When you move to Belgium for the first time, opening a bank account for yourself and your family is one of the most important things to do. For example, rent payment, deposit transfer to your homeowner, payments of all kinds of bills, everyday spending like grocery shopping or buying anything for an emergency, and basically small day-to-day transactions.
Belgium was an early pioneer of the idea of a cash-free society. Almost all transactions are through our debit card and using an online payment system. Cash is rarely used.
When you arrive in Belgium as an expat, you have many many good banks to choose from to open an account for yourself as well as your family. But as you are new, you might feel confused about which bank to choose from and open a bank account.
Which are the best banks in Belgium to choose from?
- KBC Bank– KBC bank is one of the leading banks here. We opened our basic bank account here which does not require any charges. We had to go to the bank just in the beginning to submit our documents and the card arrived at our home by post within a week. The customer care is really good and the mobile app is extremely user-friendly. So I will recommend this bank. https://www.kbc.be/retail/en/products/payments/current-accounts/gratis-zichtrekening-openen.html
- BNP Paribas– A very well-known bank from France. They have expat service branches in major cities of Belgium and can guide you in opening an account for you. They have ‘Comfort Pack’ which offers up to three current accounts for a family for €3 a month. https://www.bnpparibasfortis.be/en/Homepage-Expats-EN?axes4=expa
- ING– is a Dutch multinational bank and one of the most popular international banks. They have approximately 700 branches all over Belgium. Their basic account called “Lion” account is available without any fees we well. https://www.ing.be/en/retail/daily-banking/expats/expat-to-belgium
Then there are other well-known banks like Citibank, Rabobank, HSBC, BBVA and a lot more. So if you are still confused about which bank to choose from, there are many good deciding factors like which bank is nearest to your location, which banks help in opening an account with minimal or no fee, they have English-speaking services to understand terms and conditions. And it goes without saying that all of these banks offer services in Dutch and French as well.
Documents required for opening Bank Account:
The next step after choosing the bank is to collect the documents to open the bank account. In almost all these banks of Belgium, you don’t need a pile of paperwork unlike other SEPA countries and you need to fill that bank’s online application form. Along with that, you need to submit
- National ID which is mainly your passport
- Proof of address, usually the Belgian Residence Permit Card
Initially, you might not have the residence permit card which you get from the commune in your city in Belgium, so your employer will provide you with a document that acts a proof that you work for them. So opening an account is not an issue. But know that it’s a rule by the Belgian government that after opening your bank account, you need to submit a copy of your residence permit which has your proof of address within 3 months of opening it. Otherwise, your account would be closed.
Once your paperwork has been checked over by an advisor, your account will be opened, and you’ll officially have a bank account in Belgium. It’s important to note that some banks may require that you make an immediate deposit in order to open the account, so make sure you have the financial means in that case.
Once all of the paperwork has been signed and taken care of, you’ll receive your debit or credit card in the post. A few days later, you’ll receive your pin code. If you require your card more quickly, you may be able to pick one up at your local branch.
Opening Bank Account in Belgium from Abroad:
Suppose you are yet to arrive in Belgium and still wish to already open the bank account to save time, even that is possible. You’ll just need to submit your request to the bank and then they’ll send you all the forms you need to fill out. But of course, your account will be activated after you arrive in Belgium and visit a branch with proof of identity and proof of legal address.
Another option is to open a bank account with an international bank that has branches in both your home country and where you plan to move abroad. For example ING.
As I told you earlier, no fee is applied to open a basic account in KBC or in ING but if some wish to open premium accounts, they will be charged monthly so you need to check that with your choice of bank.
Opening Bank Account in Belgium for Self-Employed Person:
If you have arrived in Belgium as a self-employed person who is going to start a business in Belgium, opening a separate business bank account for your business is mandatory, and is actually a process of setting up business here. For example in KBC, you need to open a KBC corporate bank account for your business which is different from your personal account. This applies to whether you are setting up your business alone or establishing a company. You have to use these corporate bank account details in all documents related to your business.
Opening Bank Account in Belgium for International Students:
To open a bank account for international students or even researchers, they need to submit their ID like passport and proof of residence in Belgium which is usually the residence permit card, then a letter of enrollment in the Belgian university, a document that proofs your scholarship or financial means and contract of your accommodation.
But if some students are coming for short stay say less than 1 year, many banks don’t provide the bank account. In such case Wise Europe, an online bank registered in Belgium helps the students with shorter stay to open the bank account. The following document mentions in detail what is the procedure:
International Money transfer for Expats:
Another important point expats always want to know is the best way to transfer money abroad which in most cases is to their respective home country. If you happen to use your own bank account opened in Belgium to transfer money to the bank in your home country where the currency is not in Euros, that will result in fees from both these accounts which can get pretty expensive.
All the banks in Belgium provide international money transfers through the SWIFT network to send your money outside the EU but it is not cheap. The reason is the in-between banks charging their respective fees to transfer.
To avoid that there are good alternative solutions to banks that specialize in international money transfer and are both fast and cheap.
Revolute is really good and we personally use that. Charges are just 3 euros for a 1000 euro transfer to India. Then Wise is also good. It costs just 1 euro fee for a low-cost transfer of 100 euros but for quick services, they have a fast transfer option too. Other great options are Remitly and N26.
Banking Frauds and Security in Belgium
You may be anywhere in the world but can get lucky with Bank fraud if you click on some malicious link in an email.
To avoid fraud, you can follow simple and effective methods of:
- never clicking random links in an email but always logging in by typing the bank’s website address into your address bar
- never giving sensitive like passwords by email or phone
- making online payments only through secure payment platforms for example for booking movie tickets, flight tickets, online shopping.
- never storing pins or passwords on your phone. If you have trouble remembering these things, Bitwarden is a great open-source password manager software that stores all your credentials and is extremely secure.
In case your card gets stolen and you wish to cancel it, you can call on +32 70 344 344 which is the emergency number in Belgium for Card Stop Service.
Watch my YouTube for Banking in Belgium
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