The International Bank Account Number: a standardised format for identifying bank accounts, designed to make international transfers reliable.
Structure:
- Country code: two letters, e.g. CH for Switzerland or FR for France.
- Check digits: two digits that validate the IBAN and catch typing errors.
- Bank code: identifies the account-holding bank.
- Branch code: in some countries, identifies the branch.
- Account number: the individual account.
Length: fixed per country: 21 characters in Switzerland, 22 in the UK, 27 in France.
Example: CH93 0076 2011 6238 5295 7.
An IBAN contains no information about the account holder's name or balance.
How IBAN compares with other bank codes
| Code | Format | Example |
|---|
| IBAN | Up to 34 alphanumeric characters | CH93 0076 2011 6238 5295 7 |
| QR-IBAN | 21 characters | CH44 3199 9123 0008 8901 2 |
| ABA Routing Number | 9 digits | 021000021 |
| PAN | 13 to 19 digits | 4111 1111 1111 1111 |
| Sort Code | 6 digits | 20-00-00 |
| BSB Number | 6 digits | 082-900 |
| IFSC | 11 alphanumeric characters | SBIN0005943 |
| SWIFT/BIC Code | 8 or 11 alphanumeric characters | DEUTDEFF |
| CHIPS UID | 6 to 9 digits | 000123456 |
| CNAPS Code | 12 digits | 123456789012 |
Note: the spaces in an IBAN are for readability only. In payment files and online forms it is written without them: CH9300762011623852957. The same applies to the spaces and dashes shown in the table.
