EU Banking Shake-Up 2025: New IBAN Rules, SEPA Instant, Hidden Fees and the Best Expat Strategies

Across Europe, several payment and banking reforms are converging. The common headline is that euro payments should become faster, safer and easier across borders. For expats, that sounds good in theory, but it only helps if your banking setup is adapted.

Three main forces are shaping 2025:

• SEPA Instant transfers becoming a new standard for euro payments.
• Tighter enforcement against IBAN discrimination.
• More transparency expected on FX margins and cross-border fees.

To understand the impact on everyday life, it helps to look closely at SEPA Instant and IBAN protection, then at the way banks actually make money on expats.

EU rules progressively require banks to offer instant euro transfers, known as SEPA Instant, at a price that is similar to regular SEPA transfers. In practice, this means a payment in euros should arrive in seconds, 24 hours a day, rather than in one to three working days.

For expats, this can make life significantly easier:

• Paying rent, deposits or invoices in another EU country at the last minute becomes realistic.
• You can move money between accounts in different countries quickly to avoid overdraft fees.
• It becomes simpler to compare banks that truly align with the spirit of the rules and those that add friction or keep instant payments as a premium feature.

If your bank charges noticeably more for SEPA Instant than for a regular transfer, or only offers it on high-end packages, take it as a warning sign. In that case, it can be worth opening a complementary account with a more transparent provider, especially if you combine this article with the deeper analysis given in Expat Banking 2025: Hidden Fees and IBAN Discrimination.

Under SEPA rules, a euro payment should not be refused simply because your account is located in another SEPA country. Yet many expats have experienced rejections when using accounts from providers such as N26, Revolut or Wise.

In 2025, regulators and consumer organisations are pushing harder on this topic. The direction of travel includes:

• Faster and more visible penalties for companies that systematically refuse compliant SEPA IBANs.
• Stronger pressure on telecoms, utilities and some legacy payment platforms.
• Better public information about the rights of cross-border workers and mobile professionals.

If your IBAN is refused for a euro payment, a practical escalation path looks like this:

1. Take a screenshot of the error message or rejection notice.
2. Contact customer support in writing, clearly explaining that SEPA rules require equal treatment of SEPA IBANs.
3. Report the issue to a dedicated platform such as IBANDiscrimination.eu.
4. If needed, open an additional local-IBAN account for the most rigid providers, while keeping your main international account elsewhere.

The separate guide Expat Banking 2025 offers more detailed scripts and examples for these conversations.

Even when headline fees are reasonable, banks and payment providers still earn a lot of money on the small frictions around your transfers and card payments. The trend in recent years has not been towards lower margins but towards more complex pricing.

For expats, the biggest pain points usually include:

• FX spreads between the real market rate and the rate used on your transfer or card transaction.
• Fixed charges on cross-border wires, especially outside the euro area.
• Extra fees on card payments in foreign currencies.
• Double conversions when you allow an ATM or terminal to convert the currency for you.

A single expat household paying rent in one country, school fees in another and supporting family elsewhere can easily lose hundreds of euros a year this way. The article International Money Transfers from France 2025 goes into detail with numerical examples and real scenarios.

There is no single best bank for every expat. Instead, there are patterns and combinations that work well for most situations. A helpful way to think about this is to separate three layers: local, international and home-country.

• Local bank: handles salary, rent, utilities and taxes where you live.
• International or multi-currency account: handles FX, travel and cross-border transfers.
• Home-country account: keeps your tax history, long-term savings and some contracts stable.

Here is a simplified overview of popular options:

For a broader comparison across countries and profiles, use this article as a companion to the pillar guide Best Banks for Expats in Europe 2025.

Once you accept that no single bank can do everything perfectly, the goal becomes to build a simple, resilient combination adapted to your situation. A few examples show how this plays out.

Profile 1 – Employee in the euro area with family abroad:

• One local bank account in your country of residence for salary, rent and utilities.
• One multi-currency account at Wise to support family and pay larger expenses abroad.
• One home-country account for tax declarations, loans and certain insurance contracts.

Profile 2 – Cross-border worker between France and Switzerland:

• A Swiss account at a bank such as UBS or Raiffeisen, used for salary in Swiss francs.
• A French account (often online) for housing, taxes and daily life in euros.
• A multi-currency account to convert CHF to EUR at better rates and move funds efficiently. For step-by-step guidance, see France–Switzerland Cross-Border Workers.

Profile 3 – Digital nomad rotating between several European countries:

• One main international account with a provider such as Wise or Revolut.
• One or two local accounts in the countries where you spend the most time, reserved for leases and certain admin procedures.
• Careful planning of visas, tax residence and remote-work rules, which are detailed in Digital Nomads 2025.

The structure of your accounts matters, but so do the small decisions you repeat every month. A few habits make a disproportionate difference over a full year.

Practical habits for 2025 include:

• Reducing the number of currency conversions by grouping them into fewer, larger transfers when possible.
• Scheduling automatic transfers between your accounts on key dates such as rent, school fees or mortgage payments.
• Turning off dynamic currency conversion at ATMs and payment terminals whenever you can.
• Concentrating most of your international transfers with one transparent provider so you can track total costs more easily.

Once these routines are in place, your banking setup stops feeling like a puzzle and becomes a quiet background system that supports your life abroad.

Even experienced expats repeat a few classic banking mistakes:

• Relying entirely on a single bank and discovering this is a problem when something goes wrong.
• Accepting that an employer, landlord or provider will only work with one specific bank or IBAN without asking questions.
• Letting ATMs or payment terminals convert currencies automatically at poor rates.
• Forgetting to declare foreign accounts to tax authorities in the country where you now live.

To avoid these traps, it is helpful to revisit foundational guides from time to time, including Opening a European Bank Account and the introductory guide Best Banks for Expats 2025.

To make the impact concrete, imagine three common expat stories.

Example 1 – French engineer in Zurich:

• Before: one traditional bank, salary in francs converted directly to euros at poor rates, scattered fees on every transfer.
• After reorganisation: Swiss account for salary, French online bank for everyday euros, and one multi-currency account focused on CHF to EUR conversions.
• Outcome: several hundred euros saved per year on FX spreads alone, plus more predictable cash flow.

Example 2 – American family in Paris:

• Before: regular transfers from a large US bank directly to a French account, with high international wire fees and wide FX spreads.
• After: use of a multi-currency account to convert dollars to euros at transparent rates, then SEPA transfers to the French bank.
• Outcome: meaningful savings each school year, especially when tuition and housing deposits are high.

Example 3 – Highly mobile independent consultant:

• Before: four or five small local accounts across Europe, each with separate fees and minimums, hard to monitor.
• After: one main international account for invoicing and client payments, plus only the local accounts that are strictly necessary.
• Outcome: simpler admin, clearer tax reporting and lower recurring account charges.

Use this checklist as a quick way to review your situation in light of 2025 banking changes:

• At least one local-IBAN account in your country of residence.
• One reliable multi-currency or international account for transfers and travel.
• Confirmation that your bank offers SEPA Instant transfers without abusive extra costs.
• Scheduled transfers in place for large, predictable expenses.
• A clear process for documenting and reporting any IBAN discrimination you encounter.
• A yearly review of your fee schedule and FX costs.

Once you have gone through this list, your banking setup becomes easier to manage and more aligned with how European rules are evolving. That frees up mental space for what actually matters: building a stable, enjoyable life abroad.