The IBAN (International Bank Account Number) is an internationally agreed means of identifying bank accounts across national borders.
It was originally adopted by the European Committee for Banking Standards (ECBS), and later as an international standard under ISO 13616, which indicates SWIFT as the formal registrar.
Initially developed to facilitate payments within the European Union, it has been implemented by most European countries and many countries in the world, especially in the Middle East and in the Caribbean.
The IBAN consists of up to 34 alphanumeric characters:
- two-letter ISO 3166 country code,
- two check digits,
- a country-specific Basic Bank Account Number (BBAN). The BBAN format is decided by each national banking community.
In France, the IBAN length is 27 characters. In the UK, the IBAN length is 22 characters.
List of countries using IBAN:
(*) countries members of SEPA COM Pacific. The SEPA COM Pacific use the SEPA standard for Credit transferts and Direct Debits in euros:
- between the Republic of France “SEPA area” and the members of SEPA COM
- for exchanges between SEPA COM members