Ukraine’s Parliament Backs Joining the SEPA Payments Area in First Reading
Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, approved a bill in first reading on joining the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). Final adoption is required by the end of 2026, with Ukraine also needing to bring its anti-money-laundering legislation into line with EU directives. The proposal is expected to lower cross-border payment costs and reduce European scrutiny of transfers involving Ukrainian individuals and businesses.
Key points
- The Verkhovna Rada approved bill No. 14327-d in first reading on November 10.
- The bill must be adopted in full by the end of 2026.
- Joining SEPA could save Ukraine EUR 100–200 million annually, according to the estimates cited.
- SEPA membership would require Ukraine to align its anti-money-laundering legislation with EU directives.
- Direct access to bank-account and safe-deposit registers would be limited to Ukraine’s anti-corruption agency, economic security bureau and asset recovery and management agency.
- SEPA membership could reduce the cost of a euro transfer to a fixed EUR 20 or 1.5% of the amount.
- After joining SEPA, transfers involving Ukrainian individuals and businesses would no longer face heightened monitoring by European institutions, according to the proposal’s proponents.
Why it matters
SEPA membership could lower the cost of payments between Ukraine and Europe and generate annual savings of EUR 100–200 million. It could also replace the current heightened monitoring of Ukrainian transfers by European institutions with the standard SEPA payment framework. Completion of the process depends both on final parliamentary approval and on Ukraine meeting EU anti-money-laundering requirements.
What happened
On November 10, the Verkhovna Rada approved bill No. 14327-d in first reading. The measure advances Ukraine’s accession to the Single Euro Payments Area, a euro payment system used across Europe. Parliament must adopt the bill in full by the end of 2026, before new rules take effect. Ukraine must also bring its legislation into line with EU directives against money laundering and the legalization of proceeds.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian outlets focus on the practical consequences for citizens and businesses, the estimated annual savings and the expected reduction in European scrutiny. They also highlight the need to comply with EU anti-money-laundering requirements and the controversy over investigators’ access to bank-account and safe-deposit registers.
Background
Moldova, Montenegro and Serbia quickly expressed an interest in joining SEPA without debating investigators’ access to bank-account and safe-deposit registers. In Ukraine, debate over that access delayed accession prospects. The bill proposes direct and unrestricted access to the relevant registers only for Ukraine’s National Agency on Corruption Prevention, Bureau of Economic Security and Asset Recovery and Management Agency. Access for the Asset Recovery and Management Agency is explicitly required by an EU directive.