Ukraine moves closer to SEPA as government approves package of measures
Photo: Ukraine moves one step closer to SEPA (Freepik)
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a package of draft amendments to several legislative acts required for Ukraine to join the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), according to the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine.
The ministry noted that this is a strategic step toward integrating Ukraine into the European financial space, which covers more than 500 million citizens and businesses across 42 European countries.
The Ministry of Finance said the draft laws aim to align Ukraine’s legislation on anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism with EU and FATF standards, which is an integral part of Ukraine’s obligations under the European integration process.
What SEPA accession entails
In particular, the draft legislation provides for the creation of a Register of Accounts and Individual Bank Safe Deposit Boxes for individuals, to be administered by the Ministry of Finance. The register will include only basic data—such as the account IBAN, the account holder’s name, and the bank’s name—and will not contain information on balances, transaction history, or the contents of safe deposit boxes.
Access to this information will be limited to authorized state bodies, including the State Financial Monitoring Service, ARMA, NACP, the prosecutor’s office, NABU, the Bureau of Economic Security, the State Bureau of Investigations, the National Police, and the Security Service of Ukraine. Data access will be possible only via secure channels and solely within investigations of serious crimes.
The documents also envisage the introduction of a Register of Ultimate Beneficial Owners of trusts, improvements to mechanisms for verifying the beneficial owners of legal entities, and stricter integrity requirements for owners of financial institutions.
In addition, the proposals include expanding the list of entities subject to primary financial monitoring and strengthening protections for whistleblowers in this area.
The Ministry of Finance clarified that provisions governing the operation of the registers of accounts and trust beneficiaries will enter into force only after Ukraine joins the EU, while other provisions will take effect following the adoption and official publication of the laws.
Expected savings
According to the Ministry of Finance, once Ukraine joins SEPA, annual savings on international transfers could amount to between €70 million and €100 million.
For around 120,000 small and medium-sized enterprises that regularly export goods and services to the EU, the average annual benefit is estimated at approximately €4,000 per company.
What SEPA is
SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) is a unified area in which distinctions between domestic and cross-border euro payments have been eliminated. The first SEPA-related changes took effect in January 2008.
In December 2024, it was reported that Ukraine was demonstrating progress toward joining SEPA. Moldova joined the Single Euro Payments Area earlier than Ukraine, on October 6, 2025.
