How to send money to Europe in 2026: in euros, to an account and card in any EU country

In 2026 money is sent to Europe by bank transfer in euros to an account or card at a European bank. From outside the EU a payment takes 1-3 business days, and within the EU an instant transfer arrives in 10 seconds. Above 1,000 euros ($1,200) the bank checks the sender's data.

In detail

The rules depend on the zone the money is going to; checked on 9 October 2026.

Five ways to send money to Europe: currency, limit and timing

The simplest way to send money to Europe in 2026 is a bank transfer in euros to an account or card at a European bank. Within the EU an instant euro transfer arrives in up to 10 seconds and costs no more than an ordinary one, while from a non-EU country a payment takes 1-3 business days through correspondent banks. Euro payment rules are common to the 41 countries of the single payments area, while taxes on gifts and income are set by each country - and those are worth checking before the transfer.

The table rows were checked on 8 October 2026 against the EU regulations on instant transfers and on payment services. Dollars on this page are at the European Central Bank rate for 7 October 2026, 1.1177 dollars per euro, rounded up.

Example: 10,000 euros to your own account in Portugal

A transfer of 10,000 euros ($12,000) to your own account at a bank in Portugal from a non-EU country goes by bank transfer in 1-3 business days.

The sum is over 1,000 euros, so before crediting the bank will check the sender's name, account number and address, and for a large incoming payment it will ask for the source: an income certificate and a statement of the account the money left from will do.

Instant euro transfers: 10 seconds and a check of the recipient's name

Since 9 October 2025 every euro area bank must not only receive but also send instant euro transfers - on any day and at any hour, weekends and holidays included. The money reaches the recipient's account within 10 seconds of the bank accepting the order; if confirmation does not arrive in that time, the sum is returned to the sender at once.

• Price. An instant transfer costs no more than an ordinary euro transfer at the same bank, and the recipient name check is free.
• Name check. Before sending, the bank compares the recipient's name with the account number and shows the answer: match, close match or no match. A typo is visible before the money is debited, and this rule applies to all euro transfers, not just instant ones.
• Amount. The law sets no limit: the client sets a daily or per-transfer limit in the bank's app and changes it at any time.
• Countries with their own currency. Banks in Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Sweden and Denmark receive instant euro transfers from 9 January 2027 and send them from 9 July 2027.

For a sender from a non-EU country, an instant transfer starts on the European side: the money first reaches a bank in the EU, and from there euros travel within that country or to a neighbouring one in seconds. So it is convenient to receive the sum in your own account in one EU country and pay rent, studies or a purchase in other countries from it.

The single payments area: 41 countries where a euro transfer works like a domestic payment

The single euro payments area unites the 27 EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway and 11 more countries: Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Monaco, San Marino, Andorra, Vatican City, Albania, Montenegro, Moldova, North Macedonia and Serbia. Within the area a euro transfer follows the same rules and the same account number format.

• Timing. The sender's bank delivers the money to the recipient's bank by the end of the next business day at the latest, a paper order a day longer. The recipient's bank credits it on the day it arrives and makes it available at once.
• Price. A euro transfer to another EU country costs the same as a domestic payment of the same amount in the sender's bank country. Banks in non-euro countries also follow this rule of Regulation 2021/1230; it does not cover currency conversion.
• New members. Banks in Albania, Montenegro, Moldova and North Macedonia have handled area payments since October 2025, and banks in Serbia since 5 May 2026.

How transfers to area countries outside the EU work is covered separately: Switzerland, United Kingdom, Serbia and Moldova.

Six EU countries with their own currency

The euro is the currency of 21 EU countries: on 1 January 2026 Bulgaria joined the euro area, with the lev converted at 1.95583 per euro. Six countries have kept their own currency, and an account there is opened in the local currency or in euros.

To avoid an extra conversion, money is sent straight in the currency of the recipient's account. If the recipient in Warsaw or Prague keeps a euro account, a euro transfer arrives without conversion and under the single payments area rules.

The account number and a European bank card: what to put in the transfer

A European account number starts with two country letters and two check digits, followed by the bank code and the account number itself. The length depends on the country: from 16 characters in Belgium to 31 in Malta.

Checked on 8 October 2026.

A European bank card is issued to an account, so a transfer to it goes by that account's number - it is shown in the bank's app next to the card. The money arrives in the account currency and is available on the card at once. A transfer from outside the EU comes with the sender's full name, account number and address; if something is missing, the recipient's bank requests the data before crediting, and the transfer is delayed. Not sure which details to state? A manager will check them with you before sending.

Where a non-resident or someone relocating can receive a transfer in Europe

Under Directive 2014/92 anyone legally resident in an EU country has the right to open a basic payment account in any EU country - even without a permanent address. The bank considers the application the same way for any citizenship and country of residence, replies within 10 business days at the latest, and the service costs nothing or a reasonable fee.

A non-resident gets an account when the bank sees a link to the country: studies, work, buying or renting a home, a move. So it is convenient to start with the country where that link already exists or will appear first, rather than with the best-known bank.

How an account abroad works and what the bank asks is covered in a bank account abroad in 2026.

Deposits up to 100,000 euros and extra protection for money from a home sale

Deposits at EU banks are protected by a state guarantee of up to $120,000 (100,000 euros) per depositor at each bank. Money from selling your own home, an inheritance or a retirement payout is protected above this sum for several months - under each country's rules:

Directive 2026/804 has been in force since 10 May 2026: by 11 May 2028 every EU country will protect such incoming money by at least $560,000 (500,000 euros) above the standard guarantee for 6 months, and money from a home deal by up to $2,800,000 (2,500,000 euros).

Is your sum larger than the guarantee? There are more working options for this than it seems: tell a manager about your situation, and they will choose a route.

A gift to family in Europe: where there is no tax and where there is a large allowance

Transferring your own money is not taxed in any EU country. Tax arises when money is given as a gift: the recipient pays it, and each country sets its own rates and allowances.

A large sum for family is formalised with a gift agreement or a gift letter: that way the bank and the tax office see a gift straight away, not income. If the recipient is a tax resident of another country, the tax is also calculated under its rules.

A large sum to Europe: what the bank asks at each level

The law does not limit the amount of a transfer to Europe, but the recipient's bank looks at it differently - the larger the payment, the more detailed the question about the origin of the money.

For buying a home, a deposit or a business in the EU we collect documents on the origin of the money to the requirements of the specific bank and handle the correspondence with it; more on this in the capital relocation section. Sending more than $120,000? A manager will suggest the best way to send such a sum for your case.

What helps pass the bank's check is covered in sending a large sum abroad, proof of source of funds and moving home sale proceeds abroad.

Money to Europe from Kazakhstan and Belarus: what the sender's bank asks

$50,000 (22.7 million tenge) is the sum from which a bank in Kazakhstan, when sending money to Europe, fills in currency transaction details with the client on the National Bank form. A resident of Kazakhstan does not report their account at a European bank to the National Bank: the transfer there is reflected in the reports of the sender's bank. A bank in Kazakhstan sends a transfer to family up to $10,000 without a contract, and a larger one under a gift agreement or an invoice for studies or medical treatment.

From Belarus money goes to your own account at a European bank without documents: since 1 March 2019 such an account has been opened without the permission of the National Bank of Belarus. Euros are sent from a Belarusian bank not included in the EU lists, and the transfer then travels within the EU as an ordinary euro payment.

Rates on 7 October 2026: 453.65 tenge and 3.0739 BYN per dollar according to the national banks; the rules were checked on 9 October 2026.

Transfers to individual European countries: detailed guides

• Germany: a tax-free gift to a child and paying for a flat through a notary.
• Spain: the foreigner number for an account and gift tax by region.
• Italy: the tax code before the first transfer.
• Portugal: a tax number and an account even before you move.
• Cyprus: a link to the island for an account and the 60-day rule.
• Poland: zloty, transfers by phone number and gifts to family.
• Czech Republic: koruna or euros and instant payments within the country.
• Next to the EU: Switzerland, United Kingdom, Serbia and Moldova.
• Other European countries: Austria, Albania, Andorra, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Vatican City, Hungary, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Greece, Denmark, Jersey, Ireland, Iceland, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, San Marino, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Finland, France, Croatia, Montenegro, Sweden, Estonia.

All the destination countries where we help move capital are collected on the capital relocation page.

Sending money to neighbouring countries

• United Kingdom - pounds to a British account
• Switzerland - large sums after a check of their origin
• Norway - kroner or euros under the single area rules
• Serbia - dinars and euros to a 22-character account
• Turkey - lira and foreign currency in 1-5 business days
• Georgia - lari, dollars and euros to your own account
• Armenia - drams to an account or card

We handle moving capital to Europe and neighbouring countries as part of the capital relocation service.

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