NewsSeptember 3, 20261 min read
EPC Rulebooks Still Set 15 November 2026 as the SEPA Cutoff for Unstructured Addresses
Swift said on 27 August 2026 that it will defer all payments changes in Standards Release 2026 after several communities formally asked Swift and their domestic payment market infrastructures for more time to comply.
UPDATE (October 24, 2026)
Correction, 24 October 2026: the 15 November 2026 SEPA cutoff described here no longer stands. Version 1.2 of the 2025 EPC scheme rulebooks, issued and effective 30 September 2026, removed the 15 November 2026 date as of which the unstructured address format is no longer permitted, without setting a new end date, following the September 2026 Payment Scheme Management Board decision. The EPC says it will determine a new end date in due course.
Version 1.1 of the EPC's 2025 SEPA Credit Transfer rulebook stipulates that the 2026 date as of which the unstructured address format is no longer permitted is 15 November 2026.
Swift said it strongly encourages domestic payment market infrastructures and financial institutions to continue pressing ahead, because domestic adoption of structured addresses is a critical enabler of cross-border progress.
Swift will provide an update on the structured address requirement by December at the latest, as part of its governance cycle.
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