Question
Is it true that you can’t keep your British bank accounts if you apply for an Spain Non Lucrative Visa?
Answers
These are the answers of Spainguru’s Facebook group members:
“Natwest encouraged me to add a credit card to my account for spending in Spain. They 100% advised I could keep my account after leaving the UK.”
“We still have our British Bank Accounts, we have a UK address still but have our post redirected to our daughter as we rent it out. It’s not a problem with the visa. Some banks insist on a UK address, others don’t. Ours is HSBC.”
“It’s not because of the NLVs, but some UK banks are closing accounts if you don’t have a UK address.”
“HSBC are happy with European addresses, after Brexit, Barclays closed my accounts etc. It’s down where they are based and licensing, Barclays said they would need a license for each member state, so it was cheaper just close accounts at foreign addresses down.”
“You can keep your ???????? bank accounts, but some rental agencies/ insurers/car sellers may insist on you opening a Spanish bank account.”
“I’m with Natwest. They said no issue with existing accounts but I wouldn’t be able to open any new ones.”
“I bank with TSB in the UK and they let me change the address to my Spanish one. However, you are unable to apply for any products they have. E.g., insurance, mortgage, etc.”
“We’re with Nationwide and told us we can keep our accounts but can’t open up any new accounts with them.”
“We were told by Nationwide that they’d close our bank account within 7 days of giving them our Spanish address. I think I will ask again. HSBC said they were happy with a Spanish address.”
Conclusion
The ability to maintain British bank accounts while holding a Spain Non Lucrative Visa largely depends on the policies of individual banks rather than the visa status itself.
Many expatriates have successfully retained their UK bank accounts by using UK addresses or meeting specific bank requirements.
However, some banks, like Barclays, have closed accounts for customers without a UK address, citing licensing issues post-Brexit.
It’s important for those moving to Spain to verify the policies of their UK banks and consider setting up a Spanish bank account to facilitate local transactions and meet certain local requirements.
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Make sure to join our dedicated Spanish Non Lucrative Visa group here!
