What's the difference between an MT103 and a pacs.008?

They're the old and new formats of the same customer payment message. Since 22 November 2025, Swift has required ISO 20022 for payment instructions, so the confirmation is now usually a pacs.008, though the MT103 name is still in use. Flywire accepts either as proof of payment.

From How to track a SWIFT payment and find out why it's late, by . Updated .

The wider picture

The key points from the guide this answer comes from:

  1. Ask your bank for the payment's UETR, the 36-character reference every SWIFT payment carries, and a copy of the pacs.008 or MT103 confirmation.
  2. With the UETR, your bank can see in Swift's tracker whether the payment was delivered, is on hold, was rejected or has been credited.
  3. 75% of SWIFT payments reach the payee's bank within 10 minutes, but in October 2024 only 43% were credited to the end customer within an hour.
  4. Most of the delay happens at the receiving bank, so send the confirmation to the payee and ask them to take it to their bank.

More questions on this

The full guide

Ask your bank for the payment's UETR and a copy of the pacs.008 or MT103 confirmation, then check its status in Swift's tracker. Most SWIFT payments reach the payee's bank within an hour; late ones are usually held at the receiving bank for checks, missing details or a holiday.

Read How to track a SWIFT payment and find out why it's late, with its sources.

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules and providers' terms change; check the sources in the guide and take advice on your own situation.

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