Since early June, a rumor that has gone viral on TikTok claims that, starting October 16, 2025, any transfer over €800 between individuals will be automatically blocked for 24 hours for verification by the tax authorities. This widely shared message has raised concerns among many internet users, fueling fears of an attack on their freedom to manage their funds.
We can reassure you right away: this claim is based on a distortion of a real European banking reform, but the scope and terms of which are very different from what is circulating on social media.
What does the new European regulation provide?
On March 13, 2024, the European Parliament adopted a regulation requiring all banks and payment service providers in the eurozone to offer instant transfers in euros without additional fees. But the real change expected for October 9, 2025 concerns payment security: the obligation to introduce the Verification of Payee (VoP) system.
What is VoP?
VoP is a technical system that requires banks to verify, when initiating a transfer, that the beneficiary's name entered by the sender matches the name associated with the IBAN of the recipient account. This verification applies to all transfers—whether instant or not, between individuals or professionals, regardless of the amount. Therefore, there is no €800 threshold or mandatory 24-hour delay.
The objective is to reduce the risk of error or fraud by ensuring that funds are not sent to the wrong recipient due to a typo or fraud. If an inconsistency is detected, the bank alerts the sender, who can then correct or cancel the transaction. However, contrary to rumors, the French Banking Federation and the Ministry of the Economy have formally denied any plans to automatically block transfers over €800 or to systematically transmit information to the tax authorities. The new regulations do not provide for any additional delay, mandatory suspension, or tax tracing of transfers between individuals.
The European regulation even specifies that the verification must be carried out immediately, without unduly delaying or blocking the payment. The customer remains free to validate or not their transfer after being informed of a possible inconsistency between the beneficiary's name and the IBAN.
Key points
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- No automatic suspension or 24-hour block is planned for bank transfers, regardless of the amount, from October 2025.
- The European reform requires verification of the beneficiary's name for all transfers, in order to strengthen security and limit fraud.
- No systematic transmission to the tax authorities, nor restrictions on the speed of transfers is established by this text.
- Customers remain free to validate or not their transactions after verification, without impact on the fluidity of payments.
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