An MT103 is the bank's record of one cross-border payment instruction sent over Swift. For a Nigerian import, it names the importer, the supplier and every bank in between. It shows the amount, who pays the fees and a tracking number, the UETR. It records that the payer's bank sent the payment. Only the supplier's bank can confirm the money arrived.
This page reads each MT103 field for a Nigeria payment, with a sample. It covers the CBN warning on fake MT103s. It ends with what to ask your bank when a payment is "sent" but not received.
General information, not legal or banking advice. Check current rules with your authorised dealer bank.
Is the MT103 still used in 2026?
Mostly as a document, rarely as the message between banks. On 22 November 2025, Swift ended the coexistence of MT and ISO 20022 messages. Cross-border bank-to-bank instructions now travel as pacs.008. Swift still converts some MT103s that banks send, for a fee.
The "MT103" your bank hands you may be a printout in the old layout. It may also be a summary of the pacs.008, with new labels. Most of the data is the same. This table maps the old field numbers to the new names.
| What it shows | MT103 field | pacs.008 element |
|---|---|---|
| Sender's reference | 20 | Instruction ID |
| Date, currency, amount | 32A | Interbank settlement amount and date |
| Payer | 50A, 50F or 50K | Debtor |
| Beneficiary | 59, 59A or 59F | Creditor |
| Beneficiary's bank | 57A | Creditor agent |
| Invoice and references | 70 | Remittance information |
| Who pays fees | 71A: OUR, SHA, BEN | Charge bearer: DEBT, SHAR, CRED |
| Tracking number | 121 (UETR) | UETR |
How is an MT103 laid out?
An MT103 has numbered blocks. Block 1 holds the sender's BIC, the bank's Swift code. Block 2 holds "I103" or "O103" and the receiving bank's BIC. Block 3 holds the UETR in field 121. Block 4 holds the payment fields, each starting with a tag like ":20:".
Here is the sample used on this page, as a bank prints it. All names, codes and numbers are invented.
{1:F01SMPLNGLAXXXX0000000000}
{2:I103SMPLUS33XXXXN}
{3:{121:4f9c2b1e-7d3a-4c8e-9b21-0a5e6f7d8c90}}
{4:
:20:NGX2610140001
:23B:CRED
:32A:261014USD48500,00
:33B:USD48500,00
:50K:/0123456789
SAMPLE FOODS LTD
LAGOS NG
:57A:SMPLAEAD
:59:/AE000000000000000000000
EXAMPLE SUPPLIER TRADING LLC
DUBAI AE
:70:INVOICE ES-2026-0417
:71A:SHA
-}What does each MT103 field mean for a Nigeria payment?
Each field answers one question about the payment.
| Field | Name | What it means for a Nigeria payment |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Sender's reference | The sending bank's own reference, up to 16 characters. Quote it in any query to that bank. |
| 23B | Bank operation code | Usually CRED, a plain credit transfer. |
| 32A | Value date, currency, amount | The value date is the settlement date, as YYMMDD. Then currency, then amount with a decimal comma. |
| 33B | Instructed amount | What the payer asked to send. If it differs from 32A, look for fees or a conversion. |
| 50A, 50F or 50K | Ordering customer | The payer. For an import, this is the Nigerian importer. If a payment company pays for the importer, see pay on behalf of. |
| 52A | Ordering institution | The payer's bank, only when it is not the bank in block 1. |
| 53A or 53B, 54A | Sender's and receiver's correspondent | Correspondents are banks that hold accounts for other banks. Both fields are optional. |
| 56A | Intermediary institution | A bank in the middle of the chain. Each extra bank is one more place a payment can stop. |
| 57A | Account with institution | The beneficiary's bank. Check its BIC against the supplier's invoice. |
| 59, 59A or 59F | Beneficiary customer | The supplier and its account or IBAN. The name must match the invoice exactly. |
| 70 | Remittance information | Up to 4 lines of 35 characters. The invoice number goes here. |
| 71A | Details of charges | OUR: the payer pays all fees. SHA: each side pays its own bank. BEN: the beneficiary pays all fees. |
| 71F | Sender's charges | Fees already taken from the amount by banks along the chain. |
| 71G | Receiver's charges | Fees the payer prepaid for the receiving bank, used with OUR. |
| 72 | Sender to receiver information | Notes between banks. Ask your bank to explain any code you do not know. |
| 121 | UETR | The 36-character tracking number in block 3. It stays the same through every bank. |
Three fields matter most on an import payment. Field 59 must name the right supplier. Field 70 must carry references the supplier can match. Field 71A explains most short payments.
Under SHA or BEN, banks along the chain can take fees from the amount. The supplier then receives less than the invoice. OUR asks the payer's side to cover all fees. Check the amount credited anyway.
How do you read the sample, line by line?
Read it in this order: UETR, amount, names, references, fees.
| Field | Sample value | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Block 1 | SMPLNGLA | The sending bank, the importer's bank in Lagos. |
| Block 2 | I103 SMPLUS33 | An MT103 sent to a USD correspondent in New York. |
| 121 | 4f9c2b1e-7d3a-4c8e-9b21-0a5e6f7d8c90 | The UETR. Give this to your bank to trace the payment. |
| 20 | NGX2610140001 | The sending bank's reference. |
| 23B | CRED | A normal credit transfer. |
| 32A | 261014USD48500,00 | Value date 14 October 2026, USD 48,500.00. |
| 33B | USD48500,00 | Same as 32A, so no fee or conversion taken yet. |
| 50K | /0123456789 SAMPLE FOODS LTD, LAGOS, NG | The importer paying. |
| 57A | SMPLAEAD | The supplier's bank in Dubai. |
| 59 | /AE000000000000000000000 EXAMPLE SUPPLIER TRADING LLC, DUBAI, AE | The supplier and its account. Sample IBAN, not valid. |
| 70 | INVOICE ES-2026-0417 | The invoice number the supplier will match. |
| 71A | SHA | Each side pays its own bank's fees. |
How do Form M and invoice numbers show up on an import MT103?
An importer registers a Form M with an authorised dealer bank when it places the order. An authorised dealer is a bank licensed to deal in foreign exchange. FCMB says this applies whether or not the import needs foreign exchange. A CBN circular of 2 March 2007 requires the Form M number on transport documents.
On the payment, the invoice number usually sits in field 70. Ask your bank which field carries the Form M number.
The beneficiary must match the Form M. A CBN circular of 24 August 2020 targeted buying agents. Banks had to stop opening Form Ms paid through agents or other third parties. On 19 November 2020, the CBN eased that rule. A buying company or agent that sells directly to the importer can now count as the supplier. The importer needs prior CBN approval, backed by documents on that company. Payment must still go to the beneficiary named on the Form M and the invoice. So field 59 should match both documents.
How do you get a copy of an MT103?
Ask the payer's bank. The payer requests the copy, so a supplier asks the payer for it. Ask for the UETR at the same time. Since November 2025, the copy may come as a pacs.008 summary.
How do you track an MT103 with the UETR and Swift gpi?
You track it with the UETR in field 121. Swift made the UETR mandatory on MT103 messages from 18 November 2018. Every bank in the chain must pass it on unchanged. Your bank enters it in the Swift gpi Tracker and reads the status.
Since 22 November 2020, regulated banks that receive MT103s must confirm the outcome to the Tracker. Credited, rejected, on hold or sent outside Swift all count. Swift treats a confirmation within two business days of the value date as compliant.
These are the statuses your bank may read back to you.
| Status | Meaning | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| ACCC | Credited to the beneficiary's account | Ask the supplier to check the account again, by amount and date. |
| ACSP/G000 | Passed to the next gpi bank | Wait. It is still moving. |
| ACSP/G001 | Passed to a bank outside gpi | Tracking detail may end here. Ask your bank to query that bank. |
| ACSP/G002 | Credit pending, may not be same day | Ask your bank when it expects a final status. |
| ACSP/G003 | On hold at the beneficiary's bank, waiting for documents | The supplier asks its bank which documents it needs. |
| ACSP/G004 | Waiting for the cover payment from the previous bank | A cover payment is the separate bank-to-bank transfer that moves the funds. Ask the sending bank. |
| RJCT | Rejected | The money comes back. Ask for the reason before you send again. |
How do you spot a fake MT103 in Nigeria?
Have a bank check it. On 19 November 2024, the CBN warned the public about fake SWIFT MT103 and SWIFT ACK copies. An ACK is Swift's acknowledgement that a message was received. People attached these copies to claims that foreign money sent to Nigerian accounts was never credited.
The CBN made four points in that warning:
- The MT103 and ACK copies attached to these claims are not reliable.
- The messages behind them cannot be traced on the Swift platform.
- Such funds are not "trapped" at the CBN. It gives no correspondent banking services for Nigerian banks in foreign payments. It holds no accounts for private businesses.
- For a real missing payment, the sender asks its own bank to send a tracer. A tracer is a formal bank request to find a payment and recall it.
Treat these as red flags. The UETR does not exist when your bank checks it. The story says the money is stuck at the CBN. Someone asks you to escalate to the CBN or the police instead of tracing. The CBN also said it will report customers who make unsupported claims to law enforcement.
A real MT103 has a UETR that your bank can look up. Your own account statement is the final record. Until your bank confirms a credit, treat any MT103 copy as unconfirmed.
What do you ask your bank when a payment is "sent" but not received?
Give your bank the UETR, the field 20 reference, the amount and the value date. Then ask these questions.
- What is the gpi status for this UETR, and which bank holds it now?
- Was the payment rejected or returned at any bank in the chain?
- Is it on hold for documents? Which ones, and who must send them?
- Did any bank take fees from the amount? Show me fields 71F and 32A.
- Do the beneficiary name and account in field 59 match the invoice exactly?
- Can you send a formal tracer to the next bank in the chain?
If you are the beneficiary, ask the payer to start the trace. The CBN says the sending bank runs the tracer. Your own bank can only confirm what reached your account.
Sending many payouts at once? See the reconciliation file for a bulk payout batch. On local rails, a payout partner pays the recipient instead. See what a payout partner is.
FAQ
Is an MT103 proof that the supplier was paid?
No. It is the bank's record of the payment instruction. Only the beneficiary's bank can confirm the credit.
Do banks still send MT103s after November 2025?
Mostly not. Since 22 November 2025 the standard is pacs.008. Swift still converts some MT103s, for a fee.
Does the CBN hold foreign payments meant for private accounts?
No, according to the CBN. It says such funds are not trapped at the CBN. It gives no correspondent banking services for Nigerian banks in foreign payments.
Who should be the beneficiary on a Form M import payment?
The supplier named on the Form M and the invoice. Since November 2020, that can be a buying agent the CBN has approved.
How do I get a copy of an MT103?
Ask the payer's bank. The payer requests the copy and should share the UETR with it.
How long is a UETR?
36 characters. It is 32 letters and digits in five groups split by hyphens.
What does ACSP/G003 mean on a Swift tracker?
The payment is on hold at the beneficiary's bank, waiting for documents. The supplier should ask its bank which ones.
For PSPs and fintechs
If you pay suppliers for business clients, talk to our team about cross-border payouts. Our payouts page lists coverage.