAN includes a bank identifier of the financial institution servicing that account.IBAN
international bank account number: The expanded version of the basic bank account number (BBAN), intended for use internationally. The IBAN uniquely identifies an individual account, at a specific financial institution, in a particular country.Registration Authorities for IBAN
How to find IBAN for Bank Account Number?
What does IBAN Contains?
IBAN number has a series of alphanumeric characters, all of which represent an important information to money transfer process. IBAN length is different for different countries but it is same for all the bank account holders of a country, i.e. UK's Banks Account Holders, IBAN length is 22 characters, France IBAN length is 27.
In general, an IBAN number is divided into the following parts:
1. Country code : From left postion 1-2
2. Check digit code : position 3-4
3. Bank identifier code : length differs from country to country
4. Branch code : Not in all countries and length differs from country to country
5. Account number length differs from country to country
The last three (bank, branch, and account numbers) collectively make up the Basic Bank Account Number (BBAN).
To create an example, here's a hypothetical IBAN from a bank in Cyprus:
GB29NWBK60161331926819
Although IBANs are used without any spaces in financial transactions, for convenience we can add some here to make interpreting our fictitious IBAN a little easier.
GB 29 NWBK 601613 31926819
As you can see, United Kingdom uses 22 characters across five sections.
1. The first two characters are the ISO country code. GB is used for Great Britain.
2. The two digits following the country code (29) are the check digits. They help to validate the account number.
3. The next section (NWBK) is the bank code. Obviously, this identifies the specific bank that holds the account. NWBK has been assigned to NATIONAL WESTMINSTER BANK PLC.
4. The fourth string of characters (601613) is the branch code. NATIONAL WESTMINSTER BANK PLC Branch identifier, 601613.
5. Finally, we get to the last string of characters (31926819), which represent a Bank Account Number in NATIONAL WESTMINSTER BANK PLC.
List of IBAN Compliant Countries
Sr No | Country Name | Country Code | IBAN Length | IBAN Electronic Format | IBAN Paper Format |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Andorra | AD | 24 | AD1200012030200359100100 | AD12 0001 2030 2003 5910 0100 |
2 | United Arab Emirates (The) | AE | 23 | AE070331234567890123456 | AE07 0331 2345 6789 0123 456 |
3 | Albania | AL | 28 | AL47212110090000000235698741 | AL47 2121 1009 0000 0002 3569 8741 |
4 | Austria | AT | 20 | AT611904300234573201 | AT61 1904 3002 3457 3201 |
5 | Azerbaijan | AZ | 28 | AZ21NABZ00000000137010001944 | AZ21 NABZ 0000 0000 1370 1000 1944 |
6 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | BA | 20 | BA391290079401028494 | BA39 1290 0794 0102 8494 |
7 | Belgium | BE | 16 | BE68539007547034 | BE68 5390 0754 7034 |
8 | Bulgaria | BG | 22 | BG80BNBG96611020345678 | BG80 BNBG 9661 1020 3456 78 |
9 | Bahrain | BH | 22 | BH67BMAG00001299123456 | BH67 BMAG 0000 1299 1234 56 |
10 | Brazil | BR | 29 | BR1800360305000010009795493C1 | BR18 0036 0305 0000 1000 9795 493C 1 |
11 | Republic of Belarus | BY | 28 | BY13NBRB3600900000002Z00AB00 | BY13 NBRB 3600 9000 0000 2Z00 AB00 |
12 | Switzerland | CH | 21 | CH9300762011623852957 | CH93 0076 2011 6238 5295 7 |
13 | Costa Rica | CR | 22 | CR05015202001026284066 | CR05 0152 0200 1026 2840 66 |
14 | Cyprus | CY | 28 | CY17002001280000001200527600 | CY17 0020 0128 0000 0012 0052 7600 |
15 | Czechia | CZ | 24 | CZ6508000000192000145399 | CZ65 0800 0000 1920 0014 5399 |
16 | Germany | DE | 22 | DE89370400440532013000 | DE89 3704 0044 0532 0130 00 |
17 | Denmark | DK | 18 | DK5000400440116243 | DK50 0040 0440 1162 43 |
18 | Dominican Republic | DO | 28 | DO28BAGR00000001212453611324 | DO28 BAGR 0000 0001 2124 5361 1324 |
19 | Estonia | EE | 20 | EE382200221020145685 | EE38 2200 2210 2014 5685 |
20 | Egypt | EG | 29 | EG380019000500000000263180002 | EG380019000500000000263180002 |
21 | Spain | ES | 24 | ES9121000418450200051332 | ES91 2100 0418 4502 0005 1332 |
22 | Finland | FI | 18 | FI2112345600000785 | FI21 1234 5600 0007 85 |
23 | Faroe Islands | FO | 18 | FO6264600001631634 | FO62 6460 0001 6316 34 |
24 | France | FR | 27 | FR1420041010050500013M02606 | FR14 2004 1010 0505 0001 3M02 606 |
25 | United Kingdom | GB | 22 | GB29NWBK60161331926819 | GB29 NWBK 6016 1331 9268 19 |
26 | Georgia | GE | 22 | GE29NB0000000101904917 | GE29 NB00 0000 0101 9049 17 |
27 | Gibraltar | GI | 23 | GI75NWBK000000007099453 | GI75 NWBK 0000 0000 7099 453 |
28 | Greenland | GL | 18 | GL8964710001000206 | GL89 6471 0001 0002 06 |
29 | Greece | GR | 27 | GR1601101250000000012300695 | GR16 0110 1250 0000 0001 2300 695 |
30 | Guatemala | GT | 28 | GT82TRAJ01020000001210029690 | GT82 TRAJ 0102 0000 0012 1002 9690 |
31 | Croatia | HR | 21 | HR1210010051863000160 | HR12 1001 0051 8630 0016 0 |
32 | Hungary | HU | 28 | HU42117730161111101800000000 | HU42 1177 3016 1111 1018 0000 0000 |
33 | Ireland | IE | 22 | IE29AIBK93115212345678 | IE29 AIBK 9311 5212 3456 78 |
34 | Israel | IL | 23 | IL620108000000099999999 | IL62 0108 0000 0009 9999 999 |
35 | Iraq | IQ | 23 | IQ98NBIQ850123456789012 | IQ98 NBIQ 8501 2345 6789 012 |
36 | Iceland | IS | 26 | IS140159260076545510730339 | IS14 0159 2600 7654 5510 7303 39 |
37 | Italy | IT | 27 | IT60X0542811101000000123456 | IT60 X054 2811 1010 0000 0123 456 |
38 | Jordan | JO | 30 | JO94CBJO0010000000000131000302 | JO94 CBJO 0010 0000 0000 0131 0003 02 |
39 | Kuwait | KW | 30 | KW81CBKU0000000000001234560101 | KW81 CBKU 0000 0000 0000 1234 5601 01 |
40 | Kazakhstan | KZ | 20 | KZ86125KZT5004100100 | KZ86 125K ZT50 0410 0100 |
41 | Lebanon | LB | 28 | LB62099900000001001901229114 | LB62 0999 0000 0001 0019 0122 9114 |
42 | Saint Lucia | LC | 32 | LC55HEMM000100010012001200023015 | LC55 HEMM 0001 0001 0012 0012 0002 3015 |
43 | Liechtenstein | LI | 21 | LI21088100002324013AA | LI21 0881 0000 2324 013A A |
44 | Lithuania | LT | 20 | LT121000011101001000 | LT12 1000 0111 0100 1000 |
45 | Luxembourg | LU | 20 | LU280019400644750000 | LU28 0019 4006 4475 0000 |
46 | Latvia | LV | 21 | LV80BANK0000435195001 | LV80 BANK 0000 4351 9500 1 |
47 | Libya | LY | 25 | LY83002048000020100120361 | LY83 002 048 000020100120361 |
48 | Monaco | MC | 27 | MC5811222000010123456789030 | MC58 1122 2000 0101 2345 6789 030 |
49 | Moldova | MD | 24 | MD24AG000225100013104168 | MD24 AG00 0225 1000 1310 4168 |
50 | Montenegro | ME | 22 | ME25505000012345678951 | ME25 5050 0001 2345 6789 51 |
51 | Macedonia | MK | 19 | MK07250120000058984 | MK07 2501 2000 0058 984 |
52 | Mauritania | MR | 27 | MR1300020001010000123456753 | MR13 0002 0001 0100 0012 3456 753 |
53 | Malta | MT | 31 | MT84MALT011000012345MTLCAST001S | MT84 MALT 0110 0001 2345 MTLC AST0 01S |
54 | Mauritius | MU | 30 | MU17BOMM0101101030300200000MUR | MU17 BOMM 0101 1010 3030 0200 000M UR |
55 | Netherlands (The) | NL | 18 | NL91ABNA0417164300 | NL91 ABNA 0417 1643 00 |
56 | Norway | NO | 15 | NO9386011117947 | NO93 8601 1117 947 |
57 | Pakistan | PK | 24 | PK36SCBL0000001123456702 | PK36 SCBL 0000 0011 2345 6702 |
58 | Poland | PL | 28 | PL61109010140000071219812874 | PL61 1090 1014 0000 0712 1981 2874 |
59 | Palestine State of | PS | 29 | PS92PALS000000000400123456702 | PS92 PALS 0000 0000 0400 1234 5670 2 |
60 | Portugal | PT | 25 | PT50000201231234567890154 | PT50 0002 0123 1234 5678 9015 4 |
61 | Qatar | QA | 29 | QA58DOHB00001234567890ABCDEFG | QA58 DOHB 0000 1234 5678 90AB CDEF G |
62 | Romania | RO | 24 | RO49AAAA1B31007593840000 | RO49 AAAA 1B31 0075 9384 0000 |
63 | Serbia | RS | 22 | RS35260005601001611379 | RS35 2600 0560 1001 6113 79 |
64 | Saudi Arabia | SA | 24 | SA0380000000608010167519 | SA03 8000 0000 6080 1016 7519 |
65 | Seychelles | SC | 31 | SC18SSCB11010000000000001497USD | SC18 SSCB 1101 0000 0000 0000 1497 USD |
66 | Sweden | SE | 24 | SE4550000000058398257466 | SE45 5000 0000 0583 9825 7466 |
67 | Slovenia | SI | 19 | SI56263300012039086 | SI56 2633 0001 2039 086 |
68 | Slovakia | SK | 24 | SK3112000000198742637541 | SK31 1200 0000 1987 4263 7541 |
69 | San Marino | SM | 27 | SM86U0322509800000000270100 | SM86 U032 2509 8000 0000 0270 100 |
70 | Sao Tome and Principe | ST | 25 | ST23000100010051845310146 | ST23 0001 0001 0051 8453 1014 6 |
71 | El Salvador | SV | 28 | SV62CENR00000000000000700025 | SV 62 CENR 00000000000000700025 |
72 | Timor-Leste | TL | 23 | TL380080012345678910157 | TL38 0080 0123 4567 8910 157 |
73 | Tunisia | TN | 24 | TN5910006035183598478831 | TN59 1000 6035 1835 9847 8831 |
74 | Turkey | TR | 26 | TR330006100519786457841326 | TR33 0006 1005 1978 6457 8413 26 |
75 | Ukraine | UA | 29 | UA213223130000026007233566001 | UA21 3223 1300 0002 6007 2335 6600 1 |
76 | Vatican City State | VA | 22 | VA59001123000012345678 | VA59 001 1230 0001 2345 678 |
77 | Virgin Islands | VG | 24 | VG96VPVG0000012345678901 | VG96 VPVG 0000 0123 4567 8901 |
78 | Kosovo | XK | 20 | XK051212012345678906 | XK05 1212 0123 4567 8906 |
What Is the Difference Between IBAN and SEPA?
28 countries are member of SEPA Network. While 78 countries currently use the IBAN system. Multiple currencies can also be sent using IBAN, whereas only Euros can be used on the SEPA network. Now many countries in Middle East and the Caribbean have also begun using the IBAN system for digital money transfers.
IBAN, SWIFT and BIC
How International Payments Transferred without IBAN?
The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication SCRL (SWIFT) has allotted SWIFT Codes/BIC to Bank Branches performing International Payment Transfers, customers desirous of transferring payment internationally can approach these bank Branches to transfer payment to other countries. You can find country-wise, City-wise list of the Bank Branches, enabled for International Payment Transfer with SWIFT Codes from following link: