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Can anyone recommend a bank in La Marina to open an account mainly for paying direct debits or standing orders to utility companies and Suma etc. Thanks in advance Phil
Been mentioned many (many) times but you will incur quite large fees with a bank unless you open one of the online banking accounts which do not make charges. You will be advised to open an account with Wise or other company which will pay your bills with no charge whereas a standard bank account would cost you over 100 euro a year simply to pay them, others around 160 euro just for that convenience.
If you open one with Wise, or a similar one, ensure it is a euro account with a EU IBAN. You can also use the card they issue to withdraw limited funds during your visits.
Posted: Thu May 22, 2025 9:52am
Super helpful member
Hi marcliff
Saying "limited" funds is incorrect. You can withdraw whatever you want (within reason). The only issue is charges.
Cheers
Steve
Posted: Thu May 22, 2025 6:38pm
Helpful member
I'd definitely recommend Wise. I'm pretty sure they're a multi currency account now as standard, because I certainly don't remember setting a Euro account up, nor does the missus.
I even used Wise to convert the cost of my house into Euros and send it to the seller, solicitor and estate agent.
Spot rates for conversions and very low, transparent, fees.
The only single thing I haven't been able to use it for is on Ryanair flights, for some reason.
And don't let anyone (like my solicitor) tell you you can't do direct debits with Wise. It's rubbish and I do all mine, no problem; SUMA, Iberdrola, Community charges, House insurance etc.
As said, all you need is an EU IBAN, which you'll get.
It's all very easy and the hardest part is getting verified. That's just a pain, but necessary, as with any other bank.
marcliff wrote on Wed May 21, 2025 5:08pm:
Been mentioned many (many) times but you will incur quite large fees with a bank unless you open one of the online banking accounts which do not make charges. You will be advised to open an account with Wise or other company which will pay your bills with no charge whereas a standard bank account...
Read more...
... would cost you over 100 euro a year simply to pay them, others around 160 euro just for that convenience.
If you open one with Wise, or a similar one, ensure it is a euro account with a EU IBAN. You can also use the card they issue to withdraw limited funds during your visits.
Hi I am wondering if the charges to withdraw cash from the atms now is balancing out the bank charges for these without a bank a/c, I think the banks put up the withdrawal fees to counteract all the folks using wise etc
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