If you need to pay someone straight away or transfer a large amount of money, CHAPS transfers allow you to make same-day, high-value electronic payments.
You might use CHAPS if you were paying the money for a home deposit or moving your savings between accounts. A business may use CHAPS transfers to pay their suppliers or their taxes.
CHAPS stands for Clearing House Automated Payment System.
The Bank of England (BoE) has been responsible for the CHAPS system since 2017, so transfers must be made in pounds sterling. Before that, CHAPS was operated by a private entity (CHAPS Co).
You can send money up to your personal payment limit to friends and family or up to £25,000 for payments to a company via online and mobile banking. Payments above these limits will be sent as a CHAPS payment.
If you’re an HSBC customer, you can send a CHAPS payment in branch or by post. If you hold an HSBC Premier account, you can also do this over the phone.
To make a CHAPS payment in branch, you'll need to bring valid ID and the details of the person you want to pay.
There is no payment limit with a CHAPS transfer.
Yes, you’ll have to pay a fee to make a CHAPS payments with us. The amount will depend on which type of account you’re paying into and the payment method.
Here’s a summary of CHAPS fees:
| Account holder | Branch | Telephone | Post |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSBC customer |
£17 | na | £17 |
| HSBC Premier customer | £12 | £12 | £17 |
| Account holder |
HSBC customer |
HSBC customer |
|---|---|---|
| Branch | £17 | £17 |
| Telephone | na | na |
| Post | £17 | £17 |
| Account holder | HSBC Premier customer | HSBC Premier customer |
| Branch | £12 | £12 |
| Telephone | £12 | £12 |
| Post | £17 | £17 |
| Account holder | Branch | Telephone | Post |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSBC customer | £17 | na | £17 |
| HSBC Premier customer | £17 | £17 | £17 |
| Account holder | HSBC customer | HSBC customer |
|---|---|---|
| Branch | £17 | £17 |
| Telephone | na | na |
| Post | £17 | £17 |
| Account holder | HSBC Premier customer | HSBC Premier customer |
| Branch | £17 | £17 |
| Telephone | £17 | £17 |
| Post | £17 | £17 |
As CHAPS is operated by the Bank of England, it’s considered a safe and secure way to transfer funds. A bank or building society must meet strict technical criteria to use CHAPS, such as access to the SWIFT network (a secure financial messaging service).
We have a range of payment security measures in place to protect customers, including our physical Secure Key and Mobile Banking PIN.
CHAPS payments can’t be reversed. If you’re worried about a payment, acting quickly can help get things sorted.
