Cyprus will implement new European Parliament regulations for instant payments from 9 January 2025, enabling round-the-clock bank transfers within 10 seconds across Europe at minimal cost for retail and business customers.
The Central Bank of Cyprus has published details of the implementation of EU Regulation 2024/886 (instant payments regulation) on its website.
The new system will allow users to transfer funds instantly at any time, marking a significant improvement over traditional credit transfers that typically take up to three calendar days to process and are limited to business hours.
According to the European Commission, traditional credit transfers and cheques currently lock up approximately 200 billion euros in the financial system on any given day.
The new instant payment system aims to release these funds for immediate economic use, whether for consumption or investment, thereby supporting economic growth.
Key implementation dates published by the Central Bank include:
- 9 January 2025: Banks must be able to receive instant payments
- 9 October 2025: Banks must be able to send instant payments
- 9 April 2027: Payment institutions and e-money institutions must be able to both receive and send instant payments
- 9 October 2025: Payment service providers must offer instant payments through the same channels as traditional credit transfers
- 9 January 2025: Charges for instant payments must not exceed those for traditional credit transfers, though additional services may incur extra fees
- 9 January 2025: Payment service providers must verify daily whether any of their customers are subject to targeted financial restrictions
- 9 October 2025: Payment service providers must offer customers a service to verify intended payment recipients
