Paying international suppliers requires different information from UK contacts. Here's everything you need to know about managing overseas suppliers.
Required information for international contacts
Contact name and their first and last name, or the account name
IBAN or local account number (depending on the country)
BIC/SWIFT code for their bank
Recipient address
Payment currency
Setting up international contacts
International contacts can be added during the payment creation process. If a bill includes international details, these won’t be captured automatically; you’ll need to enter them during the payment setup.
By default, the payment review screen allows you to provide international details. If these fields aren’t visible, click ‘Switch to International Payment’ under the Contact details section to enable them.
You can also add international contacts manually in advance from the Contacts section, so they’re ready to use later. To do this:
Go to Contacts and click Add new contact
Enter the contact name
Click on the created contact and go to the Bank details section
Click on Switch to International Payment and enter the required details
Verification process
For international contacts, we verify that IBAN formats are correct, BIC/SWIFT codes are valid, account numbers match the expected format for their country, and the currency is supported for their destination.
Payment timing
International payments typically arrive 1-3 business days, depending on the currency and destination country. European payments often arrive within hours using SEPA transfers.
Managing international contacts properly ensures smooth cross-border payments and helps maintain good relationships with your overseas suppliers.
Currency options
Your international suppliers can receive payments in their local currency, which is often more convenient for them. We charge a fee of 0.5% for FX conversion and for payments outside of the EEA, £/€/$3 per payment (depending on the currency used). The international payment fee is only applied for payments outside of the EEA.
You can also use your EUR and USD bank accounts to pay your contacts directly in a currency you already holdin case you want to avoid Apron making a conversion from GBP to them respectively (option available for members on the Pro subscription plan).
We support 35+ currencies, including:
Australian Dollar (AUD),
Bahrain Dinar (BHD),
Canadian Dollar (CAD),
Chinese Yuan (CNH),
Czech Koruna (CZK),
Danish Krone (DKK),
Euro (EUR),
Hong Kong Dollar (HKD),
Hungarian Forint (HUF),
Indian Rupee (INR),
Indonesian Rupiah (IDR),
Israeli Shekel (ILS),
Japanese Yen (JPY),
Kenyan Shilling (KES),
Kuwait Dinar (KWD),
Malaysian Ringgit (MYR),
Mexican Peso (MXN),
New Zealand Dollar (NZD),
Norwegian Krone (NOK),
Omani Rial (OMR),
Philippine Peso (PHP),
Polish Zloty (PLN),
Qatar Rial (QAR),
Romanian Leu (RON),
Saudi Riyal (SAR),
Singapore Dollar (SGD),
South African Rand (ZAR),
Swedish Krona (SEK),
Swiss Franc (CHF),
Thai Baht (THB),
Turkish Lira (TRY),
Ugandan Shilling (UGX),
UK Sterling (GBP),
United Arab Emirates Dirham (AED),
US Dollar (USD).
Supported countries
You can send money to suppliers in most countries worldwide. We support payments to everywhere except restricted countries, including:
Afghanistan,
Belarus,
Cuba,
Democratic Republic of Congo,
Iran,
Iraq,
Ivory Coast (Cote D'Ivoire),
Kazakhstan,
Liberia,
Libya,
Myanmar (previously Burma),
North Korea,
Palestinian Territory,
Russia,
Sanctioned regions of Ukraine,
South Sudan,
Sudan,
Syria,
Venezuela,
Zimbabwe.