Banking

Steps

1. Get your NIE (sheet ES-NIF-TOUS-001): the Banco de España states that the bank may ask EU citizens for it in addition to their passport or identity document.
2. Choose between a "resident" account and a "non-resident" account. As long as you are not resident in Spain, the bank will ask you for a document proving it (for example a certificate of tax residence from your country). Once you have settled, report your change of status.
3. Compare fees with the comparison tool and the fee sheet: the Banco de España advises reading the pre-contractual information, including that on the card and online banking.
4. Ask for a cuenta de pago básica if a bank refuses you an ordinary account. It lets you deposit and withdraw money, pay by debit card, and make transfers and direct debits within the EU. In case of refusal, the bank must reply to you in writing, free of charge and with reasons, within 10 working days of your complete application.
5. If you have a low income, ask for the basic account to be free: the bank has 30 days to reply; if there is no reply, your application is accepted. The free status lasts 2 years, renewable.
6. If your foreign IBAN is refused (employer, supplier, administration): remind them that this is prohibited (art. 9 of SEPA Regulation 260/2012), send a written complaint, then report it to the Banco de España (banks and companies among themselves) or to the consumer service of your autonomous community (company against consumer).
7. For a mortgage, compare offers, then insist on the FEIN (standardised offer) and the FiAE (warnings sheet) at least 10 calendar days before signing. Go to the notary of your choice no later than the day before signing, for the deed verifying that you have understood the loan.

Documents

• Passport or identity card and NIE (EU citizens); TIE card (non-Europeans, British citizens included).
• If you are not resident: proof of non-residence (certificate of tax residence from your country, for example).
• Proof of the origin of the funds, if the bank asks for it (anti-money-laundering rules).
• For a free basic account: household composition (family record book) and income (income certificate, last three payslips, unemployment or social benefit certificate), or a report from the social services of your town hall; since October 2026 (Real Decreto 813/2026), the bank also accepts, unless there is evidence of falsity, the declaration of responsibility of a recognised third-sector social action association or of an entity that receives applicants for international protection.
• For a loan: identity documents, income, the FEIN, the FiAE, the draft contract with all fees detailed.

Costs and timelines

• Basic account: €3 per month at most, for opening, maintaining and closing the account, deposits and withdrawals in euros within the EU, debit card payments and up to 120 transfers or direct debits per year within the EU (Orden ECE/228/2019). This cap dates from 2019; the Banco de España may review it every 2 years (art. 4.4), but the Orden has never been amended (consolidated text in the BOE, last update published on 05/03/2019): the €3 remains the cap in force in 2026.
• Free status: for households whose income remains below ceilings linked to the IPREM and who own no real estate other than their main residence and no company shares (Real Decreto 164/2019). 2026 ceilings, with an IPREM of €7,200 per year (€600 per month, set by the 2023 budget law and unchanged since, for lack of a new budget law): €21,600 for a single person (3 times the IPREM), €25,200 for a household of fewer than 4 people (3.5 times), €28,800 for a household of 4 or more people, a large family or a household with a person with a disability of 33% or more (4 times). The free status lasts 2 years, renewable; the bank replies within 30 days, otherwise the application is accepted (Banco de España).
• Mortgage costs (law 5/2019): the valuation is at your expense; the arrangement fees, the notary for the loan deed and the registration of the mortgage in the register are at the bank's expense. The verification deed at the notary is free of charge.
• Early repayment (law 5/2019): variable rate, 0.25% at most of the capital repaid in the first 3 years, or 0.15% in the first 5 years (depending on the contract); fixed rate, 2% at most in the first 10 years, then 1.5%.
• Share of the price financed for a non-resident: law 5/2019 sets no maximum share of the price financed: each bank decides according to your file (income, deposit, residence). Compare offers and ask for the FEIN, which binds the bank to the conditions offered.

Common pitfalls

• Staying "non-resident" after you have settled. Your banking status must follow your situation; once you are resident, your bank must know (and so must the tax authority, sheet ES-IMPOTS-TOUS-001).
• Not justifying the origin of a large transfer. The bank may block access to your funds until you do. Keep the deed of sale of your former home or the statements that explain the transfer.
• Opening a second basic account. The bank may refuse it if you already have an account in Spain that offers the same services.
• Inactive basic account or residence outside the EU. The bank may terminate it after 24 months without transactions, or if you no longer reside legally in the EU (2 months' notice).
• Signing the loan without the 10-day period. Without the notary's deed, the notary cannot authorise the mortgage deed.
• Loan in a foreign currency (if you are paid in pounds or Swiss francs): the exchange rate risk is real; ask the bank about it clearly.

What changes by country of origin

• EU, EEA citizens: right to a basic account as soon as you reside legally in the EU, even without a fixed address in Spain. You can also keep your account from your home country: it must be accepted in Spain for transfers and direct debits in euros.
• Swiss citizens: Switzerland is part of the SEPA area, but the ban on IBAN discrimination (art. 9 of EU Regulation 260/2012) protects accounts located in the EU, as the Banco de España writes ("any other EU account"). A Swiss account does not benefit from it: a Spanish body may require an EU account for a direct debit. Plan for a euro account in the EU.
• British citizens (Scots included): the United Kingdom is no longer in the EU. For the bank, they present their TIE card. The right to a basic account assumes legal residence in the EU.