ACPR · France

How to issue French IBANs

Fintech Passport

June 21, 2026 · 5-min read

French IBANs are routed through Banque de France, validated against the Modulus-97 check and tied to a BIC4 registered with the Comité Français d’Organisation et de Normalisation Bancaires (CFONB). Companion to the Dutch IBANs walkthrough and the Spanish IBANs piece: the French format, the BIC application, the Banque de France registration, the SEPA scheme adherence and the reporting catalogue that switches on at first issuance.

1. The French IBAN format

The French IBAN follows the ISO 13616 pattern FR2!n5!n5!n11!c2!n — 27 characters total:

Positions 1–2: country code, always FR
Positions 3–4: two check digits, calculated by Modulus 97 under ISO/IEC 7064
Positions 5–9: bank code (Code Banque) — five digits identifying the credit institution, EME or EP
Positions 10–14: branch code (Code Guichet) — five digits identifying the specific branch or virtual branch
Positions 15–25: account number — eleven alphanumeric characters allocated by the PSP
Positions 26–27: two RIB key check digits (Clé RIB) — computed under a defined algorithm against the bank, branch and account-number components

Every French IBAN must pass both the IBAN Modulus-97 check and the legacy RIB key check. Generators that validate only the outer ISO check produce IBANs that look valid but are rejected by French counterparties.

2. Getting the Code Banque from Banque de France

The five-digit Code Banque is the identifier under which Banque de France recognises a French PSP. It is assigned during the authorisation process at ACPR. For passporting institutions establishing a branch in France, a code is assigned at the time of the branch notification.

The Code Banque appears in:

Every IBAN the firm issues
Every ACPR supervisory return
The Banque de France’s Fichier des Établissements de Crédit et Entreprises d’Investissement
Counterparty checks at every French PSP

The assignment is administrative. Once allocated, the code is permanent.

3. The BIC connection

France’s Code Banque maps to a SWIFT BIC under ISO 9362. Every authorised French PSP has a BIC under which it participates in SEPA and SWIFT-routed payments. The first four letters form the BIC4 used in cross-border counterparty checks.

4. The CFONB standards layer

The Comité Français d’Organisation et de Normalisation Bancaires (CFONB) maintains French banking-payments standards — formats, codes, messages — that overlay the EU SEPA / ISO 20022 framework. CFONB-published technical specifications cover:

The RIB (Relevé d’Identité Bancaire) format used in customer-facing documents
The CFONB 240 / 320 legacy file formats still used by some French corporates
National additions to ISO 20022 messages where French law requires specific fields
Mandate handling for SEPA Direct Debits

New PSPs entering the French market need to understand the CFONB standards in addition to the EPC-level SEPA scheme rulebooks.

5. SEPA scheme adherence

Issuing IBANs that no one can pay into is useless. Adherence to at least one European Payments Council scheme is the precondition:

SCT (SEPA Credit Transfer) — the baseline; required for receiving incoming credit transfers
SCT Inst (Instant) — mandatory for euro-area PSPs under the Instant Payments Regulation from the defined dates
SDD Core (Direct Debit) — optional, widely used in France, with French-law overlays on mandate handling

6. Clearing access in France

French PSPs settle euro payments through the French national clearing system, which interconnects with the wider EU instant-payments and large-value rails. The connection is technical and contractual:

Direct participation requires settlement-account access at Banque de France and operational readiness
Indirect participation through a sponsor bank is the common route for smaller PSPs
The PSD3 / PSR package, once in force, changes direct-access rules for non-bank PSPs materially

7. What switches on the moment the first IBAN goes live

SURFI — ACPR’s quarterly statistical and prudential reporting
TRACFIN AML reporting through ERMES
Banque de France balance-of-payments reporting for cross-border flows above thresholds
CESOP — once cross-border payment thresholds are met
IPR statistical reporting — annual
Conduct and complaints reporting to ACPR

8. Internal IBAN-generator rules

Two non-negotiable validations:

Modulus-97 check at IBAN level
RIB key check at positions 26–27 under the defined algorithm against the bank, branch and account-number components

Beyond validation, operational rules:

Branch / guichet code allocation — pick a structured scheme; ACPR looks at the structure during inspections
Account-number expansion — eleven characters can be alphanumeric in France; running out of numerical space is not normally an issue, but allocation policies should be deliberate
Avoid IBANs matching well-known public-sector accounts — Trésor public, social-security collection accounts — to prevent payment confusion

9. Passporting in vs. domestic licence

An EME or EP authorised in another EU member state can issue French IBANs only after establishing a branch in France or, in defined cases, on a Freedom of Services basis with French-IBAN issuance permission. See our branch vs Freedom of Services piece.

10. FAQ

What is a RIB?

Relevé d’Identité Bancaire — the French bank-account identification document. It includes the IBAN, the BIC, the account holder’s name, and the bank / branch / account components separately. Customers in France routinely request and exchange RIBs in customer-facing flows.

What is the Clé RIB?

The two-digit check at positions 26–27 of the French IBAN. It is computed under a defined Modulus-97 algorithm against the bank, branch and account-number components separately from the IBAN-level Modulus-97 check. Both must pass for the IBAN to be accepted.

Can French IBANs contain letters in the account-number portion?

Yes. Positions 15–25 are alphanumeric per the French specification. Most modern PSPs allocate numeric-only, but the schema allows letters.

How does the BIC4 work in France?

The first four letters of the SWIFT BIC are the institution identifier. Every authorised French PSP has a BIC; the BIC4 appears in cross-border counterparty validation flows and in messaging systems.

Do I need to coordinate with CFONB?

For new PSPs entering the French market, yes — at a technical level. CFONB-published specifications govern French-market message details that overlay the EU SEPA / ISO 20022 framework. Familiarity with the relevant CFONB documents is part of the operational onboarding.

What is the typical timeline from authorisation to first IBAN issued?

For an ACPR-authorised PSP, three-to-six months post-grant for a complete payments build covering BIC, SEPA scheme adherence, CFONB compatibility, ACPR reporting infrastructure and operational testing.

11. What to do, today

Confirm whether your ACPR licensing route is direct authorisation, branch passport-in or Freedom of Services with IBAN-issuance permission.
Apply for the BIC alongside the ACPR file — do not wait for grant.
Familiarise the team with the CFONB technical specifications relevant to your message types.
Decide direct vs. indirect clearing participation early.
Map the post-go-live reporting catalogue (SURFI, TRACFIN, CESOP, IPR, conduct) before the first IBAN.