What does the IBAN Validator check?

It verifies the IBAN structure for the issuing country, applies the mod-97 checksum, and returns the country, bank identifier and BIC when available.

Is the IBAN Validator free?

Yes. The tool is free with no sign-up. Paste any IBAN and you will see the validation result and account details instantly.

Does a valid IBAN mean the account is open?

No. IBAN validation confirms the format and checksum are correct, but it cannot tell you whether the account is active. Use a bank verification API for that.

Do you store the IBANs I check?

No. Validation runs client-side where possible and Cardflo does not persist the IBANs you paste into this tool.

Free Tool

IBAN validator. Verify any account in seconds.

Paste any IBAN to validate its checksum, identify the country, bank, branch and BIC. ISO 13616 compliant, instant and free.

Validation happens in your browser. Only valid IBANs are sent to look up bank details.

Mod-97 checksum

ISO 13616 validation against the IBAN check digits.

Country & structure

Recognises 80+ IBAN countries with the correct length and BBAN layout.

Bank & BIC lookup

Identifies the issuing bank and BIC where public registries are available.

Validation is informational only. Always confirm beneficiary details with the payer before sending funds.

An IBAN is a globally standardised bank account number defined by ISO 13616. It carries a country code, a two-digit checksum, and a country-specific national account structure. Every character matters: a single typo fails the checksum and the payment bounces, sometimes with fees on both sides.

Why validate IBANs at capture

Prevent bounced payouts

SEPA payouts to an invalid IBAN can bounce back with a 10 to 20 euro rejection fee on both sides. Validating at the point of capture catches typos and paste errors before they reach the settlement rail.

Improve refund success

Refunds to closed or moved accounts are a top source of customer-service tickets. IBAN validation confirms the structure is real and the country is supported, and pairs well with a small ping-cent test for high-value refunds.

Reduce KYC friction

Open Banking mandates and SEPA direct debit setups both require a valid IBAN before the customer's bank will accept the authorisation. Rejecting invalid IBANs early keeps your KYC conversion rate high.

Onboard suppliers and sellers

Marketplaces and platforms collecting payout details from sellers get the highest return from validation at capture. A rejected payout batch means support tickets, delayed seller payments and manual re-keying, all from a single mistyped character that a checksum would have caught instantly.

Clean an existing payee file

Legacy payee tables usually carry a small percentage of unusable IBANs: spaces, old domestic account numbers never converted, or accounts from banks that have since merged and changed bank codes. Running the file through validation before your next payment run turns a monthly failure into a one-off cleanup.

Meet SEPA formatting rules

SEPA credit transfers and direct debits require the IBAN in strict ISO 13616 form, without spaces or punctuation, and paired with the correct BIC in some corridors. Validation normalises whatever the customer typed into the exact format the scheme expects.

Common questions

What does this validator actually check?

Three things: the ISO 13616 mod-97 checksum, the correct length and structure for the country code (34 formats), and the presence of a real bank code inside the IBAN, matched against the SWIFT public BIC directory.

Can an IBAN pass validation and still fail?

Yes. The checksum tells you the IBAN is well-formed, not that it belongs to an open account. For high-value transfers, follow up with a ping-cent (a 1p test transfer with a validation code in the reference) or an Open Banking account confirmation.

Do you support all SEPA countries?

Yes, all 36 SEPA countries plus non-SEPA IBAN countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait and Israel. Total 79 country formats currently, refreshed against SWIFT's official IBAN registry every quarter.

Is my data stored?

No. Validation runs client-side in your browser. The IBAN you type never leaves your machine. This is deliberate: IBANs are personal financial data, and there's no reason a public validator should log them.

What is the difference between an IBAN and a BIC?

The IBAN identifies a specific account; the BIC, sometimes called a SWIFT code, identifies the bank or branch that holds it. Within SEPA the BIC is no longer required for most transfers because it can be derived from the IBAN's bank code, which is why the IBAN-only rule has applied across the euro area since 2016. Outside SEPA, and for some correspondent-banking routes, the BIC is still requested, so it is worth storing both when a counterparty supplies them.

Why did a payment fail even though the IBAN was valid?

A valid IBAN only tells you the number is correctly formed and points at a real bank code. The account behind it can still be closed, frozen, restricted to a different currency, or held in a name that does not match the payee you supplied. Since Verification of Payee rules came into force across the euro area, name-mismatch warnings are also a common cause of rejected or delayed transfers, so keeping the beneficiary name exactly as registered with the bank matters as much as the number itself.

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