SEPA structured addresses
SEPA structured address rules are set by the EPC rulebooks for SCT, SCT Inst, SDD and OCT Inst. <Ctry> has been mandatory in EPC SCT since November 2025; <TwnNm> becomes mandatory at the November 2026 cutover, from which only structured and hybrid formats are allowed in both the Customer-to-PSP and Inter-PSP spaces.
How SEPA structured addresses works in practice
A payer address is required at all only when either PSP sits in a non-EEA SEPA country; intra-EEA it is optional. The cutover applies at 03h30 CET for SCT Inst and OCT Inst. The governing guidance is EPC 153-22, which also records the alignment of the cutover date to 15 November 2026.
Source: the ioNova Postal Address Specification v2.0 §6.5, §10.5–§10.6 (Table 24), Appendix H.1–H.2; EPC 153-22 v2.1; EPC 153-22 v2.1 (Oct 2025).
Parent reference: ISO 20022 structured address mandate.
Sources
Standards & regulatory sources
- EPC guidance document — Provision of Addresses under the EPC Payment Schemes, v2.1 — European Payments Council, October 2025.
ioNova reference material
- ioNova ISO 20022 Postal Address — Requirements and Specifications v2.0, May 2026 — ioNova reference work consolidating the sources above. Request the specification in a demo.
See ioNova ARS in action
The complete ISO 20022 Postal Address — Requirements and Specifications Update 2026 consolidates the CPMI harmonisation requirements, the BIS PIE taskforce report, the PMPG Hybrid Postal Address whitepaper and the EPC address guidance into a single reference.
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