PacsLintISO 20022 payment file checker

Structured address deadline postponed: what it means for your pain.001 files

The November 2026 end date for unstructured postal addresses is off, for SEPA payments and for Swift cross-border payments. No new date has been set yet. The rules for structured and hybrid addresses have not changed, so files you fix now stay valid.

Last checked against the EPC and Swift announcements: 13 October 2026

  • SEPA (EPC): on 10 September 2026 the European Payments Council delayed the planned 15 November 2026 end date for the unstructured address format, under all five EPC payment scheme rulebooks. A new end date has not been set. The EPC's Payment Scheme Management Board was due to reconvene in October 2026 to set one.
  • Swift (CBPR+): on 27 August 2026 Swift deferred all payments changes planned for November 2026, including the structured address requirement. It will provide an update by December 2026 at the latest.
  • What stays: structured and hybrid addresses are accepted today. The EPC guidance says the hybrid format has no expiration date.
  • Direction: the EPC still recommends switching from unstructured addresses directly to fully structured addresses.
  • Your bank: banks set their own timelines for the files they accept. Check your bank's format guide before relying on any date.

Timeline

DateWhoWhat happened
27 Aug 2026SwiftDefers all payments changes in Standards Release 2026, including the structured address requirement. An update is promised by December 2026.
10 Sep 2026EPCDelays the 15 November 2026 end date of the unstructured address format under all five EPC payment scheme rulebooks.
22 Sep 2026BanksBanks start moving their own dates. For example, PKO Bank Polski postponed removing file formats it had planned to retire in mid-November 2026.
30 Sep 2026EPCAddress guidance EPC153-22 version 2.2 replaces the 15 November 2026 date with “a future still to be set end date”.
Oct 2026EPCThe Payment Scheme Management Board is due to set a new end date. Not yet published when this page was last checked.
By Dec 2026SwiftUpdate on the structured address requirement.

The three address formats

These are the formats as the EPC guidance (EPC153-22 v2.2) defines them. Swift's CBPR+ rule has the same core: town and country in their own fields.

Accepted Structured

Ctry and TwnNm must be used, and AdrLine cannot be used. Street, building number, postcode and the other fields are used as the address needs.

<PstlAdr>
  <StrtNm>Grote Markt</StrtNm>
  <BldgNb>1</BldgNb>
  <PstCd>1000</PstCd>
  <TwnNm>Brussels</TwnNm>
  <Ctry>BE</Ctry>
</PstlAdr>

Accepted Hybrid

Ctry and TwnNm are mandatory, plus up to two AdrLine of 70 characters each for the rest of the address. This is the realistic target when your system stores street and house number in one field.

<PstlAdr>
  <PstCd>1000</PstCd>
  <TwnNm>Brussels</TwnNm>
  <Ctry>BE</Ctry>
  <AdrLine>Grote Markt 1</AdrLine>
</PstlAdr>

Being phased out Unstructured

Up to two AdrLine, possibly with Ctry, but no TwnNm. A country code on its own does not make an address hybrid: without TwnNm it is still unstructured.

<PstlAdr>
  <Ctry>BE</Ctry>
  <AdrLine>Grote Markt 1</AdrLine>
  <AdrLine>1000 Brussels</AdrLine>
</PstlAdr>

The mistake that breaks a hybrid address

Many systems add TwnNm and PstCd but keep the old “postcode town” line too. The EPC guidance rules this out:

“Structured elements cannot be repeated in the <AdrLine> elements.”
Repeats the postcode and town 
<PstlAdr>
  <PstCd>1050</PstCd>
  <TwnNm>Ixelles</TwnNm>
  <Ctry>BE</Ctry>
  <AdrLine>Avenue Louise 54</AdrLine>
  <AdrLine>1050 Ixelles</AdrLine>
</PstlAdr>
Correct hybrid 
<PstlAdr>
  <PstCd>1050</PstCd>
  <TwnNm>Ixelles</TwnNm>
  <Ctry>BE</Ctry>
  <AdrLine>Avenue Louise 54</AdrLine>
</PstlAdr>

The same applies to a country name at the end of a line, such as “…, Belgium” next to <Ctry>BE</Ctry>.

What to check in your files now

  1. Every party address (debtor, creditor and any ultimate parties) has TwnNm and Ctry in their own fields.
  2. An address with only Ctry and address lines is still unstructured. Add TwnNm.
  3. Hybrid addresses use at most two AdrLine of up to 70 characters each.
  4. No address line repeats the postcode, town or country that already has its own field.
  5. If your system keeps street and house number in one field, aim for hybrid. Fully structured needs them stored separately, and guessing the split can go wrong.
  6. Ask your bank which date and format guide it applies. Banks can be stricter than the scheme rules.

Fixing now costs nothing later: structured and hybrid addresses are already accepted, and the hybrid format has no end date in the EPC guidance.

Check a pain.001 file in your browser

PacsLint checks every party's address against these rules, flags repeated postcode, town or country lines, and suggests a fix. It also validates the official ISO 20022 schema, ISO code lists, IBANs and control totals. Your file never leaves your browser.

Check a file

Sources