Brussels, 11/01/2007 (Agence Europe) - In 2001, the transfer of €100 to another Member State of the eurozone cost €23.6 on average. Today, the same transaction costs only €2.46 on average. This was the conclusion reached by the recent European Commission report on implementation of Regulation (EC) No 2560/2001 on cross-border payments in euro (see EUROPE 8244). The Commission considers that application of the regulation will give EU consumers a guarantee that, when they make a payment in euro to an account in another Member State it will cost the same as it would to make a payment within their own Member State, and that this should not provoke any increases on charges for national payments. Mid-2007, the Commission will present a detailed assessment of European legislation together with proposals for possible amendments, in the light of discussions underway on the payment services directive (see EUROPE 9316) and in the light of the results of its sectoral inquiry into current bank accounts due in January.
A significant lowering of the cost of cross-border payments has taken place in the 12 eurozone Member States. The fall, which is considerable in Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg, was the greatest in Ireland, where the cost of a €100 transfer fell from €22.04 in 2003 to €0.38 in 2005. This service is now free of charge in the Netherlands. Although costs have fallen, they remain above average in four Member States (€12 in Greece, €4 in Spain, €3.5 in Italy and €3.4 in France).
Banks fear national tariffs will rise after the regulation takes effect. The Commission concludes that the cost of national transfers have remained unchanged in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Finland and the Netherlands. There are certainly rises in Spain, Italy and Luxembourg but these are partly due to these countries' banking strategies consisting of stimulating the use of electronic banking means. Furthermore, there is no fee for the use of bank payment cards throughout the EU but, at the same time, annual fees for holding such cards have increased sometimes at a faster rate than inflation. Finally, except for Ireland, banks do not charge a fee for cash withdrawals carried out from their automatic tills. This is not the case when withdrawals are made from rival banks. On this point, the Commission recognises that there is a link between the regulation and the introduction of increased charges for this service. (mb)