The European Payments Council Board has announced that it has approved the application from UK Finance for the continued participation of UK payment service providers in the SEPA schemes after 29 March 2019 in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

The amending statutory instrument for the Payment Services Regulations 2017 had been drafted in anticipation of continued SEPA membership with the execution times for Euro payments remaining at D+1. This approach can now be adopted in the event of a no-deal exit.

UK Finance have commented:

“Today’s decision ensures that in the event of a ‘no-deal’ Brexit, UK payment service providers will still be able to make and receive payments from other European countries that are part of SEPA.

“This is a positive outcome for the consumers and businesses on both sides of the Channel who rely on the SEPA scheme to make billions of euros worth of payments each year.

“We now look forward to continuing to engage closely with our partners in Europe on improving the payment experience for customers and businesses alike.”

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