How to issue German IBANs

German IBANs are the simplest of the big-market formats — 22 characters, no national check overlay — but the institutional plumbing behind them runs through the Bundesbank’s Bankleitzahl system. Companion to our Dutch, Spanish, French and Italian IBAN walkthroughs: the DE format, how the eight-digit BLZ is allocated, the BIC mapping, SEPA scheme adherence, and the reporting catalogue that switches on at first issuance.

1. The German IBAN format

The German IBAN follows the ISO 13616 pattern DE2!n8!n10!n — 22 characters:

• Positions 1–2: country code, always DE
• Positions 3–4: the two ISO check digits (Modulus 97 under ISO/IEC 7064)
• Positions 5–12: the Bankleitzahl (BLZ) — the eight-digit German bank sort code identifying the institution (and historically the branch region)
• Positions 13–22: the ten-digit account number, zero-padded on the left where the underlying account number is shorter

Unlike Spain (CCC digits), France (RIB key) or Italy (CIN letter), the German IBAN carries no separate national check construct inside the IBAN — only the ISO Modulus-97 check. German account numbers historically embed bank-specific internal check-digit methods, but those live inside the account number itself and are validated by the issuing institution, not by the IBAN structure.

2. The Bankleitzahl — who allocates it

The Deutsche Bundesbank administers the Bankleitzahl system: it allocates BLZ codes to institutions authorised to participate in German payments, publishes the official BLZ file (updated on a regular cycle), and manages changes and retirements. A newly authorised German PSP that will issue accounts applies to the Bundesbank for its BLZ as part of the payments-operational onboarding — a separate track from the BaFin authorisation itself, best started as soon as the licence decision is in sight.

The BLZ appears in every IBAN you issue and anchors your identity in domestic payment routing, the Bundesbank’s directories and counterparty validation across the German market.

3. The BIC connection

The BLZ maps to a SWIFT BIC (ISO 9362) registered for the institution. The Bundesbank’s published bank directory links BLZ and BIC records, and the BIC is what travels in SEPA and SWIFT messaging. As with the other markets: apply for the BIC in parallel with the licensing file — it gates SEPA scheme adherence and everything downstream.

4. SEPA scheme adherence

• SCT — the baseline credit-transfer scheme
• SCT Inst — mandatory for euro-area PSPs under the Instant Payments Regulation per its phased deadlines
• SDD Core / B2B — direct debits are unusually central in Germany (Lastschrift culture); most German-market PSPs need SDD from day one, unlike some other markets

5. Settlement and clearing access

German PSPs settle euro payments through the Eurosystem rails (TARGET services, including instant settlement) directly where they hold settlement accounts, or indirectly through a sponsor institution. The Bundesbank operates the German access points. Direct participation requires settlement-account access and operational readiness; indirect participation through a sponsor is the standard route for new non-bank PSPs. The PSD3/PSR package is set to widen direct access for non-banks.

6. What switches on at first IBAN issued

• Bundesbank-routed prudential and statistical reporting via ExtraNet
• §43 GwG SAR reporting via goAML Germany
• CESOP once the 25-payments-per-payee threshold is met on cross-border flows
• IPR statistical reporting — annual
• AnaCredit — only where the institution holds in-scope credit exposures; see AnaCredit for payment firms

7. IBAN-generator rules for Germany

• Validate the ISO Modulus-97 check — the only structural check in the DE IBAN
• Zero-pad account numbers to ten digits consistently; a padding inconsistency creates two “different” IBANs for one account
• If you operate legacy bank-specific account-number check methods, validate them internally before IBAN generation — the IBAN check will not catch an internally invalid account number
• Keep the avoid-list discipline: do not allocate IBANs mimicking well-known public-sector collection accounts

8. FAQ

9. What to do, today

• Sequence BLZ and BIC applications in parallel with the BaFin licence — both gate go-live.
• Plan SDD Core (and mandate management) as a launch feature for the German market.
• Decide direct vs sponsored settlement access early; it shapes the treasury architecture.
• Map the post-go-live catalogue (ExtraNet, goAML, CESOP, IPR) before the first IBAN.

Related: Dutch IBANs · Spanish IBANs · EMI licence in Germany