# Spanish Bank current accounts



## Ben2013 (May 22, 2013)

Hello guys,
Please forgive me if the topic has already been covered. 
I have got a current account with Santander but they charge me high monthly fees for Non residents which I understand, but my application for Spanish residency has just been accepted awaiting an appointment for fingerprints.
I need information about opening a resident's current account without monthly fees. I heard N26 online bank offers such accounts, but are there any high Street banks that offers UK residents in Spain free bank accounts? 
Many thanks


----------



## MataMata (Nov 30, 2008)

There's been a bit of a shift recently and now pretty much the only way to get free banking is by taking another product such as insurance or a credit card which you have to use so many times a month etc. 

Unfortunately there is no 'one size fits all' so to find the account which suits you personally you I'm afraid you'll have to do the leg work.

FWIW I'm with Caxia and for two years enjoyed totally free banking but a few months ago had to open a savings account in order to retain it. Not a big deal as most months I run a decent surplus which I had just been leaving in my current A/C so having a set amount automatically transferring to that was of no real consequence.

The only downside is that (unbelievably!) it's not possible to transfer money in or out of it online, to do that I have to actually go to the bank and put a scribble on a tablet screen, how barmy is that!


----------



## Phil Squares (Jan 13, 2017)

We have used Sabadell since we moved here three years ago. My wife works, so her pay is deposited right into Sabadell. I move funds as needed to top up our account. Sabadell offers various "free" options if you have a direct deposit and various accounts depending on how much you put in each month. IIRC, the base amount for a resident account is 700 Euros/month to get a "free" account. We can do just about all we need online and to be honest, I haven't been to a branch in over 2 years. 

Remember, there is no such thing as a "free lunch". In some ways, banking in Spain is better than it is in the UK. But, in other ways it is hundreds of years behind the UK. Banks in Spain are only open certain hours and they are very restrictive hours at that. ATM fees are exorbitant if you use another bank's ATM or another "network". Customer service is non-extistant and you pay for everything. Choosing a bank in Spain is a matter of choosing the best of the worst. It will be a test of patience to do banking in Spain. For me I find going to the branch is the ultimate test of my patience. 

We have chosen to keep my pensions deposited into a bank where they are paid. I have a pension paid into TSB and two additional accounts in the US which have pensions paid into them. We generally use the TSB account for funds when we go back to the UK to visit our kids or for Amazon purchases. One US bank account we have provides 10 free ATM withdrawals "out of network". So they reimburse me whatever the fees are for any funds taken out of an ATM here in Spain. We use that cash to topup our current account. 

I don't think I have spoken with any expat who enjoys banking in Spain. Everyone has horror stories about banks and like I wrote, it is a matter of choosing the best of the worst. One thing I will say is as an expat, Sabadell has provided us an advisor who speaks English fluently and can generally resolve any issue with a phone call. So, keep that in mind and while checking out banks you might want to ask if that is offered.


----------



## trotter58 (Feb 8, 2017)

Ben2013 said:


> Hello guys,
> Please forgive me if the topic has already been covered.
> I have got a current account with Santander but they charge me high monthly fees for Non residents which I understand, but my application for Spanish residency has just been accepted awaiting an appointment for fingerprints.
> I need information about opening a resident's current account without monthly fees. I heard N26 online bank offers such accounts, but are there any high Street banks that offers UK residents in Spain free bank accounts?
> Many thanks


We're non residents and use N26 for our direct debits and the N26 debit card for shopping. It works very well and is fee free, it also uses a spanish IBAN. We're very happy with the account but do be aware that you're only allowed 5 fee free cash withdrawals a month from ATMs.

We use Transferwise to fund the account from the UK


----------



## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Phil Squares said:


> We have used Sabadell since we moved here three years ago. My wife works, so her pay is deposited right into Sabadell. I move funds as needed to top up our account. Sabadell offers various "free" options if you have a direct deposit and various accounts depending on how much you put in each month.


Sabadell now charges 5€ per month even if you do deposit 700€ per month. To avoid this, there are a number of criteria - be under 30, have state pension paid in, take out one of their insurances or invest with them.

The only FREE bank accounts that I am aware of are the online ones - OpenBank, Wefferent, imigin etc.


----------



## Beach buddy (Jul 7, 2018)

I only pay 3.50 per month with Santander as a resident


----------



## Ben2013 (May 22, 2013)

Thank you for the information and clarifications. It is very helpful.

I have got (Cuenta Zero 123) account with Santander and they charge me 12 euros per month.

Since all high Street banks charge monthly fees, I guess the best I can do is try to find account that allows online banking with lowest possible monthly fees. 

Beach Buddy kindly mentioned an account with 3.50 euros per month, may I know the name of the account to see if it is still available especially that I bank with Santander.
Many thanks again for your help


----------



## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Ben2013 said:


> Since all high Street banks charge monthly fees, I guess the best I can do is try to find account that allows online banking with lowest possible monthly fees.


Simply not true!

Online accounts from high street banks are FREE. Notice I'm talking about online accounts (some listed above) and not normal accounts with internet access.

OpenBank from Santander is just one that may suit you. The one from BBVA gets a very good rating also.


----------



## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

I use Openbank, which is the online bank for Santander. Their normal current account has no fees, and it gives you one free debit card which can be used at any Santander ATM for free. If you direct deposit your pay or pension into the account you get 1% cash back on any utility bills that are paid through the account. I've never had any trouble with the account and I'm a happy customer.


----------



## Pipeman (Apr 1, 2016)

Openbank sounds ideal, does it support direct debits and can you deposit Euro from Transferwise after conversion from £ ?


----------



## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Pipeman said:


> Openbank sounds ideal, does it support direct debits and can you deposit Euro from Transferwise after conversion from £ ?


Yes and yes - it's a normal account.


----------



## Phil Squares (Jan 13, 2017)

snikpoh said:


> Sabadell now charges 5€ per month even if you do deposit 700€ per month. To avoid this, there are a number of criteria - be under 30, have state pension paid in, take out one of their insurances or invest with them.
> 
> The only FREE bank accounts that I am aware of are the online ones - OpenBank, Wefferent, imigin etc.



I am not sure where you are getting your information but that is incorrect. The basic Expansion account is no fee as long as you have at least 700Euros deposited. You are correct about the age but you also didn't state I you are a pensioner you also qualify as long as you have a 700Euro deposit each month. As I stated in my post, my wife's salary goes into the account and that is more than sufficient.


----------



## Beach buddy (Jul 7, 2018)

Ben2013 said:


> Thank you for the information and clarifications. It is very helpful.
> 
> I have got (Cuenta Zero 123) account with Santander and they charge me 12 euros per month.
> 
> ...


My account, which I have had since 2008 is a Cuenta Dia a Dia. €3.50 per month for our debit cards(2). Everything gets paid into my account and I pay all on direct debit.


----------



## fortrose52 (Nov 29, 2018)

Remember there are different rules and charges for resident and non-residents


----------



## Boxhamster (Jan 15, 2020)

To throw another contender into the mix: *bnc10*
bnc10.com


----------



## robertodominicus (Jul 10, 2020)

I just opened an N26 account, which is free, has a Spanish IBAN and works very well. It sends you real-time notifications of every card and payment transaction on the app.


----------



## Ben2013 (May 22, 2013)

Thank you for all this information.
I contacted Santander by email to find out about Santander Openbank, and they replied that it has nothing to do with them as it is an online branch and that they cannot help me open an account with them and that I will have to do everything myself.

It remains an option. Another option is one of the online accounts you kindly highlighted including German bank N26

Another option is one of


----------



## trotter58 (Feb 8, 2017)

snikpoh said:


> Simply not true!
> 
> Online accounts from high street banks are FREE. Notice I'm talking about online accounts (some listed above) and not normal accounts with internet access.
> 
> OpenBank from Santander is just one that may suit you. The one from BBVA gets a very good rating also.


When I inquired about these accounts I was told that they were not available to non residents. Has this now changed?


----------



## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Phil Squares said:


> I am not sure where you are getting your information but that is incorrect. The basic Expansion account is no fee as long as you have at least 700Euros deposited. You are correct about the age but you also didn't state I you are a pensioner you also qualify as long as you have a 700Euro deposit each month. As I stated in my post, my wife's salary goes into the account and that is more than sufficient.


It is true. I get my information from the Sabadell website - it's in both English and Spanish.

The basic account, as I stated, is no longer free unless you meet additional criteria.

I could list all the criteria here (age, state pension, insurance etc.) or I could just refer you to their information on their site.


----------



## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

snikpoh said:


> It is true. I get my information from the Sabadell website - it's in both English and Spanish.
> 
> The basic account, as I stated, is no longer free unless you meet additional criteria.
> 
> I could list all the criteria here (age, state pension, insurance etc.) or I could just refer you to their information on their site.


I agree, it is true. I have a Sabadell expansion account and transfer at least €700 per month into it from my UK account, but I don't have a directly deposited pension nor one of their insurance or investment products, therefore I have to pay the fee of €5 per month. Once I start receiving my state pension I can have that paid directly into the Sabadell account so should not have to pay it any longer (although who knows, there may be new and different charges/critria by then).


----------



## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

This may or may not be of help for those trying to get free banking:

I opened a new current account so that I could get a mortgage with a bank, but a condition was that I had to have my wages paid in to the new account.
The problem was that this was also a condition in my previously existing account which I needed to keep and of course I can't get the same money paid into two different banks!
I was very open with my existing bank and told them that they would no longer get my wages paid in but that I would still transfer an amount regularly every month from another account. They said this was fine, and it was, for several years. Then last year, they tried to charge me for my cards. 
I phoned and asked why and they said it was because I hadn't got my wages paid into the account... When I pointed out the regular monthly transfers they accepted this and refunded me the charges, but said that in order to avoid the problem again, I should write the word "Nomina" in the concept of the transfer so that the system automatically recognises it as a transfer which fulfils the condition for free banking.


----------

