Banking & Payments Federation Ireland is advising businesses that due to the upcoming European May Day holiday, payment requests for wages and salaries due on the 1st May should be submitted earlier to ensure employees receive their pay on time.
Explaining what happens on May 1st and the impact for businesses, Leah Donnelly, Manager of Payment Schemes, BPFI said: “This year the annual European May Day holiday falls on Wednesday May 1st and European institutions including the European Central Bank, which operates the banking settlement system across Europe, will be closed. While banks are open in Ireland on that day, the European holiday means that electronic payments in EURO cannot be made to bank accounts in Ireland or anywhere else across Europe. Essentially this means that anyone expecting a EURO payment into their bank account on this date may not receive the payment until Thursday 2nd May.”
“We are now advising businesses paying employees or suppliers to allow additional time for payments to reach the beneficiary. Employers who normally pay weekly wages into employees’ accounts on a Wednesday, or monthly salaries on the 1st of the month, will need to submit their payment requests to their bank by Monday 29th April with employees receiving their funds on Tuesday 30th April. Standard payment processing cycles will apply from Thursday 2nd May.”
BPFI member banks are engaging directly with business customers and government departments to ensure, where necessary, payments impacted by this are paid early and are processed on time. As such, customers should raise any queries they may have directly with their bank, credit union or post office.
