# EU payment methods for funding your financial account

Your EU financial account holds euros and can receive funds via two SEPA payment methods: SEPA Credit Transfer for standard next-business-day transfers, and SEPA Instant for transfers that arrive within seconds. Both are push-only and use the same account details - the IBAN and BIC found in the Stripe Dashboard under **Financial account** > **Account details**.
SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) is the European framework that standardizes EUR transfers across 36 countries, making a payment from a German bank to a Spanish bank as straightforward as a domestic transfer.
## SEPA Credit Transfer
SEPA Credit Transfer (SCT) is the standard euro transfer mechanism used across Europe. The sender enters your IBAN and BIC at their bank, and the payment arrives in your Stripe financial account the next SEPA business day.
SEPA processes on business days only, following the TARGET2 calendar maintained by the European Central Bank. It doesn't run on weekends or certain European public holidays. A transfer sent on a Friday settles the following Monday.
There is no practical per-transaction cap, making SEPA Credit Transfer the right choice for large EUR amounts.
**Best for:** Standard euro top-ups on business days; amounts above 1 million EUR. Free to receive.
## SEPA Instant
SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) is the real-time version of SEPA. Payments arrive within 10 seconds, at any time of day, every day of the year, including weekends and holidays when standard SEPA doesn't process. It uses the same IBAN and BIC as a standard SEPA transfer; the sender selects the instant option (labelled variously as "instant payment", "Sofort-Überweisung", "virement instantané", or similar depending on the bank and country).
There is a scheme cap of **1 million EUR per transaction**. For amounts above this, use SEPA Credit Transfer instead.
Availability depends on whether the sender's bank supports outbound SEPA Instant. Adoption has grown significantly across the EU, but not all banks offer it. If your sender doesn't have the option, a standard SEPA Credit Transfer will still arrive the next business day.
**Best for:** Urgent EUR funding; transfers outside SEPA business hours; amounts up to 1 million EUR. Free to receive.
## Which method should I use?
| Situation                                     | Recommended method                     |
| --------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------- |
| Standard top-ups during business hours        | SEPA Credit Transfer                   |
| Urgent funding needed within seconds          | SEPA Instant, if your bank supports it |
| Large transfers over 1 million EUR            | SEPA Credit Transfer                   |
| Funding outside business hours or on weekends | SEPA Instant, if your bank supports it |
| Sending bank doesn't support SEPA Instant     | SEPA Credit Transfer                   |
## **Comparison**
|                       | SEPA Credit Transfer    | SEPA Instant                 |
| --------------------- | ----------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| Speed                 | Next business day       | Within 10 seconds            |
| Availability          | Business days (TARGET2) | 24/7/365                     |
| Fee to receive        | Free                    | Free                         |
| Per-transaction limit | No cap                  | 1 million EUR                |
| Sending bank support  | Universal               | Widespread but not universal |