Banking in Portugal as a Brit: opening an account, keeping your UK one and moving money

In Lisbon your landlord, your employer and the electricity company all want a Portuguese IBAN. Getting one is easy once you have a NIF, and there's a legally capped low-cost account if the banks' fees make you wince.

The short version

• Get your NIF (tax number) first. The tax authority says it's needed for, among other things, opening a bank account [3].
• Expect to show your passport, NIF, proof of address and something about your work or income.
• Every bank must offer a minimum banking services account. In 2026 its fees are capped at EUR 5.37 (about £4.47) a year [2].
• Day-to-day life runs on Multibanco cash machines and the MB WAY phone payment app.
• Keep a UK account if your bank allows it, and compare costs before moving large sums.

Step one: the NIF

The NIF (Número de Identificação Fiscal) is Portugal's taxpayer number, and the AT (the Portuguese taxman) calls it essential for employment, contracts, bank accounts and social security [3]. You can get one before you move, through a representative using the online e-balcão service, or in person at a Finanças office or Loja do Cidadão by appointment [3][4]. There's no fee [4].

If you're not yet resident and you set up a "tax relationship" with Portugal (renting or buying a home, a job, a registered car), you have 15 days to either name a fiscal representative or sign up for electronic notifications from the AT [3]. Our guide to NIF, NISS and AIMA goes through it step by step.

Opening an account

Portugal's big high-street names are the ones you'll see on every praça: Caixa Geral de Depósitos (state-owned), Millennium bcp, Novo Banco, Santander and BPI among them. Some let newcomers start the process online or through an app; others still want you in a branch. Opening hours are shorter than you'll be used to, so don't leave it until a Friday afternoon.

What banks usually ask for, as part of the same anti-money-laundering checks you'd get back home:

Banks set their own lists, so check with the one you choose. If you're not yet resident, ask for a non-resident account and switch it to resident once you've moved; it changes how the bank reports your account to the tax authorities.

The minimum banking services account

This is the bit most Brits never hear about. Under Portuguese law, every bank offering current accounts must also offer a minimum banking services account (serviços mínimos bancários). The Banco de Portugal sets the rules [2]:

• Fees can't exceed 1% of the social support index (IAS) a year: EUR 5.37 in 2026 (about £4.47).
• You get a current account, a debit card, online banking and branch access, direct debits, payments and cash withdrawals at EU cash machines.
• Transfers within the same bank are unlimited. Transfers to other banks are unlimited at cash machines and up to 48 a year through online banking or the bank's own app.
• You can make five transfers a month of up to EUR 30 each (about £25) through payment apps, on top of the free small transfers every customer gets.
• No minimum deposit, no overdraft, and the bank can't force you to buy other products.

The catch: it must be your only current account in Portugal (with exceptions for some joint accounts with over-65s or people with disabilities), and you sign a declaration saying so [2]. If you're keeping a UK current account, ask the bank how it treats that before you sign. You can also ask your bank to convert an ordinary account into one free of charge, and it has 10 working days to do it [2]. If a bank refuses, it has to say why in writing, and you can complain to the Banco de Portugal [2].

For many people, including retirees whose pension lands once a month, this does everything a packaged account does for a fraction of the cost. Pound conversions in this guide use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = EUR 1.2002).

How Portuguese banking works day to day

• Multibanco. The national cash machine network does far more than dispense cash: you can pay bills and taxes, top up your mobile and pay using "referências" (a payment reference number) that turn up on invoices.
• MB WAY. The phone app most Lisboetas use to split a bill, pay a friend back or pay in shops. You link it to your Portuguese card. If someone says "manda por MB WAY", they mean send it to their mobile number.
• Direct debits. Utilities and phone contracts usually want a débito direto from a Portuguese IBAN. A UK account rarely works.
• Card payments. Contactless is everywhere in Lisbon, though the odd tasca or market stall still prefers cash.

Your money in a Portuguese bank is covered by the deposit guarantee scheme up to EUR 100,000 per person per bank (about £83,320), as everywhere in the EU [6].

Keeping your UK account

Most Brits keep a UK account for State Pension payments, UK rent, the odd online order and a bolt-hole for sterling. The hitch is that some UK banks restrict or close accounts for customers who live abroad, and many need a UK mobile for security codes. Before you leave:

1. Ask your bank directly whether it keeps accounts open for customers living in Portugal, and get the answer in writing if you can.
2. Update your address honestly. Using a relative's UK address when you've moved can cause trouble with the bank and with tax reporting.
3. Keep a UK mobile number that can receive texts abroad, or switch to app-based security. See keeping a UK mobile number and address.
4. Tell HMRC you've gone so UK interest is treated correctly; see Portuguese taxes for Brits.

Our guide to keeping a UK bank account when you live abroad has the detail.

Your State Pension can be paid into either a UK account or a Portuguese one, and it rises every April because Portugal is in the EEA [5]. Many people take it in sterling to the UK account and move money over in bigger chunks when the rate suits.

Moving money from the UK

The UK still takes part in the euro payments scheme (SEPA), so a euro transfer from a UK bank to a Portuguese IBAN is routine. The cost is mostly hidden in the exchange rate your bank applies, which can be well off the mid-market rate. Compare the total cost, rate included, before you send anything large like a house deposit. See sending money between the UK and abroad.

A few things to know:

• Big transfers get questions. Portuguese and UK banks will ask where large sums came from. Keep the sale contract, the solicitor's completion statement or the pension statement handy.
• Cash at the border. Carrying EUR 10,000 (about £8,330) or more in cash into or out of the EU must be declared to customs.
• Tax reporting. Portuguese banks report accounts of non-residents to their home tax authority, and UK banks do the same in reverse, so HMRC and the AT will both know what you hold. Declare your UK interest and dividends on your Portuguese return (Anexo J) once you're resident.

The FCDO notes that you need a NIF to work and pay tax in Portugal [1], and the bank account usually follows within days. If you'd like a recommendation for a branch with an English-speaking manager in your bairro, our community group for Brits in Portugal is the place to ask.

Sources

1. GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Portugal (last updated 10 July 2026)
2. Banco de Portugal: Serviços Mínimos Bancários brochure (17th edition, June 2026)
3. Autoridade Tributária: NIF for foreign non-resident citizens (July 2025)
4. gov.pt: Como pedir o NIF e o NISS para pessoas estrangeiras em Portugal (updated 2 September 2026)
5. GOV.UK (DWP): Countries where we pay an annual increase in the State Pension
6. European Commission: Deposit guarantee schemes (read 11 November 2026)

Keep reading

• NIF, NISS and AIMA: Portugal's numbers and the immigration agency
• Cost of living in Lisbon vs London and the UK average
• Keeping a UK bank account when you live abroad
• Sending money between the UK and abroad