What are payment limits?

Payment limits are used by building societies and banks to limit the amount of money you can send from your accounts.

We use them to reduce the risk of money going to scammers or to the wrong account.

We have different limits for different types of payment, methods of payment and account.


Sending money to another person or provider using your current account

Our branch limits

If you send a payment in branch, you can make payments of up to £25,000 per transaction, up to a £100,000 overall daily limit. You'll need to bring proof of ID with you to complete the payment.

Our online limits

If you set up a payment online through our Internet Bank or Banking app (including with Open Banking), you can generally make payments of up to £100,000 per transaction, up to a £100,000 overall daily limit. However, there are times when we limit online payments to £25,000 per day.

You can only send up to £25,000 online per day if you:

  • make a payment to an existing payee who you haven't paid many times before
  • make a payment to someone you haven't paid before
  • set up a standing order using our Internet Bank or Banking app.

You can check how much you can send to a payee in our Internet Bank or Banking app when setting up a payment.

Which payments are limited?

This overall daily limit applies to:

  • Faster Payments
    These are payment made using the Faster Payments Service. This includes most single payments you send online (through our Banking app, Internet Bank or Open Banking) or in branch, whether immediately or in the future. It also includes if you send money to another account you have with another provider.

  • Member-to-member payments
    This includes any payments you make to others who also bank with Nationwide. It doesn’t include transfers you make between your own Nationwide accounts.

  • Standing orders
    The limit will apply whether you set up the standing orders online or in branch.

  • Variable Recurring Payments
    This is a type of regular or recurring payment used in Open Banking. It allows you to automatically move money between your own accounts, such as automatically repaying a loan or overdraft.

This overall daily limit doesn't apply to:

  • Direct Debits or BACS payments
    BACS is usually used for Direct Debits and credits from businesses. We don’t limit your Direct Debits or any other payments made using BACS.

  • International payments, like SWIFT or SEPA
    There are no limits on how much you can send internationally.

  • CHAPS payments
    These are used to make high value payments. More about CHAPS payments.

The overall daily limit resets every day at midnight UK time.

We may change our daily limit

To help keep your money safe, we may apply lower limits to certain payments.


Transferring money between your Nationwide accounts

The amount of money you can send, as well as how long it will take to send, depends on how you choose to send your money and which accounts you’re sending money between.

These transfers can’t be cancelled once requested.

Current account transfers

Savings account transfers


Scheduling your payments

Faster Payments

What are Faster Payments?

Faster Payments include most single payments you send online (through our Banking app, Internet Bank or Open Banking) or in branch, whether immediately or in the future. And they include if you send money to another account you have with another building society or a bank.

Sometimes, you might want your payments to go out on a future date rather than immediately.

You can schedule payments for later in our Banking app or Internet Bank.

If you want a payment to leave your account tomorrow, it must be set up by 10pm today (the working day before). If you set it up after 10pm today, your payment will be sent on the working day after tomorrow.

You can change or cancel a payment up to 10pm on the working day before it’s due to leave your account.

Standing orders

When you set up a standing order, you choose the date the payments will leave your current account.

If you’re paying an account with another building society or a bank, and the date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, it will be sent the next working day.

If you’re paying another Nationwide account, either one you own or someone else’s, it will be sent on the date you choose.

If you want your standing order to leave your account tomorrow (the next working day), it must be set up by 10pm today (the working day before).


Making large payments to another provider

Occasionally, you may need to make a particularly large payment of more than £100,000.

If you need to make a large payment, you can:

  • spread the amount you’re sending over multiple payments on more than one day, or
  • make the payment using CHAPS. These payments can’t be cancelled once requested.

International payments

We do not place a limit on how much you can send using an international payment. This includes SWIFT and SEPA payments.

Details of international payments types, cost and timescales
Type of payment Timescale Transaction fee
Payments to European countries in Euros 1 working day Free
Payments to EEA countries (opens in a new window) in Sterling 1 working day £20
Payments in the EEA/UK not in an EEA currency 4 working days £20
Payments in any currency outside the EEA This will take longer, please ask us for details. £20

Cryptocurrency limits

There is a £5,000 daily limit when buying cryptocurrency. This applies where we identify payments to crypto exchanges.



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