The IBAN in Morocco: complete guide

The IBAN (International Bank Account Number) is a standardised alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies a bank account, for national as well as international transactions. It was introduced to reduce transcription mistakes and to make communication between financial institutions easier.

The system has now been adopted in 88 countries and continues to spread. Originally drawn up by the European Committee for Banking Standards (ECBS) and formalised since 1997 by the international standard ISO 13616 – currently in its ISO 13616:2020 version –, the IBAN is registered and managed by SWIFT, which guarantees uniformity and greater security in exchanges.

Its four properties

• Unique identification — the IBAN designates precisely a customer's account within a financial institution.
• Standardised format — a country code, two check digits and a BBAN (Basic Bank Account Number) specific to each country. This framework limits the risk of entry mistakes.
• Built-in validation — the two check digits, calculated with the mod-97-10 algorithm, make it possible to verify the integrity of the number before the transaction is executed.
• International adoption — designed first for intra-European payments, the IBAN is today used in many countries, which makes cross-border exchanges easier.

The national part (the BBAN) of a Moroccan IBAN has 24 digits, which are exactly the RIB printed on your bank statement:

A Moroccan IBAN example, explained

Take the IBAN MA64 0115 1900 0001 2050 0053 4921, an example documented by the IBAN registry:

• MA — country code of Morocco.
• 64 — check digits, result of the mod-97-10 calculation.
• 011 — bank code.
• 5190 — branch code (bank branch).
• 000012050005349 — bank account number.
• 21 — RIB key, which strengthens the security of operations.

The total of 28 characters — 4 for “MA64” and 24 digits for the BBAN — complies with the Moroccan standard, which defines the IBAN with 24 digits in the national part.

How the check digits are calculated

The mod-97-10 algorithm turns the IBAN into a very large whole number and checks the remainder of its division by 97. In practice: the first four characters are moved to the end, each letter is replaced by its position in the alphabet plus 9 (M = 22, A = 10), then the division is made. If the remainder is 1, the IBAN is valid. That is exactly the calculation the tool at the top of this page makes, in your browser.

There are several ways to get your Moroccan IBAN:

• On your bank account details slip (RIB) — your IBAN is usually shown there clearly, next to the 24 digits of the RIB.
• In your online banking area — most Moroccan banks display it under “My accounts” or “Bank details”, with a button to download a certificate.
• On your chequebook — many banks print it on the back of the cover.
• At your branch — the signed RIB certificate is in fact the document required by most organisations that pay money to you.

If all you have to hand is the 24 digits of the RIB, the “Build the IBAN from a RIB” tab of the tool above calculates the check digits for you.

The IBAN is essential to secure and to simplify banking operations. It serves to:

• Make international transfers easier — its standardised structure guarantees fast, reliable transmission of payments between banks in different countries. It is the starting point of any bank transfer to Morocco.
• Simplify national transactions — by identifying the beneficiary's account unambiguously, it reduces entry mistakes in interbank transfers.
• Improve traceability — every operation is easier to check thanks to the information the IBAN contains.
• Optimise automated processing — the checking algorithm lets computer systems detect an entry mistake before the transaction is even confirmed.

And to pay for an order?

On iris.ma, the bank transfer is one of the payment methods offered, alongside the bank card, cash on delivery, the cheque and payment in at a branch. Our bank details are displayed to you when the order is confirmed and then sent by email: the detail is on the payment methods page. For companies and public bodies, our business area issues quotations and invoices in the name of your company, with its ICE.

These codes are often confused although they do not designate the same thing.

IBAN and SWIFT / BIC

• IBAN — identifies a bank account uniquely; it includes the country, the account number and check digits.
• SWIFT / BIC — identifies the bank as a whole on the international network; it is used in addition to the IBAN to locate the institution precisely during an international transfer.

IBAN and RIB

• IBAN — the internationalised, standardised version of the account number, which allows transfers to be made under strict validation rules.
• RIB — contains the same information (account number, bank code, branch code, RIB key) but in a format specific to each country. The IBAN takes up that information and internationalises it.

IBAN and SEPA

• IBAN — the central element of bank identification for international transfers.
• SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) — the single euro payments area in Europe, within which the IBAN and the BIC harmonise transactions. Morocco does not belong to the SEPA zone, but the IBAN still makes exchanges with European countries easier.