Last reviewed: · Curated by Ohmyfin Organisation editorial.
You are settling an international trade transaction — letter of credit, documentary collection, open account or advance payment.
Details
You are settling an international trade transaction — letter of credit, documentary collection, open account or advance payment.
How to handle it: For LCs and DCs, your bank handles the SWIFT messaging (MT700 LC issue, MT400 advice of payment). For open-account, send a standard MT103 with the invoice number in field 70. Track every UETR for import-export documentation.
Whatever route you take, every SWIFT payment carries a 36-character UETR (Unique End-to-end Transaction Reference). Paste the UETR into the Ohmyfin tracker to see the latest available SWIFT status in seconds — settled, in flight, pending compliance, or rejected.
Key facts
LCs are most secure but expensive (1–2% per LC).
Open account is cheapest but riskiest — only with established trade partners.
INCOTERMS define who pays what shipping and customs costs.
The UETR is the SWIFT-network identifier for your payment, mandatory on every payment since November 2018. It is the only way to track a payment in real time across all the correspondents in the chain.
How long should this kind of SWIFT payment take?
SWIFT GPI same-currency payments often settle in minutes. Cross-currency typically 4–24 hours. Compliance-heavy corridors can take 2–5 business days.
Is Ohmyfin tracking free?
Yes — free public tracking with 10 free scans per IP per day for individuals worldwide and 100 free credits when you sign up.
Can I cancel or recall the payment if needed?
Cancellation works only before the receiving bank credits the account. Recall (after credit) needs the beneficiary's consent. See /help/how-to-cancel-swift-payment and /help/how-to-recall-swift-payment.
Related — more from swift payment use cases and beyond
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