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In SEPA, all euro payments will be treated as domestic payments and the current differentiation between national and cross-border payments will disappear. This will involve not only the alignment of national practices for the payments industry, but also changes for SEPA end-users.
The goal is that national paper-based instruments and non-SEPA payment instruments, such as cheques, will gradually be phased out and replaced by the new SEPA instruments. It has been recognised that handling dual processes for a longer period would be expensive for both the payments industry and its customers. To avoid a lengthy and costly migration process towards the new SEPA instruments, during which the benefits of SEPA cannot be fully enjoyed, it is important that all stakeholders migrate as early as possible. Therefore, the Eurosystem considers it important that a clear end-date is set for phasing out national payment instruments and replacing them with SEPA instruments.
A study carried out for the European Commission shows that the potential benefits of SEPA in payments markets alone could exceed €123 billion if there is a rapid and full migration from existing national payment products to the new SEPA payment instruments. Further potential gains of €238 billion are possible if SEPA can be used as a platform for electronic invoicing.
