SEB aligns with the payment industry and SWIFT postponement. But it does not change the long-term direction, the migration to structured address information under the ISO20022 standard remains a strategic priority.
SWIFT announced on 27 August 2026 that the planned November 2026 requirement for structured addresses has been postponed. Market infrastructures worldwide, together with the European Payments Council (EPC) and the Nordic Payments Council (NPC), have since aligned with this decision.
As a result, SEB will continue to accept unstructured, hybrid and structured address formats until a revised market deadline has been announced.
The postponement does not change the long-term direction of the industry. The migration to structured address information under the ISO 20022 standard remains a strategic priority and implementation efforts continues with full focus.
SEB strongly encourages you to maintain your implementation and readiness activities to ensure a smooth transition when the new deadline is confirmed.
The market and SEB are now entering a transition period while adapting to the extended grace period. SEB will update its implementation plan and apply a phased approach. This will allow us to assess your readiness before industry go-live and identify where payments do not meet the minimum mandatory requirements, including Town Name and Country Code in designated fields. Working together will help minimise future disruptions and support the continued efficient and smooth processing of your payments.
SWIFT has communicated that an updated timeline and revised deadline will be announced by December 2026. SEB plans to implement the required changes well ahead of the future industry deadline and will share further details about release plans and implementation schedules when available.
SEB’s Message Implementation Guideline (MIG) has additional details related to upcoming changes. It contains a changelog to provide easy access to latest update.
Access MIG documents: File testing with SEB Test Bench
After this deadline, payments sent with unstructured addresses may be delayed, rejected, or require manual correction, potentially affecting your operational timelines.
Fully unstructured addresses will be phased out and replaced with structured or hybrid formats. If you send payments via file and include address data, now is the time to review what information you use, so your payments continue to run smoothly. Watch our 1 min video for a quick overview
If you initiate payments via file, please ensure that your vendor records include Town Name and Country Code, new minimum requirement.
This change will ultimately affect all payment types why we recommend you cover all types from start when working on your vendor data.
International (Swift) payments, SEPA Credit Transfers, SEPA instant payments and SEPA Direct Debits, SEK Credit Transfers, BG / PG payments and DKK Credit Transfers.
To fully benefit from this transition, we strongly recommend migrating to the ISO 20022 messaging standard, specifically using the pain.001 message format for payment initiation.
This update is part of the global move to ISO 20022 standard, now being adopted by major financial network and clearing systems around the world. Switching to structured or hybrid addresses will:
Market practices are still being established around the discontinuation of unstructured addresses, and we will continuously update this page when practices are established.
For more information we refer to this industry guide: PMPG Hybrid Address Industry Guidance [pdf]
SEB’s ISO 20022 Message Implementation Guidelines (MIG) are already updated.
SEB MIG for Credit Transfers pain.001 V3 (zip)
SEB MIG for Credit Transfers pain.001 V9 (zip)
For testing and implementation support go to File testing – SEB Test Bench:
File testing with SEB Test Bench
You can also test your files in Business Arena. You find it via the main menu under: Products and services / Test ISO files.
Below you find additional information around the steps we recommend you take as well as more detailed instructions now available to the market for your support. The focus is on how you use the address field, if you use it.
Example using the MT101 Field 59 (F-option) format for a hybrid postal address:
:59F:/BE30001216371411
1/JOHN SMITH
2/HOOGSTRAAT 6, 18TH FLOOR
3/BE/BRUSSELS, 1000
Where:
1/= Name (JOHN SMITH)
2/=Address Line (HOOGSTRAAT 6, 18TH FLOOR)
3/=Country Code (BE), Town Name (BRUSSELS), and Postal Code (1000)
Attention:
For pain.001 version 3 and version 9, the fully unstructured postal address option allows up to 7 lines of Address Line (AdrLine), providing flexibility for complex addresses. However, when using the hybrid postal address format, only 2 lines of AdrLine are permitted. Please ensure your systems and data mapping reflect this limitation to avoid processing issues.
The hybrid postal address allows for a combination of structured and unstructured address data. At minimum, it requires:
The rest of the address (e.g., post code, street name, building details) may be included in maximum of two lines of unstructured text (Address Line), but these must not duplicate the structured fields.
Example:
<PstlAdr>
<TwnNm>BRUSSELS</TwnNm>
<Ctry>BE</Ctry>
<AdrLine>HOOGSTRAAT 6, 18TH FLOOR, 1000</AdrLine>
</PstlAdr>
Find answers to the most frequently asked questions about discontinuation of unstructured addresses.
This change will ultimately affect all payment types why we recommend you cover all types from start when working on your vendor data and payment initiation file creation.
International (Swift) payments, SEPA Credit Transfers, SEPA instant payments and SEPA Direct Debits,
SEK Credit Transfers (incl. Swedish Express Payments), BG / PG payments and
DKK Credit Transfers (incl. National bank transfer).
This is a worldwide industry change that affects all banks globally.
You can perform the changes a soon as you like. Many customers are already today sending fully structured address, and we also see Hybrid address variant being processed already today.
Yes, the minimum requirements are to enter the Town Name and Country Code, if you use the address field and enter an address in structured or hybrid format.
Yes, it does.
All parties and Agents (banks) must follow these address rules, yet in the Agents’ case, no address will be needed nor recommended when bank’s BIC code is used.
Yes, there is a certain address structuring guideline available for MT101 initiated payments as well (https://www.swift.com/sites/default/files/documents/pmpg_structured_customer_data_mpg.pdf page #4).
SEB recommends, if feasible, customers and their system vendors replacing the MT101 formatted payment initiations to pain.001 ISO 20022 standard payment initiation messages.
For payments initiated using MT101, it is important to use the structured field option F for party information, such as the Ordering Customer or Beneficiary, instead of unstructured alternatives. Using field option F allows address and party details to be provided in a structured way, in line with SWIFT market practice and evolving data quality requirements.
When using MT101, please note the following:
Yes, both in:
This will allow you to validate your files in advance and ensure readiness.
Please note, the address validation is simple with rules, that both Town Name and Country Code exist in the given address and there are maximum of two or less unstructured address lines given (as possible in the hybrid address variant).
This update is part of the global move to ISO 20022 standard, now being adopted by major financial network and clearing systems around the world. Switching to structured or hybrid addresses will:
Our dedicated team of experts is here to guide you through the complexities of local market dynamics, finding flexible solutions to streamline your day-to-day operations. Together with you, we will support your expansion across borders and ensure that your global treasury needs are met.