Montenegro to access SEPA by the end of 2024
Montenegro’s Central Bank has initiated a project to become a full member of the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) by the end of 2024. SEPA provides an area where consumers, businesses, and executive authorities can make and receive payments in euros under equal basic conditions, rights, and obligations, as in European Union (EU) countries, regardless of their location. Montenegro’s regulatory framework for payment services has already been fully aligned with the EU’s, and full convergence with SEPA requirements is imminent. However, a coordinated change in laws, such as anti-money laundering and tax laws, is necessary to complete this process.
Montenegro’s accession to SEPA will eliminate technical, legal, and market barriers between countries that support euro payments, resulting in a more secure international payment system, the equal execution time for all euro transactions with countries within the EU, and a unique, safer, faster, and cheaper way to make payments in euros with EU member states. Moreover, Montenegro’s accession to SEPA would represent one of the clearest signals of the country’s entry into the final phase of EU integration, benefitting both citizens and businesses in Montenegro.
