English Banks in Spain

When people think about retiring to Spain or moving there to live and work they think about the long list of tasks and activities that they will have to complete to get everything in order for their new life to begin.

The path of least resistance is often sought wherever possible because moving abroad is an incredibly huge and somewhat stressful experience therefore if there are English banks in Spain, English car dealers and British real estate agents these will usually be preferred by the expatriate.  But especially in terms of banking in Spain there are many institutions - not just the British banks - who can offer all the services required.

English banks in Spain tend to be affiliated with one of the major Spanish banks anyway, and anyone with a UK based Halifax or Barclays bank account for example will not be able to automatically transfer their account to the Spanish branch - where one exists.  Rather a brand new Spanish bank account will have to be opened and this is why anyone who needs a bank account in Spain should spend a little time understanding the banking system so that they can find the best bank and account structure to meet their specific requirements.

Spain still has a large cash economy - even significant purchases are paid for in cash or via a bank transfer rather than with a credit card or heaven forbid a cheque book!  Therefore it is handy to have an instant access basic current account for all day to day transactions and to feed this account with a back to back savings account where most cash can be stored and attract a better rate of interest.  The cash in the savings account should not be on notice, rather it should be available for draw down if the account holder requires it.

The Spanish banking system has received something of an overhaul in the past five years and it is no longer as expensive, old fashioned or complicated as it once was.  Banks in Spain are just like banks in the UK nowadays with an array of credit cards, loans and mortgages available to locals and expatriates living in Spain.  Anyone who opens a local account will receive a debit card and quickly be offered everything from a credit card to a re-mortgage on their Spanish property.  In the past it was only possible for the expat living overseas to receive a mortgage of up to 70% of the purchase price but nowadays it’s a consumer driven market and Spanish banks can offer up to 100% mortgages even to expatriates.

If you’re buying property in Spain or have another reason to transfer large sums of money from your English bank account to an account in Spain you need to be careful of exchange rate fluctuations between the pound and the euro and you also need to be aware of the charges and fees you will incur.  A number of forex companies now exist to assist with such transfers and you should shop around to get the best offers as you can literally save yourself hundreds of pounds.

The English banks in Spain have their branches in the main cities and on the Costa del Sol; elsewhere the local Spanish banks have offices in every major town and city.  English banks with branches in Spain include the Halifax, Bradford and Bingley International, Barclays and the Royal Bank of Scotland.