When you opened your Qonto account in Portugal, you were provided with a French IBAN (starting with FR). This is because Qonto operates under a European payment institution license issued by the French banking regulator (ACPR - Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution), and the EU’s banking passport system allows us to use this license to provide services across all member states, including Portugal.
Under the SEPA Regulation (EU) No 260/2012, an IBAN's country prefix does not need to match the customer’s country, what matters is that the account is reachable across SEPA, which your French IBAN is. This means it works just like a Portuguese IBAN for all your banking needs: SEPA transfers, direct debits, and every other payment operation, with no restrictions.
Important to note: Article 9 of Regulation (EU) No 260/2012 also prohibits third parties from refusing an account based on its country of location. If a third party refuses your account for this reason, this would be non-compliant on their end.
When will Portuguese (PT) IBANs be available?
We’re working on introducing local Portuguese IBANs. We don’t have a confirmed launch date to share yet, but we’ll update this article and inform you directly as soon as more information is available.
What should I do in the meantime?
Nothing! Your French IBAN works perfectly for all your banking needs:
- Receive payments from Portuguese and international clients
- Make SEPA transfers across Europe
- Set up direct debits
- Connect to accounting software
- Use all Qonto features
When Portuguese IBANs become available, we'll communicate clearly about the migration process and support you every step of the way.
Will I be notified when Portuguese IBANs are availabile?
Absolutely! We'll keep you informed well in advance of the launch, with clear instructions on how the transition will work and what actions (if any) you'll need to take.
Have more questions? Our support team is here to help!
If you have any questions, you can always contact our support team. We are happy to assist you. For chat support, you can contact us via your account after logging in. You can also email us directly at support@qonto.com.