Sometimes, every second counts
When business is urgent, money needs to be processed quickly. With PostFinance instant payments, you can send and receive payments instantly in a matter of seconds – round the clock, every day of the year. This allows you, your customers and your suppliers to benefit from liquidity available instantly and maximum flexibility.
Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year
Payments are processed in a matter of seconds
Instant credit confirmation for recipients and senders
Liquidity management is improved
Faster order fulfilment is possible
Receive payments at any time – even at the weekend and on public holidays – in real time in your PostFinance account (IBAN or QR-IBAN). Instant payments are credited individually by default. On request, instant payments can be integrated into an existing batch entry. The amount is instantly available to you, regardless of the entry variant required.
Instant Payout lets you optimize the payout process for your customers, as you can make round-the-clock instant payments every day to an account in Switzerland or Liechtenstein. The service is connected to your systems via an API interface, and you can choose whether you or your customers trigger the payouts.
Find out more under “Here’s how it works”
For the time being, you can’t send instant payments in e-finance, the PostFinance App or via electronic payment orders (EPO). The following alternatives are available to you, free of charge:
Find out more under “Here’s how it works”
Description |
Features |
Procedure |
Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
Same day payment |
|
Enter the current banking day as the execution date in e-finance, the PostFinance App or the electronic payment order (EPO). Once triggered, the payment/EPO can no longer be modified or reversed. |
free of charge |
Express payment |
|
Enter the option “Instant execution / express” in e-finance, the PostFinance App or the electronic payment order (EPO). Once triggered, the payment or EPO can no longer be modified or reversed. |
CHF 5 per payment (will be collectively charged to your account at the end of the month) |
Instant payments are transfers made in CHF as national payments, processed by banks and PostFinance 24/7, every day and within a few seconds – i.e. in real time. The debit to the paying party’s account is immediate and almost simultaneous with the receipt of the credit in the beneficiary party’s account. PostFinance is also able to credit instant payments to foreign currency accounts.
Instant payments are an option for up to CHF 20,000 per transaction.
Instant payments allow quicker processing of payments, improve cash flow management and provide instant execution confirmation. This can prevent financial shortfalls and increase customer satisfaction.
Both the sender’s bank and the recipient’s bank must support instant payments. It has been mandatory since August 2024 for the biggest Swiss banks, such as PostFinance, to accept real-time payments. The other banks will follow by 2026. In Switzerland, there is no obligation for banks to send instant payments.
Instant Payout is an instant payment that is integrated directly into the payer’s payout process. Instant Payout is based on an API interface that allows business customers to trigger instant payments via their API provider (e.g. PSP, API integrator). This authenticates and verifies and the payment immediately. Once it has been successfully validated, the instant payment is transferred, and the sender is notified of the successful crediting/rejection of the payment via API. These steps are carried out simultaneously in a matter of seconds.
It is important to check on a case-by-case basis whether our solution can be deployed for your use case.
With SEPA instant payment, transfers can be processed within the SEPA area in a matter of seconds. PostFinance does not yet offer SEPA instant payment.
Our experts will be happy to help you with this. Arrange an appointment now.
