Azerbaijan's central bank sets fixed payment system fees from April 2027

The Central Bank of Azerbaijan has set new fees for payment system services that take effect on 1 April 2027, making fees uniform across payment system sessions, setting them as fixed amounts by transaction-value band and pricing instant payments below other systems, according to a press release dated 14 October. The fees were approved by Board of Directors decision No. 39/5 of 15 September 2026, the release says.

What changes

The release says fees across payment system sessions have been made uniform and will be charged as fixed amounts set by transaction-value band, applied regardless of timing. The upper limit of service fees is reduced two-fold for AZIPS, the real-time gross settlement system, and 1.5-fold for XÖHKS, the low-value payments clearing and settlement system, according to the release. It does not give the previous figures.

Fees for the instant payments system, AÖS, which runs around the clock with real-time settlement, are set lower than for other systems, and tariffs for card-to-account transfers at the Interbank Card Center (BKM) have been set, the release says. It adds that the tariffs take current market conditions into account and aim to support innovation and optimise the fees charged to payment service users.

The bands

The tariff schedule published with the release sets domestic fees in manat by band, from up to AZN 100 to above AZN 40,000, according to the schedule:

• AZIPS: AZN 0.20 for transfers up to AZN 100, rising to AZN 20 above AZN 40,000.
• XÖHKS: AZN 0.10 in the lowest band and AZN 10 in the highest, with a lower scale for payments through the Government Payment Portal, from AZN 0.03 to AZN 8.
• AÖS payment orders and alias transfers: AZN 0.01 in the lowest band and AZN 4 in the highest.
• BKM: AZN 0.03 in the lowest band and AZN 4 in the highest.

AZIPS payments in dollars, euros and pounds follow the same band amounts, the schedule says, while paper or SWIFT transfers to resident banks cost 0.02 per cent of the amount, capped at US$10, and those to non-resident banks 0.1 per cent, capped at US$100.

Exemptions and dispute fees

The schedule exempts some flows. AZIPS charges nothing for cash withdrawal orders or for clearing results from payment system operators and BKM, and XÖHKS charges nothing for State Treasury Agency VAT payment orders, according to the schedule. It also sets dispute fees: in the instant payments system a chargeback request costs AZN 2 and arbitration or compliance procedures AZN 250 each, while at BKM a chargeback request costs AZN 5 and arbitration or compliance procedures AZN 500 each.

The release says the fees are charged to payment service users but does not specify which party bears each fee. It gives 1 April 2027 as the effective date, whereas the schedule states only the approval date.