The UK is a natural partner for Swiss companies: same time zone give or take an hour, English as the business language, and deep links in finance, software, design and life sciences.
Paying a London agency or a Manchester contractor should be simple. Often it is. But Brexit added a layer of confusion ("Is the UK still in SEPA?"), and sterling has its own quirks.
This guide gives you the short answer on SEPA, the six details to collect from a UK supplier, and how to keep fees from being deducted from the invoice amount.
First, the Brexit question
Two separate things changed, or didn't:
- The UK left the EU and the EEA. Since 1 January 2021, Switzerland and the UK trade under their own bilateral trade agreement, which carried over most of the previous Switzerland-EU arrangements. A broader free trade agreement was concluded in substance in July 2026 but isn't in force yet.
- The UK is still in SEPA. It remains in the SEPA geographical scope, just like Switzerland. So EUR payments to UK accounts can still go by SEPA.
What Brexit did change for SEPA: the UK is now a non-EEA SEPA country, so SEPA payments involving UK providers need extra information, notably the payer's full address. Switzerland has been in the same position since it joined SEPA, so Swiss providers are used to it.
And one thing never changed: SEPA is euro-only. A payment in pounds sterling was never a SEPA payment, before or after Brexit.
So how does GBP get from Switzerland to the UK?
A GBP payment from a Swiss account to a UK account is typically an international payment over SWIFT. Inside the UK, the receiving side is then credited via the UK's own systems.
For context, the UK's domestic rails are:
- Faster Payments — What it is: Near-instant domestic payments, 24/7, used for most everyday transfers
- CHAPS — What it is: Same-day high-value payments, settled at the Bank of England (currently 06:00 to 18:00 UK time on business days)
- Bacs — What it is: Batch payments, such as salaries and Direct Debits, over about three working days
You don't send on these directly from Switzerland in a normal SWIFT payment, but they explain why UK suppliers expect money to arrive quickly once it's in the UK system.
What you need from a UK supplier
For a GBP payment from Switzerland, ask for:
- Beneficiary name, exactly as on the account.
- Beneficiary address.
- IBAN. A UK IBAN has 22 characters: GB, two check digits, a four-letter bank code, the six-digit sort code and the eight-digit account number. For example, the IBAN registry's sample is GB29 NWBK 6016 1331 9268 19.
- BIC (SWIFT code) of their bank.
- Sort code and account number as a cross-check. They're embedded in the IBAN, but having both helps catch typos.
- Invoice number for the payment reference.
Tip: a UK IBAN can't be reliably calculated from the sort code and account number yourself. Ask the supplier for it, or check it on their invoice.
Fees: decide who pays
Because GBP from Switzerland is usually a SWIFT payment, the familiar fee options apply:
- OUR: you pay all fees, including intermediary fees, so the supplier should receive the full amount. (Some receiving banks still charge their own incoming fee, so check with the supplier.)
- SHA: shared. You pay your provider's fee, the supplier pays theirs.
- BEN: the supplier pays everything, deducted from the amount.
If your supplier needs the exact invoice amount, agree OUR in advance. If you choose SHA, expect the occasional "we received a little less" email.
Paying EUR to the UK
Some UK suppliers invoice in EUR, especially agencies with EU clients. In that case:
- Use SEPA, not SWIFT, as long as the supplier's account can receive SEPA payments. It's typically cheaper and more predictable, and arrives the same day or the next day.
- Make sure the payer address is complete. With two non-EEA SEPA countries involved, it matters.
- Check that the IBAN they give you is for a EUR account. A EUR payment to a GBP-only account gets converted on their side.
Getting paid by UK clients
For UK clients, the cleanest options are:
- Invoice in GBP and receive into a GBP account in your company's name, so the money stays in pounds until you choose to convert.
- Invoice in EUR and receive by SEPA, if that suits both sides.
- Avoid invoicing in CHF unless the client insists. They'd pay a conversion, and your payment might arrive short.
For the general playbook, see Get Paid Faster by EU and US Clients: Invoice in Their Currency.
A UK-specific fraud note
The UK has a domestic check called Confirmation of Payee, which tells a UK payer whether the name matches the account before they send. It's a UK domestic service, so don't assume your international payment from Switzerland gets the same check. Verify new or changed bank details yourself, by phone, on a number you already know. Our full guide: "We Changed Our Bank Details": Stopping Invoice and CEO Fraud in a Swiss SME.
A worked example (hypothetical)
A Lausanne biotech AG pays a London clinical-data consultancy GBP 18,000 a month, and a Dublin lab EUR 6,000.
- The London invoice: paid in GBP from the AG's GBP balance by SWIFT, fee option OUR, with the invoice number as the reference, so intermediary fees are charged to the AG instead of being deducted on the way.
- The Dublin invoice: paid in EUR by SEPA, arriving the same day or the next day.
- FX: the AG converts CHF to GBP once a month, ahead of the invoice, at a rate it can see before it confirms, rather than letting each payment convert automatically.
Common mistakes
- Trying to send GBP "by SEPA". SEPA is euro-only.
- Paying EUR to the UK by SWIFT when SEPA would have done.
- Missing beneficiary address, which can delay a payment.
- Converting CHF to GBP at a rate you never saw. See The FX Fee Your Bank Never Shows You.
- Forgetting UK bank holidays, which differ from Swiss ones (for example the late-May and late-August bank holidays).
Bottom line
GBP goes by SWIFT, EUR goes by SEPA, and the UK is still in SEPA. Get the IBAN and BIC right, agree the fee option, and hold GBP if you both earn and spend it.
FAQ
Is the UK still part of SEPA after Brexit?
Yes. The UK remains in the SEPA geographical scope, so EUR payments to UK accounts can go by SEPA. Extra information, such as the payer's address, is required because the UK is outside the EEA.
Can I send GBP by SEPA?
No. SEPA only covers euro payments. GBP from Switzerland usually goes as an international payment over SWIFT.
Do UK bank accounts have an IBAN?
Yes. A UK IBAN has 22 characters and includes the sort code and account number. Use it, together with the bank's BIC, for international payments.
How do I make sure my UK supplier receives the full amount?
Use the OUR fee option on SWIFT payments, so you pay all fees, including intermediary fees, and agree this with the supplier in advance. Their own bank may still charge an incoming fee, so ask.
Should a Swiss company invoice UK clients in GBP or CHF?
GBP is usually easier for the client and reduces short payments. Receive it into a GBP account so it isn't converted automatically.
Sterling, sorted
Firma gives your company balances in GBP, USD, EUR, CHF, CAD, MXN and BRL in its own name. Pay UK suppliers in GBP by SWIFT and EUR by SEPA from the matching balance, and receive GBP from UK clients into your GBP balance. Money in is free. Every outgoing payment carries the plan fee (25 bps on Plus, 20 bps on Platform, custom on Enterprise), shown before you send. Conversions use the Reuters rate, and if an incoming payment is converted, there's no spread. Plus is Fr. 499 a month. Verification takes about two days, and if we can't verify your company, there's nothing to pay.
Paying the EU too? Read How to Pay EU Suppliers from a Swiss GmbH (SEPA vs SWIFT). Canadian suppliers? See Paying Canadian Suppliers from Switzerland: CAD by SWIFT Without the Back-and-Forth.
This article is general information, not advice. Check the details for your situation with your provider or adviser.
Firma is not a bank and is not licensed by FINMA. Firma Operations AG is a member of VQF, a FINMA-recognised self-regulatory organisation for anti-money-laundering, and does not hold client funds. Fiat payments are processed through partner banks. Balances are digital stablecoin tokens, not bank deposits, and are not covered by esisuisse.
Sources: SECO, Switzerland-UK trade agreement; European Payments Council, Brexit and SEPA; FCA, SEPA credit transfers and direct debits; SWIFT, IBAN registry; Bank of England, CHAPS; Pay.UK, Confirmation of Payee; Firma.
