Banking in Spain
By Linus Palmqvist, Head of Operations Reviewed by Simon Nilsson Last reviewed bunq is a Dutch neobank: a fully licensed bank you run entirely from an app. People living in Spain get a Spanish ES IBAN. If bunq accepts your passport, you can open it before your NIE arrives and add the NIE within 90 days.
In our view, the clearest neobank option for the weeks after you land, before your NIE arrives. There are no branches and no customer phone number, so it suits people happy to do everything in an app.
Choose between independent help with your move or checking bunq's current process directly.
Settlewell helps you understand your whole move to Spain, including how banking fits alongside home services. We do not open or arrange a bank account on your behalf.
Bank fit changes depending on where you are in the move. Check each stage before treating a bank as a good option.
You can start signing up from anywhere, but bunq only lets you finish once you move. It sends a reminder on your moving date.
Open it in the app with an accepted passport and a Spanish address. Non-EU passports are accepted from a list of countries. You then have 90 days to add your NIE.
Available once you live in Spain. bunq accepts residence permit cards and passports from its list, with your NIE or DNI as your tax number.
If you sign up with a Spanish address, bunq gives you a Spanish ES IBAN automatically, on every plan. Accounts opened earlier with a Dutch NL IBAN keep it.
As of 22 October 2026: Free €0, Core €3.99, Pro €9.99 and Elite €18.99 a month. Free has a digital card only, and each cash withdrawal costs €2.99. Check bunq’s current price list.
Match the option to your current stage, then confirm the live bank requirements before submitting an application.
bunq needs an original plastic ID, not a scan. Non-EU passports are accepted from a set list of countries.
Signing up with a Spanish address is what gives you the Spanish ES IBAN.
Put a reminder in your calendar. Without your NIE, bunq restricts the account until you send it.
Free has a digital card only. Choose Core or above if you want a physical card or cash deposits.
The bunq app is built in English, and bunq advertises full English support for expats. Help comes through chat, not a phone line.
In-app chat runs 24/7. An AI assistant answers first and passes you to a person when needed.
Core, Pro and Elite can call bunq from inside the app. Free plan users use chat or email.
An automated line, +31 20 808 3666, freezes your card or account. It works from abroad.
The right option can change as you move from planning your arrival to living in Spain.
Still have questions?
Start with the stage you are at, then compare the practical options for your move to Spain in English.
Compare banking optionsWritten by
Head of Operations at Settlewell
Linus moved from Sweden to Málaga in 2021 and set his own home up here, so most of this he has already done the hard way once. Before Settlewell he spent years at Workwide, the cross-border recruiter that has helped over 10,000 people into jobs abroad, latterly as its Head of Recruitment and Operations. He speaks Spanish, lives in Málaga with his partner, and spends his days on the phone to Spanish providers.
This page is based on bunq's official information. Settlewell is a bunq affiliate: we may earn a commission if you open an account through our link. It does not change what you pay or what this page says. Every claim on this page traces to a dated, sourced fact: a bank statement, an official term, or regulator guidance. Never a guess or a commercial preference. Where public information does not answer a question, this page says so plainly instead of filling the gap. Check live terms with the bank before applying.
