No more paying any amount in cash. The European Union wants to change the rules and limit cash payments in all countries to a maximum of 10,000 euros in 2027. This will further change the way we pay in our daily lives, which has already been changing in recent years, with the use of cards, mobile phones or transfers being almost the most common today in most businesses. Cash has less and less presence in many operations and the European Commission wants to put even more limits on it in order to prevent money laundering or at least reduce it.
For some time now, European institutions have been working to reduce the use of cash to combat tax fraud, money laundering and other illicit activities. And, unlike electronic payments, cash leaves no trace, which makes it difficult to control large movements of money.
In this context, the European Union has gone one step further and has approved a new regulatory framework that changes the rules for cash payments in all Member States by imposing a new common maximum limit of 10,000 euros for commercial operations.
The new European regulation that sets a common limit throughout the EU
The measure is part of the legislative package approved by the European Parliament and the Council in 2024 to strengthen the fight against money laundering and improve financial transparency in the single market.
This new regulation introduces for the first time a common criterion throughout the European Union. Thus, no country will be able to allow cash payments of more than 10,000 euros in commercial operations, forcing the use of payment methods that leave a record, such as transfers or cards, when that amount is exceeded.
The objective, according to the European institutions, is to prevent large-volume operations from moving to countries with more lax regulations and making financial investigations difficult.
The entry into force of this limit is scheduled for July 2027, within the implementation schedule of the new European financial supervision system.
They will ask for mandatory identification for some payments
The regulations not only set a maximum limit, but also introduce new obligations in operations with cash below that threshold.
In certain cases, especially in payments considered risky, businesses must identify the customer through an official document and retain that data. The objective is that transactions can be linked to a specific person and facilitate possible investigations.
These controls will mainly affect operations such as:
- Shopping for luxury goods
- Acquisition of high value vehicles
- Payments in sectors with a higher risk of money laundering
- Commercial transactions with large amounts of cash
In this way, Brussels seeks to increase the traceability of money even when it does not exceed 10,000 euros.
Differences between countries and what will happen in Spain
Until now, each country in the European Union applied its own rules on the use of cash, which generated large differences between States.
For example:
- Spain already limits cash payments to 1,000 euros when a professional intervenes
- France maintains a similar limit of 1,000 euros
- Italy sets the limit at 5,000 euros
- Other countries, such as Germany or Austria, did not have a clear general limit
With the new regulations, the EU establishes a “common ceiling”, but allows countries to maintain lower limits if they consider it necessary.
In the case of Spain, this means that it will not be necessary to modify the current legislation, since it is more restrictive than the European one. The anti-fraud law approved in 2021 will continue to apply under the same terms.
One more step towards the digitalization of payments
Beyond the cash limit, this measure reflects a clear trend in Europe: moving towards digital and fully traceable payment systems.
Transfers, card payments or electronic systems allow each operation to be recorded, which facilitates the work of tax authorities and the organizations in charge of preventing financial crimes.
In parallel, the European Union is also working on projects such as the digital euro, promoted by the European Central Bank, which aims to offer a public alternative to current electronic payment methods.
With this new framework, Brussels seeks to strengthen control of money in circulation, reduce fraud and establish common rules throughout the European market, in a context in which cash is increasingly losing prominence in the daily economy.