Transfer Money To / From Sweden, Norway, Denmark & Iceland

By Last Edited Oct 20, 2023

Transferring money to and from the countries of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Iceland are a particular area of interest for us here at Money Transfer Comparison.

While these countries aren’t big in terms of population, with less than 30m inhabitants in total, there is significant demand for alternatives to traditional banks to make international money transfers.

One of the primary factors driving this demand is of course that all four of these countries are still using their own currency.

Money transfers to Iceland are denominated in Icelandic Krona (ISK)

Money transfers to Norway are denominated in Norwegian Krone (NOK)

Money transfers to Denmark are denominated in Danish Krone (DKK)

Money transfers to Sweden are denominated in Swedish Krona (SEK)

Scandinavian currencies are by no means the most exotic out there – NOK, DKK and SEK are all in the 20 most popularly traded currencies in the world – but they are traded significantly less frequently than GBP, EUR and USD.

This means banks may charge even MORE when buying or selling a Scandinavian currency

In this guide, we’ll explain what costs to look out for, and we’ll explore the different options for both sending money to Scandinavia and sending money from Scandinavia.

So whether you’re transferring money from Sweden to the UK or sending money from the USA to Norway, we’ll let you know the best way to go about it.

Jump to Best Providers for Money Transfers to/from Scandinavia

101 – Currency Markups

International wire transfer fees are the more obvious fee which banks charge.

You’ll see these clearly displayed before initiating a transfer.

However, there’s an added component which makes a much bigger difference to the costs of international money transfers which is the markup added to the currency exchange rate.

This markup has a proportionately higher impact when transferring large amounts, or receiving large amounts of currency.

A high proportion of money transfers to and from Sweden, Norway, Iceland and Denmark are exactly that – large sum transfers in the tens of thousands or more.

Let’s explore a simple example.

Say the SEKEUR rate is 0.86 but if the bank is only giving 0.80 euros for each SEK.

This means each SEKEUR money transfer gets you 6.9% less than the official rate.

Verifying that you get the best foreign exchange rate on your bank transfer is crucial.

Much more costly than the annoying £10-20 fixed fees, which can admittedly start to build up if you make frequent transfers.

Higher markups for Nordic Currencies

Banks are notoriously expensive when transferring money abroad.

But they are going to offer better if you are transferring money to the USA, France or Spain because these countries use major currencies.

From our experience and independent research on bank fees, UK banks charge approximately 2.2% in currency markup to those destinations.

But when it comes to transferring money to Sweden, Denmark, Norway or Iceland this can be closer to 4-5% in some instances.

A specialist money transfer service such as a currency broker will be much cheaper.

Formatting Transfers to Scandinavia

When sending money to Scandinavia from overseas, it’s really important to get the beneficiary account details right.

This avoids potential delays and crucially, it means you won’t risk losing your money if it credits the wrong account.

Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland have all adopted the IBAN formatting standard.

The IBAN standard was originally developed to make facilitating transfers within the EU easy but it is now globally recognised and used by many countries around the world.

The IBAN consists of a 2 digit country code, followed by two check digits and then up to 30 alphanumeric characters which depend on the bank and account number you’re sending money to.

The only thing to look out for is the length of the IBAN, it varies from country-to-country and it’s best to use a reputable IBAN checker to verify you’ve got the details correct.

Let’s explore how IBAN’s are structured in each Scandinavian country.

Sending Money to Sweden

Sweden’s IBAN format consists of 24 alphanumeric characters, starting with ‘SE’ and then 22 further characters depending on the account you’re sending money to.

SEkk BBBB CCCC CCCCCCCCCCCC

SE = Country Code

kk = Check Digits

B = Bank Code

C = Account No.

You may also have to supply the ‘SWIFT BIC’ of the receiving bank if the transfer is being sent on the SWIFT network – this will be 8 or 11 characters.

Be sure to get this from a reliable source (such as the recipient bank’s own website) or verify the details with your account manager if you’re working with a money transfer specialist.

Sending Money to Norway

The Norway IBAN format consists of just 15 alphanumeric characters. Starting with ‘NO’ the other 13 characters will be populated based on the account you’re sending money to.

NOkk BBBB CCCC CCK

NO = Country Code

kk = Check Digits

B = Bank Code

C = Account No.

K = Check Digits

You may have to provide the beneficiary bank SWIFT BIC (8 or 11 characters) if you’re making a SWIFT transfer.

Sending Money to Denmark

The IBAN format for Denmark consists of 18 alphanumeric characters.

DKkk BBBB CCCC CCCC CC

DK = Country Code

kk = Check Digits

B = Bank No

C = Account No

That should be all you need for transfers to Denmark.

Sending Money to Iceland

The IBAN format for Iceland consists of the highest number of alphanumeric characters (26) because it includes the National Identification number of the recipient. You’ll also need to provide extra information to complete your transfer.

ISkk BBBB SSCC CCCC XXXX XXXX XX

IS = Country Code

kk = Check Digits

B = Bank Code

S = Sort Code

C = Account No.

X = Holder’s National Identification Number

For international transfers to Iceland, you’ll also be required to provide:

Beneficiary Bank BIC/SWIFT: 8 or 11 characters
Beneficiary Address

International Money Transfer Providers: Scandinavia

The following list of providers support:

Transferring money to Sweden (and currency exchange to SEK)
Transferring money to Norway (and currency exchange to NOK)
Transferring money to Denmark (and currency exchange to DKK)
Transferring money to Iceland (and currency exchange to ISK)

Additionally and importantly, these providers have offices in the EU, which means they can onboard customers from anywhere in Scandinavia.

With that in mind, you can also use these providers to:

Transfer money from Sweden internationally (and exchange SEK to Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling or 100+ currencies)
Transfer money from Norway internationally (and exchange NOK to Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling or 100+ currencies)
Transfer money from Denmark internationally (and exchange DKK to Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling or 100+ currencies)
Transfer money from Iceland internationally (and exchange ISK to Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling or 100+ currencies)

We have omitted Finland, but they can certainly help Finnish customers too.

We have just covered it in another guide – transferring money between the UK and Europe.