Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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156. To ask the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 111 on 18 July 2013; his views that the IBAN format for account identification will be suitable for the single euro payments area in view of the fact that the traditional means of account identification here such as Bank's National Sort Code and Account Numbers will no longer be used; his views that both Bank Identifier Code and IBAN will continue to enable easy and burdenless transactions and financial dealings for both consumer and businesses here working with the United States of America; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37058/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The International Bank Account Number, (IBAN) uniquely identifies an individual account, at a specific financial institution, in a particular country. The banks in all countries in the European Economic Area and in most states of the Middle East, North Africa and Caribbean have implemented the IBAN format for account identification. The IBAN contains a combination of information including the National Sort code (NSC), the account number and elements from the Bank Identifier Code (BIC) system. In Ireland the IBAN is 22 characters long. Currently in Ireland the banks use a routing system based on the NSC (National Sort Code) and account number. For international transfers the NSC is replaced by a BIC (Bank Identifier Code). BICs are usually 8 digits but can be up to 11 digits long and identify the beneficiary's bank. For example Bank of Ireland’s BIC is BOFI IE2D whereas AIB’s is AIBK IE2D.

Under the Single European Payments Area (SEPA) from 1 February 2014 consumers and business will have to use the IBAN and BIC for account identification purposes and for making transactions. The IBAN and BIC are contained on every bank statement issued in Ireland. As the IBAN contains the national sort code and bank account number already in use in Ireland and contains the elements of the BIC, it contains sufficient information to route a payment efficiently to a destination bank (whether local or overseas) while also containing information about the exact account at that bank branch. As such it is suitable to allow the efficient conducting of business. The United States of America is one of a number of countries that do not use IBAN at present. It is unlikely that the US will move to the IBAN standard in the near future and as such there will be no change for consumers and businesses here transacting with consumers or businesses in the United States of America.