IBAN Validator

Continue in the tool

More pages for this tool

france iban validator

France IBAN Validator

French IBANs start with FR and have 27 characters, one of the longer formats in Western Europe because they embed the full RIB (Relevé d'Identité Bancaire).

The French IBAN format

France's IBAN has 27 characters: FR, then 2 check digits, then a 23-character BBAN. That BBAN carries the traditional French RIB: 5 digits for the bank code, 5 for the branch code (guichet), 11 alphanumeric characters for the account number, and a final 2-digit clé Rib (RIB key), a domestic control digit that predates the IBAN itself.
Because the RIB already had its own control digit before the IBAN era, a French IBAN effectively carries two layers of verification: the 2-digit clé Rib inside the BBAN, and the IBAN's own 2 check digits computed on top of everything.
The 2 check digits follow the same ISO 7064 rule (mod 97-10) used by every IBAN: the first 4 characters of the provisional IBAN move to the end, each letter becomes two digits (A=10 through Z=35), and the resulting number must leave a remainder of 1 when divided by 97. In France, that calculation sits on top of another one that already existed: the clé Rib's internal control digit, defined since the 1960s by the French banking system, long before ISO 13616 standardized IBAN internationally in 1997. The 5-digit bank code (code banque) allows up to 100,000 possible values, and the 5-digit branch code (guichet) another 100,000, far more identification capacity than the number of banks and branches actually operating in the country.

Examples

Valid French IBAN

Input: FR7630006000011234567890189
Expected output: Valid

Classic example cited in banking documentation (BNP Paribas), 27 characters.

Length longer than expected

Input: FR76300060000112345678901890000
Expected output: Wrong length

Extra trailing characters, French IBANs are always exactly 27.

Invalid country prefix

Input: 1R7630006000011234567890189
Expected output: Invalid country format

Starts with a digit instead of two letters; ISO 13616 requires the first 2 characters to always be country-code letters (FR, in this case).

Full tool FAQ

What does it mean when an IBAN is 'valid'?

It means the IBAN has the correct length for its country and its check digits satisfy the ISO 7064 MOD97-10 checksum defined by ISO 13616. It confirms the number is well-formed and free of typos, it does not confirm that the underlying bank account actually exists or is open, only the account-holding bank can verify that.

Why did my IBAN come back as 'wrong length'?

Why did it say the country code is unknown?

Can two different IBANs have the same check digits?

Does a valid checksum guarantee the account exists?

Why does the BBAN show as one long string instead of bank code and account number?

Is this the same as a SWIFT/BIC code?

Why do some countries not use IBAN at all?

Frequently asked questions

Are the French IBAN and RIB the same thing?

The RIB is embedded inside the French IBAN's BBAN, but the IBAN adds the FR prefix and 2 of its own check digits on top of the 23-character RIB, so the IBAN is always 4 characters longer.

How many characters does a French IBAN have?

Always 27.

What is the clé Rib inside a French IBAN?

It's a 2-digit domestic control number specific to the French RIB system, which predates IBAN adoption and remains embedded in the final 2 characters of the BBAN.

Since when has France required IBAN for domestic transfers?

Since 1 February 2014, when EU Regulation No 260/2012 ended the SEPA transition period and made IBAN mandatory for euro transfers within France itself too.

Next steps

The French IBAN format

France's IBAN has 27 characters: FR, then 2 check digits, then a 23-character BBAN. That BBAN carries the traditional French RIB: 5 digits for the bank code, 5 for the branch code (guichet), 11 alphanumeric characters for the account number, and a final 2-digit clé Rib (RIB key), a domestic control digit that predates the IBAN itself.

Because the RIB already had its own control digit before the IBAN era, a French IBAN effectively carries two layers of verification: the 2-digit clé Rib inside the BBAN, and the IBAN's own 2 check digits computed on top of everything.

The 2 check digits follow the same ISO 7064 rule (mod 97-10) used by every IBAN: the first 4 characters of the provisional IBAN move to the end, each letter becomes two digits (A=10 through Z=35), and the resulting number must leave a remainder of 1 when divided by 97. In France, that calculation sits on top of another one that already existed: the clé Rib's internal control digit, defined since the 1960s by the French banking system, long before ISO 13616 standardized IBAN internationally in 1997. The 5-digit bank code (code banque) allows up to 100,000 possible values, and the 5-digit branch code (guichet) another 100,000, far more identification capacity than the number of banks and branches actually operating in the country.

Examples

Valid French IBAN

Input: FR7630006000011234567890189
Expected output: Valid

Classic example cited in banking documentation (BNP Paribas), 27 characters.

Length longer than expected

Input: FR76300060000112345678901890000
Expected output: Wrong length

Extra trailing characters, French IBANs are always exactly 27.

Invalid country prefix

Input: 1R7630006000011234567890189
Expected output: Invalid country format

Starts with a digit instead of two letters; ISO 13616 requires the first 2 characters to always be country-code letters (FR, in this case).

Full tool FAQ

What does it mean when an IBAN is 'valid'?

Why did my IBAN come back as 'wrong length'?

Why did it say the country code is unknown?

Can two different IBANs have the same check digits?

Does a valid checksum guarantee the account exists?

Why does the BBAN show as one long string instead of bank code and account number?

Is this the same as a SWIFT/BIC code?

Why do some countries not use IBAN at all?

Frequently asked questions

Are the French IBAN and RIB the same thing?

The RIB is embedded inside the French IBAN's BBAN, but the IBAN adds the FR prefix and 2 of its own check digits on top of the 23-character RIB, so the IBAN is always 4 characters longer.

How many characters does a French IBAN have?

Always 27.

What is the clé Rib inside a French IBAN?

It's a 2-digit domestic control number specific to the French RIB system, which predates IBAN adoption and remains embedded in the final 2 characters of the BBAN.

Since when has France required IBAN for domestic transfers?

Since 1 February 2014, when EU Regulation No 260/2012 ended the SEPA transition period and made IBAN mandatory for euro transfers within France itself too.