(28 March 2018 – Europe) The European Commission has proposed slashing fees on cross-border payments between EU countries that are in the euro zone and those that are not.
Currently businesses in the euro zone can carry out cross border transactions to other euro area countries at the same price as a domestic transaction however this privilege does not extend to EU countries outside the Euro zone.
According to the EC this is an obstacle to its vision of a single market, creating barriers to the cross-border activities of businesses, particularly SMEs.
The new rules would only apply when one party to the transaction is in the euro zone and both countries are part of the EU.
The legislative proposal will now be submitted to the European Parliament and Council for adoption.