As of 5 May 2026, payments within the SEPA payment scheme's SEPA Credit Transfer will be operationally enabled, which will mean faster, simpler and more favorable execution of transactions in euros to the countries of the SEPA area for clients in Serbia.
Practically, this means that payments in euros to SEPA countries will be executed on the same day for orders submitted by the time for receiving orders defined in the bank's Term Plan, i.e. on the next working day for orders submitted after that time.
In the case of SEPA transactions, the bank's execution fees are more favorable compared to the previous model, and there are no fees from foreign correspondent banks. Funds received via the SEPA payment scheme will be immediately credited to the client's account, without waiting for the client to declare the basis code.
At the same time, the client's obligations based on foreign exchange operations remain in force, which means that it is still necessary to declare to the bank the basis of collection on the same day, and no later than the next working day, as well as to submit the documentation when its submission is prescribed. If the client fails to submit a timely statement on the billing basis code or documentation, or otherwise acts contrary to legal regulations, the bank acts in accordance with applicable regulations, regulatory expectations and internal procedures.
SEPA payments are made exclusively in euros and with the mandatory entry of the recipient's IBAN, while the entry of the BIC or SWIFT code is not necessary. An additional condition is that the recipient's bank is a participant of the SEPA Credit Transfer scheme. All transactions that meet these conditions will be automatically executed by the bank as SEPA payments. Within this scheme, the option SHAR (SHA) is used, that is, the shared cost model, which means that each party bears the fees of its bank, while the recipient's account is approved for the full amount of the payment.
Payments with the option OUR (DEBT) and BEN (CRED) are not executed through the SEPA scheme.
What remains unchanged is that all payments outside the SEPA area, as well as payments in other currencies, continue to be made through the SWIFT network and the network of correspondent banks. Orders can still be submitted via electronic banking or in paper form, and the obligation to submit supporting documentation remains the same for all transactions where it was mandatory until now, whether
on payments or inflows.
The Association of Serbian Banks is glad for the opportunity to support banks in Serbia during the process of accession and implementation of the SEPA Credit Transfer scheme. For additional information, clients can contact their bank's contact center or their client advisor.