Receiving an International Payment

Flexible and secure

• Electronic payments
• Foreign drafts and cheques

We know that it is important to your business that you offer your customers flexible methods of payment. Bank of Scotland offers two methods for receiving international payments.

Electronic payments

As a Bank of Scotland customer, you can receive funds sent from overseas directly to your account, securely and quickly through the SWIFT payment system. Payments can be received in sterling or foreign currency, and credited to a sterling or currency account.

When receiving a payment you will need to provide the remitter with the following information:

• The currency you wish to receive the payment in (if you have the option)
• Full bank account details, including:
  • Your International Bank Account Number (IBAN) which is the preferred format, or alternatively, use your account number
  • Your Bank Identifier Code (BIC) which is the preferred format, or alternatively, use your sort code

IBAN and BIC details can be found on the upper right hand corner of your monthly account statement. Alternatively, you can call the IBAN helpdesk on 0800 731 1499†, or speak to your Relationship Manager.

When receiving an international payment you can benefit from reduced charges* by ensuring the sender of the international payment provides the remitting bank with details of your IBAN and BIC at the time payment is made. When we receive payments with the correct IBAN and BIC details we can process the payment at a lower cost and we pass these savings back to you through the reduced fee.

Foreign drafts & cheques

In a global market place many customers may wish to pay using a foreign draft or a foreign currency cheque. These can be deposited into your sterling or currency account (if your account is held in that currency).

At the time of depositing, the cheque or draft can either be negotiated (funds credited immediately) or collected (funds credited once cheque has cleared). This depends on the value of the cheque or draft, the currency, and the country the cheque is drawn in.

*This is also subject to the remitting bank formatting the payment instruction according to SWIFT standards.

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