Payments Regulatory Deadlines to Watch in February 2026

Each month, we leverage data from our Horizon Scanning Regulatory Deadlines Calendar to bring you a glimpse of the key response deadlines and legislation effective dates coming up, so you can plan and take action around some of the most important regulatory developments unfolding right now.

In February, there are 45 regulatory deadlines on the horizon — with 26 key consultation periods coming to an end and requiring a response, and 15 actionable deadlines to be aware of coming into effect.

What are the regulatory deadlines to watch in February?

Poland

On November 12, 2025, the Act on the Handling of Complaints on Financial Market Entities by the Financial Ombudsman and the Financial Education Fund was published in the Journal of Law of the Republic of Poland. 

Complaints submitted and not considered before the date of February 12, 2026 shall be subjected to the existing provisions. This act will enter into force on February 12, 2026.

China

The Chinese Government has issued a set of special preventative measures against money laundering laying out a system of special preventative measures to stop financial services involving high-risk entities related to terrorism, sanctions, or significant money laundering risks.

The measures require financial institutions to:

• Continuously monitor the sanctions lists of high risk entities published by the National Counter Terrorism Leading group, the UN Security Council and the People’s Bank of China.
• Verify all customers and/or trading partners of customers against these lists as part of their customer due diligence measures.
• Take special anti-money laundering measures against any customers identified to be on the sanction lists including freezing assets or restricting transfers in and out of their accounts.
• Report the customer and special administrative measures taken to their respective anti-money laundering authorities.

The measures also impose penalties for non-compliance with the special measures including holding employees of relevant departments of financial institutions legally responsible for failing to implement or comply with the measures. The measures take effect on February 16, 2026.

New York

On December 19, 2025, the Governor of New York signed Senate Bill S8416: Fostering Affordability and Integrity Through Reasonable Business Practices Act (FAIR Act) into law, following the bill’s passage by the New York state legislature.

The new law makes the following material changes to the scope and enforcement of New York’s General Business Law Section 349 to now expressly prohibit unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices in the conduct of any business, trade, commerce, or service in New York:

The FAIR Act will take effect on February 17, 2026.

European Union

On February 3, 2026, the European Commission published Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/248 in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The regulation lays down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) No. 910/2014 (electronic Identification and Trust Services – eIDAS) concerning the formats of advanced electronic signatures and advanced electronic seals to be recognised by public sector bodies. It also repeals Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1506.

The regulation sets out rules on:

• Advanced electronic signature formats.
• Alternative advanced electronic signature validation methods.
• Advanced electronic seal formats.
• Alternative advanced electronic seal validation methods.

The regulation enters into force on February 3, 2026. However, Articles 1(1) and 3(1), concerning member state requirements, shall apply from February 23, 2027.

Norway

On January 30, 2026, the Norwegian government published the Regulations amending the Regulations on measures against money laundering and terrorist financing. 

The regulations implement Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675, as amended by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/105, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/212 and others, in Norway. 

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 provides the list of identified high-risk third countries with strategic deficiencies. The amending regulations enter into force on February 6, 2026.

Vixio’s Horizon Scanning tool shows you real-time updates on regulatory deadlines and trends across 140+ global jurisdictions, including all US states, at the click of a button. Its Regulatory Deadlines Calendar feature sets out effective dates for published legislation, closing dates for consultation periods on proposed regulatory developments, and deadlines for specific requests for information by regulatory authorities. 

Want to see them all? Book a demo with a member of our team, who can show you how the Regulatory Deadline Calendar works, and why it forms a critical part of your compliance risk process.