Free Spanish Bank Account for Non Residents - Page 5

MartynF wrote on Thu Jan 14, 2021 3:15pm:

I have just received this email (14.1.2021) from Banco Sabadell with regard to the charge of €18 on a transfer:

Dear MrFletcher,

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With regard to your email, we would like to inform you that due to Brexit, the UK is not in the EEE since 1st January 2021. From that day on fees will be applied to transactions made from the UK and to the UK. You'll be charged 0,35% (minimum €18) to receive transfers from the UK and 0,75% (minimum €22) to make transfers from your bank Sabadell account to any account in the UK.

And remember we're also available 24/7 by phone on 963 085 000, via email at[email protected]and on social networks (Twitter and Facebook).

MartynF wrote on Thu Jan 14, 2021 12:16pm:

Hi Pauline

Yes I normally use Transferwise but decided yesterday to use a new provider (Azimo) because they had a free fee deal combined with a £25 Amazon voucher. The transaction (SWIFT) went through smoothly apart from the 8% charge by Solbank in Spain. Looks like I should have stuck with Transferwise. C...

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...an't wait to get back to Spain and get the Wefferent acccount set up - I am really tired of my bank's charges now!

MartynF wrote on Thu Jan 14, 2021 3:15pm:

I have just received this email (14.1.2021) from Banco Sabadell with regard to the charge of €18 on a transfer:

Dear MrFletcher,

Read more...

With regard to your email, we would like to inform you that due to Brexit, the UK is not in the EEE since 1st January 2021. From that day on fees will be applied to transactions made from the UK and to the UK. You'll be charged 0,35% (minimum €18) to receive transfers from the UK and 0,75% (minimum €22) to make transfers from your bank Sabadell account to any account in the UK.

And remember we're also available 24/7 by phone on 963 085 000, via email at[email protected]and on social networks (Twitter and Facebook).

Stevie100 wrote on Fri Jan 15, 2021 12:02pm:

This is from another Spanish website posted today

"A reply to someone on another site to a currency transfer company complaining about this €18 seems to bear out that it is only Sabadell doing it. They say they have received several complaints and all about Sabadell who are charging the fee for any money "originating in UK" regardless of which...

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... country the transfer company sends the money from and does not take into account the IBAN of the paying entity.

The company, Currencies Index, state that this is "illegal" and Sabadell is acting in breach of the European Council regulations and complaints should be sent to the European Payments Council  on that link".

MartynF wrote on Fri Jan 15, 2021 3:46pm:

When you go on to the European Payments Council website their stock answer to complaints about the imposition of a receiving bank charge on transfers is this:

'Please kindly be informed that the level of fees charged by payment service providers (PSPs) for transactions within the EEA and to/from the EEA is entirely outside the remit of the EPC SEPA schemes. As stated under Section 4 of our SCT (Inst) and SDD (B2B) Rulebooks “the basis and level of charg...

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...es to Customers are entirely a matter for individual Participants and their Customers". Accordingly, for further information on this matter, we invite you to contact your PSP and consult the websites of national competent authorities for information and guidance about the impact of Brexit on the provision of financial services in specific jurisdictions'.
It seems therefore, that we to direct such complaints to a Spanish competent Authority and if anyone could tell me who that organisation is, I would be grateful.

Stevie100 wrote on Fri Jan 15, 2021 3:59pm:

This is what Transferwise have just sent me

"Per EU regulations, transfers between bank accounts in two different Read more...

...lank">SEPA countries shouldn’t cost any more than a regular, local transfer. SEPA is made up of the Eurozone, countries within the EU and a few other countries which also support EUR bank transfers. The full list can be found here. We send all of our EUR transfers as domestic transfers when sending to other SEPA countries such as Spain, meaning the bank should not impose any charges for receiving EUR transfers from us".

The UK is part of the SEPA scheme therefore Spanish banks should not be applying fees.

MartynF wrote on Fri Jan 15, 2021 4:10pm:

Thanks - this is really useful. I am aware that Transferwise does not actually transfer money from the UK to Spain. I understand that instead it sends an electronic message to a subsidiary in Spain which in turn effects a 'local' transfer to banks in that country. Hence it is regarded as domestic...

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... transfer and no charges should be applied by the receiving bank for that reason.

My mistake was to take advantage of a transfer deal with another organisation and the transaction was not recognised as a 'domestic' one. I am a fan of Transferwise and should have stuck with them.

Jimbob wrote on Wed Feb 10, 2021 10:52pm:

Hi, found this useful thread whilst researching for a free bank to replace my present Sabadell account. I was pleased to see that Cajamar had an account, but disappointed to see that when you go through to apply it states that you must be a Spanish resident. As I'm based in the UK I guess that in...

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...dicates that I can't have this account, however in the initial post it mentioned NIE which is for Non-residents. Have I miss-understood something here please? 

Jimbob wrote on Wed Feb 10, 2021 10:52pm:

Hi, found this useful thread whilst researching for a free bank to replace my present Sabadell account. I was pleased to see that Cajamar had an account, but disappointed to see that when you go through to apply it states that you must be a Spanish resident. As I'm based in the UK I guess that in...

Read more...

...dicates that I can't have this account, however in the initial post it mentioned NIE which is for Non-residents. Have I miss-understood something here please?