How can I submit international transfers in foreign currencies?

  • Updated

You can now make a foreign currency transfer through our partner Wise which enables you to process it using local networks, in addition to SWIFT.

This solution is quicker, cheaper and offers the same frictionless experience as Wise. You can now send GBP to the UK, INR to India, AUD to Australia (and many more currencies), which will be credited from a few seconds to up to 3 working days. The precise receiving time will be indicated on your app when you will make a transfer.

You will be able to send USD to any country from the list with the SWIFT network. All other currencies than USD are only sendable to their home country (find the list of available countries below).

👆Good to know: to send USD to the USA, you will have to use ACH network, not SWIFT (requirements shown in the List of accepted currencies tab below).

You can make an international transfer with the same level of speed and easiness as with Wise, directly from your Qonto account. You do not need a Wise account.

What is the fee?

The fees for SWIFT international transfers in foreign currencies applied will be as follow.

Please note that they have been revised in order to offer you a more competitive offer with several improvements!

  • much faster turnaround times (some of them instantly)

  • we will be able to estimate the date of reception of the transfer for your beneficiary

  • the list of accessible countries is much larger

For 75% of your transactions, we will be able to execute your transfers via our partner's national account network.

Here we distinguish between:

  • standard currencies, such as USD / GBP / CHF

  • non-standard currencies (INR, AED, CAD, ILS, HKD, TRY, THB, UYU, KES, CRC, CLP, HUF, VND, MXN, GHS, AUD, IDR, MAD, SGD, ZAR, KRW, JPY, PLN, SEK, DKK, NOK, RON).

Depending on your subscription, you will have a higher or lower rate.

Cost via our partner's national accounts:

  • minimum fee of €5 or application of the following rate if the fees are greater than €5.

    For USD transfers to a non-US country, a fixed fee of €5 or €15 will be added depending on the payment option chosen by our partner's algorithm and which will be the most advantageous for you: SHA or OUR.

 

Pricing local rails

Pricing local rails

Pricing SWIFT - SHA

Pricing SWIFT - OUR

 

 

USD to USA, GBP, CHF

All other currencies (INR; MAD; etc)

 

USD to non-US country

 

USD to non-US country

Basic

0,80 %

1,80 %

0,80 % + 5 €

0,80 % + 15 €

Smart

0,80 %

1,80 %

0,80 % + 5 €

0,80 % + 15 €

Premium

0,56 %

1,56 %

0,56 % + 5 €

0,80 % + 15 €

Essential

0,56 %

1,56 %

0,56 % + 5 €

0,80 % + 15 €

Business

0,56 %

1,56 %

0,56 % + 5 €

0,80 % + 15 €

Enterprise

0,56 %

1,56 %

0,56 % + 5 €

0,80 % + 15 €

 

Minimum fee = 5 €

Minimum fee = 5 €

 

 

💡Good to know: the exchange rate indicated will in most cases be the rate applied to the transaction, but in rare cases it may be a different rate.

It can also happen if you delay in validating the transfer or if a request for information is sent to you by our Compliance department.

What's the receiving time? ⏱

You will be able to submit international transfers in foreign currencies at anytime and the cutoff for payouts actually differ according to the currency.

It is necessary to consider the bank holidays of the banks through which the transfer will pass.

Different time zones can also affect the delay of transmission and reception of the transfer.

👆Good to know:

International transfers in foreign currencies can be submitted during markets open hours only for most of the currencies.

This means that most of banks don’t process transfers during weekends and bank holidays. In a case of international transfers in foreign currencies, please keep in mind that you have several holidays around the world, where banks are not working. Your transfers will be processed the next open day during markets open hours for most of the currencies.

At this day, your Qonto account does not allow you to transfer currencies to individuals that are not businesses but professional such as contractors/freelancers are allowed.

In case you want to pay an individual, please provide a contractual agreement that highlights the payment purpose.

Your transfer might be declined if supporting documentation is not provided, and the euro equivalent might be affected when we credit back your account.

List of accepted currencies ✅ (outgoing international transfers in foreign currencies)

Currency

Information required

Delay

Additional information

AED

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• Account number: IBAN 23 digits, starting with AE
• Reference up to 35 characters

up to 1 working day

 

AUD

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• BSB code: 6 digits
• Account number: minimum 5 and maximum 9 digits
• Recipient’s full address (PO boxes are not accepted)
• Reference up to 18 characters

up to 2 working days

There are no name checks, it is then extremely important to input the account number correctly.


If the incorrect account number belongs to an existing account, it will be credited to there.

CAD

Local bank (local EFT):
• Beneficiary’s full name
• 3-digit institution number
• 5-digit transit number
• 7-12 digit local account number

If your recipient doesn’t know this information, here’s
how to find their institution and transit number.


Interac E-Payment:
• Beneficiary’s
full name
• E-mail address (must be registered with the bank and
Interac)

Wise emails
you with the 6 digit PIN, which they need to enter through the link they receive from Interac in a separate email.

⚠️ If you do not claim the funds in 3 days or enter an incorrect PIN 3 times, the funds will be returned to Wise.

up to 1 working day

 

CHF

• Beneficiary’s full name

• IBAN: starting with CH or LI (so local accounts in Switzerland and Liechtenstein)
• Reference up to 50 characters

up to 1 working day

Payments to CHF are subject to Swiss banks' compliance checks, which can delay the crediting to the recipient.

CLP

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• Account number: maximum 20 digits
• Bank name (from drop-down list)
• Recipient's RUT number (7-8 digits and a check digit) count type: checking/savings/demand
• Recipient's phone number

1 working day

 

CRC

• Beneficiary’s full name
• Recipient’s IBAN: 22 characters long (letters and
numbers) and begins with CR
• Business registration number (CJU Cedula): 10 digits and must start with 3 (company registration numbers that start with 4 are no longer valid according to our partner)
• Reference up to 35 characters

up to 1 working day

 

GBP

• Beneficiary’s name or business name Account details
• Sort code 6 digits
• Account number 8 digits
• IBAN : up to 34 characters, starting with GB
• Reference up to 18 characters

instant

We currently cannot process payments to National Savings & Investments bank (NS&I) sort codes due to their terms and conditions.

HKD

• Beneficiary’s full name
• 9-12 digit local account number
• 3 digit bank code (clearing code)
• Recipient’s full address

45minutes on working days

It is not possible to send payments to 2 virtual banks for now, which are Tap&Go and O! Epay.

HUF

• Beneficiary’s full name
• IBAN: 28 characters containing a mix of letters and numbers, starting with HU
• or Hungarian local 24 characters

⚠️ If the recipient’s account is 16 digits, Wise will automatically adds 8 zeros at the end of the account number.

up to 1 working day

 

IDR

Local bank (Inter bank transfer):
• Beneficiary’s full name
• Bank name
• Account number

e-Wallet:
• Beneficiary’s full name
• E-Wallet provider
• E-Wallet number

up to 1 working day

 

ILS

• Full name of the account holder: up to 35 characters
• IBAN: 23 digits, structure is as described below
ILkkBBBNNNCCCCCCCCCCCCC
IL = Country code
k = Check Digit
B = Bank identification
N = Branch identification
C= Account number (13 digits padded with zeros)
• Beneficiary address

⚠️ City, country and post code must be in Latin and not Hebrew.

up to 1 working day

Check that the recipient’s name you indicate is identical to the one on their bank account as, although there are no exact name matching rules, beneficiary banks can carry out manual reviews prior or after the settlement. This could result in the reversal of funds.



INR

Local bank (Bank transfer):
• Beneficiary’s full name
• Account number: minimum 5 digits and maximum 20 digits
• IFSC: 11 characters (both letters and numbers), usually starts
with 4 letters
• Reference up to 16 characters
• Transfer purpose is required


UPI:
• Beneficiary’s full name
• UPI ID
• Transfer purpose is required

Bank transfer: up to 1h30 on working days


UPI: instant

It is not possible to send funds:
- to charities and trusts
- for investment purposes.

We do not provide a FIRC certificate.

JPY

• Beneficiary’s full name, usually in Katakana
• Account number: 7 digits
• Account type: 普通: Futsuu - current; general; ordinary; usual / 貯蓄: Chochiku - savings / 当座: Touza - checking
• Bank name or branch: in English, Katakana, Kanji, or provide a bank or branch code
• Transfer purpose is required
• Reference: up to 20 characters

from 5 to 20 minutes depending on the recipient’s bank

 

KES

• Beneficiary’s full name
• Account number: minimum 8 digits and maximum 20 digits
• Reference up to 20 characters

instant

It is not possible to send funds to business recipient’s mobile wallets.

 

⚠️ The following beneficiary banks are not supported:
Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Habib Bank, M-Oriental Bank, Habib Bank A.G. Zurich, Consolidated Bank of Kenya, Transnational Bank, SMB Bank (Kenya) Limited, Imperial Bank Limited, Giro Commercial Bank, Ecobank Kenya, SPIRE BANK LTD, Development Bank of Kenya, UBA Kenya Bank

KRW

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 256 characters
• Bank name
• Account number: minimum 11 and maximum 16 digits
• Reference: up to 35 characters

up to 15minutes

 

MAD

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• Account number (RIB): 24 digits. Details:
bank code:3 digits
city/branch code: 3–8 digits
account number: 11–16 digits
RIB key: 2 digits
• Reference up to 50 characters

up to 2 working days

Some banks in Morocco charge receiving fees: Al Barid, Attijariwafa, BMCE, BMCI, Crédit du Maroc and Société Générale Maroc may charge a receiving fee of up to 20 MAD.



MXN

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 40 characters
• Account number (CLABE): 18 digits.
Details:
3 digits: Bank Code
3 digits: Branch Office Code
11 digits: Account Number
1 digit: Control Digit
• Reference up to 40 characters

You can check if the CLABE is valid using this
validator.

instant

 

MYR

Local bank transfer:
• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 50 characters
• Account number: minimum 7 digits and maximum 20 digits
• Bank name
• Reference: up to 35 characters

DuitNow:
• Beneficiary’s full name: 50 characters
• Account type: Mobile numbers, Army/Police number, Business Registration number, NRIC
• DuitNow ID
• Reference: up to 35 characters

up to 1 working day

 

SGD

Local bank (Account transfer):
• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• Account number: length varies by recipient bank
• Bank name
• Reference: up to 25 characters


Paynow:
• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• Phone number starting with 65/+65
• Reference: up to 25 characters

up to 1 working day

For transfers inferior to 200k SGD, they will be treated as instant transfer. It will take up to 1 working day for transfers above this amount.

THB

• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 35 characters
• Account number: minimum 5 digits and maximum 16 digits
• Bank name
• Recipient’s full address
• Reference

from 15 minutes up to 20h on working days depending on the recipient’s bank

Due to regulations, you can only send 50,000 THB or more per transfer to the 3 following banks :
Bangkok Bank Public Company (BBL)
Kasikorn Bank (KBank)
Siam Commercial Bank (SCB)

TRY

• Beneficiary’s full name: 50 characters
• IBAN: 26 digits, starting with TR
• Reference: up to 35 characters

depends on the amount

Payments to Northern Cyprus should be instructed as regular TRY payments.

USD

USD is the exception where you can use the local payment method or the SWIFT network.

ACH
(transfers to the USA)


• Beneficiary’s full name: up to 18 characters
• Account number: minimum 4 and maximum 17 digits
• ACH routing number: 9 digits
• Recipient’s full address (PO boxes are not accepted)
• Reference: up to 10 characters

The routing number should support ACH payments.


SWIFT (transfers outside the USA)


• Beneficiary’s full name
• SWIFT/BIC code
• IBAN/account number
• Recipient’s address (for countries that don’t use postal codes, you can enter 99999)
• Transfer purpose is required

ACH : 1-3 working days

SWIFT : 1-5 working days

We do not support For Further Credit (FFC payments).

ACH payments are for domestic accounts located in the US. We cannot send FFC payments where the final beneficiary account is based outside the U.S., or if the domestic recipient requires sub account details, such as with some brokerage firms.

If you enter FFC details for your recipient, the transfer will either bounce back or
be stuck in the intermediary bank.

UYU

• Beneficiary’s full name
• Account type: checking / savings
• Account number: maximum 20 digits
• Business ID number RUT/RUC: 12 digits
• Bank name
• Bank branch: required only when sending to Banco
Santander - needs to be selected from drop-down list
• Reference: up to 35 characters

up to 2 working days

 

ZAR

• Beneficiary’s full name: 35 characters
• Recipient’s email address
• Account number: minimum 7 digits and maximum 11 digits
• Bank name
• Recipient’s phone number
• Reference up to 18 characters

up to 2 working days

⚠️ Every sender-recipient pair needs to fill in a mandate form once per calendar year when the payment is sent out.

This is a requirement from the South African Reserve Bank.

Our partner emails the recipient with the link to the form, and they will have 7 days to complete it. If they don’t, the payment will be returned to Wise.

The receiving times indicated above are estimations. The specific delays per currency will be indicated on your interface on the One Last Look screen, before validating the transfer.

☝️ Good to know: certain currencies are sendable without an IBAN (SGD, USD via ACH network...)

For more information regarding international transfers in EUR, click here.

List of accepted countries ✅ (outgoing international transfers in foreign currencies)

Albania

Algeria

Andorra

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Argentina

Armenia

Australia

Austria

Bahrain

Barbados

Belgium

Benin

Bhutan

Bolivia

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Brunei Darussalam

Bulgaria

Burkina Faso

Canada

Chile

China

Costa Rica

Croatia

Cyprus

Czech Republic

Denmark

Dominica

Dominican republic

Ecuador

El Salvador

Egypt

Estonia

Ethiopia

Fiji

Finland

France

French Polynesia

Gabon

Gambia

Georgia

Germany

Ghana

Greece

Guatemala

Guinea

Guinea-Bissau

Guyana

Haiti

Honduras

Hong Kong

Hungary

Iceland

India

Indonesia

Ireland

Israel

Italy

Ivory Coast

Jamaica

Japan

Jordan

Kazakhstan

Kenya

Kuwait

Laos

Latvia

Libanon

Liberia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Malawi

Malaysia

Mali

Malta

Mauritania

Mauritius

Mexico

Micronesia

Monaco

Montenegro

Morocco

Namibia

Nepal

Netherlands

New-Zealand

North Macedonia

Norway

Oman

Palau

Paupa New Guinea

Paraguay

Peru

Poland

Portugal

Qatar

Romania

Saudi Arabia

Rwanda

Saint Lucia

Saint Vincent’s & Grenadines

Samoa

San Marino

Sao Tome and Principal

Senegal

Serbia

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Singapore

Slovakia

Slovenia

South Africa

South Korea

Spain

Sri Lanka

Suriname

Sweden

Switzerland

Taiwan

Tajikistan

Tanzania

Thailand

Timor Leste

Tonga

Tunisia

Turkey

Tuvalu

Ukraine

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

United States Of America

Uruguay

Uzbekistan

Vatican

Vietnam

👆 Good to know: The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are two different countries (the first is one of the accepted countries, the second is not).

How can I initiate an international transfer?

💻 On your web app

  1. Go to the Business Account section

  2. Click on the Transfers tab and click on Make a transfer

  3. Select International transfer

  4. In case you have several accounts, select the one you want to debit

  5. Select the amount and the currency you want to send

  6. Select a beneficiary or enter the information about a new beneficiary. We will save this beneficiary automatically so that you won't have to create it again

  7. Enter the transfer reference (optional)

  8. Add an Attachment such as a bank statement or an invoice, so the transfer can be verified (for transfers of more than €30 000)

  9. Take a last look on the transfer details, and click on Submit

📱 On your mobile app

  1. Go to the Menu section

  2. Click on Transfers

  3. Click on the + symbol on the top right corner

You will have 2 choices:

  • add an invoice

  • add the transfer details

You have other options in order to personalise your transfer. Click on the toggles of the following options you want to use:

  • Beneficiary notification, in case you want us to send an email to the beneficiary with transfer details

  • Bookkeeping details, which allows you to define beneficiary VAT rate, custom labels in case you have it in your price plan, and a note to remember what this transfer is about

  • Click on Continue

  • Take a last look on the transfer details, and click on Submit

You will probably be asked to confirm the operation with you mobile phone.

💡 Please keep in mind that a minimum amount will be necessary in order to execute some swift-out transfers, around 10€ for all currencies / 36€ for Kenyan Shillings.

If you want to find/check a BIC/SWIFT code, you can use our BIC/SWIFT search engine.

👆Good to know:

As part of our partnership with Wise, you are no longer able to send the following currencies:

  • TND (Tunisian Dinar)

  • CNY (Chinese Yuan)

  • CZK (Czech Koruna)

  • SAR (Saudi Riyal)

  • NZD (New Zealand Dollar)

  • BHD (Bahraini Dinar)

Please note that our team is working hard to restore the availability of these currencies

In the meantime, as a workaround, you can send USD to those countries (some banks support USD or can convert USD to the intended currency - this can be checked with the beneficiary).