When will my outgoing bank transfer arrive? (SEPA)

💡 A SEPA transfer is a regular bank transfer within the European Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). It’s the standard way to send money from your Holvi account to another bank in Europe.

Jump to section: My transfer is delayed — what should I do?

I sent a transfer — when will it reach the recipient?

Many payments you send from your Holvi account arrive instantly, including SEPA Instant transfers.

Standard SEPA transfers (traditional bank transfers) are different — they rely on banking schedules. This guide explains their timing and what to do if a payment is delayed.

Payment arrival times at a glance

🔗 Learn more about the different SEPA payment types

How standard SEPA transfers work

The arrival time for standard SEPA transfers depends on two key things:

• Cut-off times: The deadline for a sent transfer to be processed the same day — 15:00 CET in Holvi’s case.
• Banking days: Days when banks process payments (usually Monday–Friday, excluding public holidays).
  🔗 Check our list of non-banking days

Examples

My transfer is delayed — what should I do?

If your payment is taking longer than expected to reach the recipient, please follow these steps in order:

Step 1: Review the transfer details

First, double-check the basics in your Holvi account:

• Recipient Details: Is the recipient's IBAN exactly correct?
• Status: Has the money been successfully debited from your account?
• Timing: Was the transfer sent after the 15:30 CET cut-off time, on a weekend, or on a public holiday? If so, it will only be processed on the next banking day.

Step 2: Allow up to 2 banking days

Due to processing variations between banks, a standard SEPA transfer can sometimes take until the end of the following banking day to appear in the recipient's account.

Step 3: Download your payment receipt

If the money has left your account but hasn't arrived the best way to help the recipient is by sending them a payment receipt. Their bank can use it to trace the transfer.

How to download your payment receipt:

1. Log in to your account at Holvi.com.
2. Go to Accounts and click on the transaction in your feed.
3. In the transaction details, click Options > Open payment receipt.
4. Click the download icon to save the PDF.
5. Send the PDF to your recipient and ask them to share it with their bank.

Once a transfer leaves us successfully, the recipient's bank has the best visibility to trace it on their end, which is why it’s usually most effective to contact them first.

Note: Payment receipts are only available in Holvi for bank transfers. In cases of card payments, the receipt is produced by the merchant.

Step 4: Contact us

If the payment hasn't arrived after 2 full banking days and the recipient's bank can’t locate it with the receipt, please contact our support team. 

To help us resolve this quickly, please include:

• The date and amount of the transfer
• The recipient's name
• Which account you sent it from, if you have multiple
• Any additional information received from the recipient and their bank

We’ll investigate on our end, and if needed, we can initiate an official payment recall.

Expecting an incoming payment that hasn't arrived?

If someone has sent you a transfer and it's delayed, the process is a different. For more details, please see our guide: 🔗 When will my incoming bank transfer arrive?