Students
Opening a bank account while studying abroad: when you need one
Sometimes the one from home is enough, and sometimes they will not let you rent without a local one. What they will ask for, in what order, and what to check first.
Tomás Berruezo 5 min Photo by Maximilian Prandstätter on Unsplash If the destination uses the same currency as you, plenty of people get through a whole year on their account from home and need nothing else. If it uses a different one — and for anyone banking in pounds, most of Europe does — the exchange fees start counting from the first coffee.
When you genuinely need one
- If rent and bills come out by direct debit and the landlord will not take a foreign account.
- If you are paid a grant or a wage in that country.
- If the destination uses another currency and the exchange fees are going to eat you alive.
- And if you need a local bank statement for some piece of paperwork.
What they will ask for
- Passport and, depending on the country, a residence permit.
- A local address, and that is the requirement that jams things up most at the start.
- A letter from the university confirming you study there.
- Sometimes a local tax identification number.
Point two is the knot: no address, no account, and sometimes no account, no tenancy. It resolves with the temporary accommodation or with a letter from student housing.
The order that works
Arrive with your account from home and a card with decent conditions abroad, find somewhere to live, and only then open the local account with the address already in hand. Trying it the other way round adds weeks to the process.
What to check on your card before you go is in paying by card abroad.
And before you leave
Check you can get into your bank at home without depending on a text to a number you may stop using, and keep your contact email up to date. That is what stops you being locked out of your own account two thousand miles away.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a local bank account to study abroad?
If the destination uses the same currency, often not. You need one if rent comes out by direct debit, you are paid a local grant, or the currency is different.
What will they ask for to open it?
Passport, a residence permit depending on the country, a local address and a letter from the university. Sometimes a tax number for that country.
And if I do not have an address yet?
That is the usual jam. It resolves with temporary accommodation or with a letter from student housing.
What do I do about my bank at home?
Check before you leave that you can get in without depending on a text to a number you may stop using.
