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How to validate an IBAN in Make (HTTP module)

If you automate payments or vendor onboarding with Make, a mistyped IBAN (one digit swapped, an extra space) can slip through all the way to the bank and bounce back days later. Checking it before you trigger anything saves that round trip. With the HTTP module and the Cofferdock API, you check it instantly.

An honest heads-up: Make has no dedicated "validate IBAN" module. You do it with the generic HTTP module calling an API that checks the IBAN's checksum (the math check that catches transcription errors, the same one your bank uses) and tells you which country it belongs to.

What you'll get

You send the IBAN (with or without spaces) and it tells you whether it's valid, which country it belongs to, and returns it already formatted in blocks of 4. It doesn't check whether the account actually exists or has funds: it checks whether the number itself is well-formed.

Common uses in Make:

• Checking a vendor's IBAN before onboarding them for a SEPA payment.
• Validating the IBAN a customer types into a direct-debit form.
• Catching transcription errors at a glance before they reach the bank.

What you need

• A Cofferdock account. The free tier gives you 50 uses/month with no card.
• Your API key, from your dashboard with "+ Create key". It's shown only once.
• The HTTP → Make a request module in your scenario.

Step by step in the HTTP module

Add the HTTP → Make a request module and set it up like this:

• URL: https://api.cofferdock.com/validate-iban
• Method: POST
• Headers: add two → x-api-key with your key, and Content-Type with the value application/json.
• Body type: Raw
• Content type: JSON (application/json)
• Request content:

{ "iban": "{{1.iban}}" }

• Turn on Parse response: the response is JSON.

The response includes valid, country and formatted (the IBAN already formatted in blocks of 4). With a Filter you decide whether the scenario continues or asks for a correction.

A quick example

Say you have a vendor onboarding form:

1. A module that catches the submission (a webhook from the form) with the IBAN the vendor typed.
2. The HTTP module above, which validates it.
3. A Router with two routes: one with valid = true that onboards the vendor with formatted as the stored IBAN, and another with valid = false that asks them to review it.

No mistyped IBAN ever reaches your accountant or your bank.

Prefer to see it in code?

The same call with curl:

curl -X POST "https://api.cofferdock.com/validate-iban" \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"iban": "GB29NWBK60161331926819"}'

How much does it cost?

Each check uses 1 credit from your plan, whether the IBAN comes back valid or not. Every Cofferdock tool draws from the same pool of credits.

FAQ

Does Make have a native module to validate IBANs? No. You do it with the generic HTTP module calling the Cofferdock API.

Does this check that the account really exists? No. It checks the checksum, not whether the account is open or has funds. Only the bank knows that when it processes the payment.

Can I send the IBAN with spaces? Yes. It's cleaned up automatically before being checked.

Can I validate several IBANs at once? Yes. If the previous module returns several items, Make runs the HTTP module once per item.

Related guides

• Validate an email in Make
• Validate a phone number in Make

Try it yourself

You'll find the full instructions, with copy-paste examples, on the IBAN validation page. And if you don't have an account yet, you can create one for free and build your first scenario today.