Taking guest payments by Bizum, MB WAY, instant transfer or IRIS: what the law allows and what makes sense for a property (2026)

Updated: 10 November 2026

More and more guests ask whether they can pay for their stay by phone: Bizum in Spain, MB WAY in Portugal, IRIS in Greece, or an instant transfer from any euro-area bank. We read Regulation (EU) 2024/886, the pages of the ECB, the European Commission, the Banco de España, the Banca d'Italia and Greece's AADE, and the official websites of Bizum, MB WAY and DIAS (links at the end). We only give what they say and flag what we could not confirm. We do not recommend any provider. This is not legal advice: your bank, your contract and your adviser are what count.

Summary

Regulation (EU) 2024/886: in the euro area banks must receive instant transfers from 9-1-2025 and send them from 9-10-2025, at any hour on any day, with funds available within 10 seconds.
They cannot cost more than a standard credit transfer of the same type (from 9-1-2025 in the euro area).
From 9-10-2025 the payer's bank checks free of charge that the payee's name matches the IBAN (verification of payee, «VoP»).
Bizum, MB WAY and IRIS have business options; in Greece, accepting account-to-account instant payments such as IRIS has been mandatory with consumers since 1-12-2025, according to the AADE.
For the property: payment is immediate and cannot be reversed like a card chargeback, but check in your bank that the money has arrived; refunds for cancellations are made with a new payment.

What Regulation (EU) 2024/886 says

It amends Regulation (EU) 260/2012 (SEPA). The essentials:

Article 2(1a): an instant credit transfer is executed immediately, «24 hours a day and on any calendar day».
Articles 5a(4) and 5a(5): the payee's bank makes the funds available within 10 seconds; if it does not confirm in time, the payer's account is restored.
Article 5a(8): euro area, receiving from 9-1-2025 and sending from 9-10-2025. Payment and e-money institutions: from 9-4-2027. Outside the euro area: 9-1-2027 and 9-7-2027.
Article 5b: charges no higher than for other credit transfers of the same type; verification of payee is free.
Article 5c: if name and IBAN do not match, the bank alerts the payer and warns that the money may go to an account not held by the payee; if they nearly match, it shows the name. The payer can still authorise the transfer.
The text does not use the word «irrevocable»; recital 20 says that once credited it may not be possible to recover the funds. The Banco de España says transfers are irrevocable orders and the Banca d'Italia calls the bonifico istantaneo «irrevocabile».

Bizum for businesses (Spain)

According to Bizum's official website:

Small businesses and the self-employed can take in-person payments by contracting the service with their bank or a technology provider, who set the commercial terms; not every bank offers it: Bizum publishes the list.
No card terminal needed: by the customer's phone number, a link or a QR code. It also exists as an online checkout method.
For businesses, the site says there are no limits «on receiving or on amount».
Money arrives within seconds and movements are irrevocable: a Bizum cannot be cancelled; if there is a mistake, the recipient is asked to send it back.
We could not confirm that Bizum is technically an instant transfer under Regulation 2024/886, or that guests with banks outside Spain can use it.
Receiving money on your personal account through person-to-person Bizum is not the business option: ask your bank.

MB WAY for merchants (Portugal)

According to MB WAY's official «Adesão Empresas» page:

In store, with a POS or SmartPOS terminal, by QR code or the customer's mobile number.
Online, through the SIBS payment gateway; on the move, with an app that turns a phone or tablet into a terminal.
Remotely, with a vTerminal to request payments by phone or social media without an online shop: useful for booking deposits.
You apply with a form on that page. The page says MB WAY has no additional costs but gives no contract fees: get them in writing.
We could not confirm whether a guest with a bank outside Portugal can pay with MB WAY.

IRIS in Greece

AADE: since 1-12-2025, accepting account-to-account instant payments such as IRIS is mandatory in business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions, through the POS terminal or an electronic receipt provider (decisions A.1147/2025 and A.1160/2025, updating A.1098/2022 and A.1155/2023).
AADE press release of 17-11-2025: collecting by card or IRIS always comes with a receipt issued by the cash register system.
Decision 8139/2024 already required accommodation activity codes (ΚΑΔ 55.10, 55.20, 55.30, 55.90) to accept cards and instant transfers; we explain it in our payments guide.
IRIS is operated by ΔΙΑΣ Α.Ε. (DIAS) and merchants join through their bank; we found no Bank of Greece page on IRIS for merchants.
Not confirmed: whether Greek law expressly counts IRIS as «another electronic means» for the 500 € threshold in Law 5301/2026, and the penalties for not accepting it.

Italy: bonifico istantaneo and electronic payment

Banca d'Italia: the bonifico istantaneo arrives in under ten seconds, any day at any hour, is irrevocable and cannot cost more than a traditional transfer; since 9-10-2025 the bank checks name and IBAN, though that does not stop every fraud.
What a guest can insist on is paying by card: the property must accept it (Article 15 of Decree-Law 179/2012, penalty of 30 € plus 4 %). We explain it in /cash-payment-limits-card-acceptance-hotels-2026.
We found no obligation to accept the bonifico istantaneo: it is one more option.

What changes for the property

No chargebacks: unlike a card, the guest cannot reverse the payment through their bank once credited; the Banco de España says it cannot be returned without the payee's consent or a court order. Practical exception: if the money came from a hijacked account, the bank may claim it back.
Beware the fake «payment sent»: never hand over the room or key on the strength of a screenshot or an email; check the balance in your online banking. Receiving money needs no acceptance: if someone asks you to «confirm» an incoming payment, it may be a «reverse Bizum» that is actually a payment from you (Banco de España).
Share your IBAN and the exact account holder name: with verification of payee, the guest will see a warning if they do not match.
Cash limits do not apply, because a transfer or mobile payment is not cash; the limits are in /cash-payment-limits-card-acceptance-hotels-2026.
Same invoice: the payment method does not change the invoice or receipt; in Greece the AADE requires it expressly for IRIS.
Cancellation refunds: made with another transfer or payment to the guest, under your policy; Bizum says the merchant handles refunds. Keep the proof.
Foreign guests: instant euro transfers work between euro-area banks; for the national apps we could not confirm it, so also offer card payment.
Compare the terms of your bank and several providers; we do not recommend any of them.

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Frequently asked questions

Since when can I be paid by instant transfer in the euro area?

Banks must receive them from 9-1-2025 and send them from 9-10-2025, at the same price as a standard transfer (Regulation (EU) 2024/886).

Can a guest cancel a Bizum or an instant transfer?

Not like a card chargeback: Bizum says its movements are irrevocable and the Banco de España says transfers cannot be returned without the payee's consent or a court order.

How do I refund a guest who cancels?

With another transfer or payment to the guest, under your cancellation policy, keeping the proof.

Sources

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