How Foreigners Can Open Bank Accounts in Sweden

If you want to handle your costs, taxes, and social benefits in Sweden, whether you’re moving there to experience a great quality of life or to enroll in its higher education as a student, you’ll need a Swedish bank account.

It will be simple to create a bank account as a Swedish resident who pays taxes. What documentation you need and how to open an account in person or online will explains by our professionals at Monito. We will provide you with bank alternatives if you are a non-resident to make managing your daily finances in Sweden easier.

There are many things to look forward to about relocating to Sweden, which is renowned for its stunning environment and thriving economy. But it’s a good idea to open your Swedish bank account if you intend to make this Scandinavian country your home. For information about opening a bank account in Sweden, continue reading.

How do banks operate in Sweden?

The Krona is the currency used in Swedish banking. Even though certain department stores and other businesses might take cash in Euros, you will need to open a Swedish bank account for your daily finances. If you are employed in Sweden, you should accept your paycheck in Swedish krona and deposit it into a bank account with a Swedish IBAN.

In Sweden, are I permitted to create a bank account?

You may lawfully open a bank account in Sweden if you are 18 years of age or older, hold an EU passport, and reside at your listed Swedish address. Additionally, non-EU nationals require a residence permit. Remember that these are just the bare minimums. Most banks will also require your Swedish personnummer, which you can obtain from the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket), and some will require documentation of your work or academic status. Last but not least, you’ll require a BankID, which grants you access to mobile payments through Swish, the Swedish mobile payment app, and online banking. Register for this BankID at any actual bank branch.

What Paperwork Is Necessary for Sweden to Open a Bank Account?

Depending on your home country’s citizenship status and the length of your stay in Sweden, different documents may be needed to create a bank account in Sweden.

To open a bank account in Sweden, you must provide the following paperwork to your bank:

• Swedish National ID, an EU/EEA passport, or a non-EU/EEA passport with a residence permit.
• Documentation of the applicant’s Swedish address (such as a utility bill, lease agreement, or official document);
• evidence of work or enrollment in school.

Swedish Personnummer: What is it?

Without a personnummer, a national identity number uses for taxes, and other public services, citizens of EU and EEA nations are legally permitted to open a Swedish bank account. On the other hand, people from other nations have to show their preferred bank a personnummer.

You may still open an account if you are an EU or EEA national visiting the nation for fewer than six months. But since you don’t qualify as a Swedish citizen, banks can only offer you the most minimal services.

In Sweden, is it Possible to Open a Bank Account Without a Personnummer?

Simply put, if you are a citizen of another EU/EEA nation, you can open an account without a personnummer.

Despite not yet adopting the Euro, Sweden is legally more connecting to the EU than its neighbors. For instance, Denmark has the option to leave the eurozone, whereas Norway is not a member of the EU. However, Swedish banks are not permitted by law to refuse to open a basic account for citizens of the EU or EEA.

Option 1: Opening a Bank Account in Sweden with a High Street Bank

You must go in person to a branch of a traditional bank in Sweden to open an account and present the necessary identification. Although walk-ins are frequently accepted, you can schedule an appointment by contacting your neighborhood location.

Can I Open a Swedish Bank Account Online?

Only those who possess a Mobile BankID are eligible to open a bank account online. Swedish banks may offer you a Mobile BankID that is specific to you when your identity has confirming in person, which you can use as a digital identification number3. The service allows you to easily sign and transfer documents online and is accepted by banks throughout Sweden.

Option 2: Opening a Digital Bank Non-Resident Bank Account

DuBecausehey enables customers to open accounts entirely online and offers top-notch mobile apps to make managing your money quick and simple, digital banks have experienced enormous growth in Europe and across the globe. These businesses frequently do not charge monthly fees and lower other typical bank fees because they do not have expensive physical bank branches.

We’ll walk you through two digital banking alternatives so you can use the money in Sweden. One is Lunar, a fully authorized bank that solely accepts Swedish citizens and operates throughout Scandinavia. The other is Revolut, a multi-currency account that allows non-residents and visitors to own Swedish krona directly.

Lunar

Being an expatriate requires that you have reached the age of 18, possess a Swedish personnummer, and have a BankID. In other words, for a bank account with Lunar, you must be a Swedish resident who pays taxes.

The following list of documents is what Lunar will need intoning you up, and it can only be done using their mobile app4:

• Social Security number for Sweden (personnummer)
• Valid BankID; a driver’s license, a passport, or a national ID

The paid and free options that Lunar provides to its Swedish users are detailed below:

Revolut

One of the most popular digital banks in Europe is Revolut and for good reason. You can still exchange your funds at the mid-market exchange rate as a non-resident of Sweden, whether they express in US dollars, Euros, or any of several other currencies. After that, you can use your Revolut debit card to access your Krona and make purchases in Sweden like a resident.

Check out this summary of Revolut’s account options to learn how to spend like a local in Sweden:

Standard: The Standard option comes with no upfront expenses, a free debit card, a European IBAN with no monthly fee, and a UK sort code. A monthly withdrawal from an ATM of 2,000 SEK is free for you. There are no fees associated with currency exchanges of up to 1,000 British pounds into SEK per month.
Plus: Monthly fees for Plus accounts, which include a debit card, are 33.99 SEK. The monthly ATM withdrawal cap is still set at 2,000 SEK, and the monthly currency exchange cap is still set at 1,000 GBP. You get benefits like return protection and round-the-clock customer service.

Premium: Monthly fees for premium accounts are 76.99 SEK, which includes a debit card. There are also no fees for ATM withdrawals up to a monthly cap of 4,000 SEK. There are no limits on currency exchanges without expenses.
Metal: Metal accounts have a monthly fee of 139.99 SEK, which includes a debit card. Up to 8,000 SEK in ATM withdrawals are free each month and no fees are associated with any additional currency swaps. Additionally, you receive 1% cash back outside of Europe on all purchases and 0.1% cash back within Europe.

Option 3: As a non-resident, open a wise multi-currency account

The Wise Multi-Currency Account is a great non-resident current account that provides you with 10 bank account numbers that are specifically for you in addition to a Visa debit card (including a UK sort code, US account number, and Euro IBAN).

You can use your Krona account with Wise to pay a bill if you don’t have a Swedish bank account but need to do so. Monito advises against taking your bill to a forex bank since they will charge a processing fee and offer a subpar conversion rate.

To open a multi-currency account, you do not need to provide documentation of your Swedish residency. (Wise does ask you to provide documentation proving your residency in one of the following countries: EU/EEA, US, Singapore, Japan, Australia, or New Zealand.) Your legitimate government-issued identification must be presented on the Wise app for mobile or desktop to complete the identity verification process.

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While it may take up to two weeks for your Visa debit card to arrive in Sweden, you can immediately benefit from the following special benefits offered by the Wise Multi-Currency Account:

• US, Eurozone, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Romania, Canada, Hungary, and Turkey local bank information;
• up to 56 currencies, including SEK, can be held, exchanged, and topped up;
• a Visa debit card with many currencies that is practical for paying in SEK without incurring foreign transaction fees;
• You can use your account balance to access Wise’s market-leading international money transfer service.

Swedish Krona Conversion for Foreigners in Sweden

Consider moving to Stockholm from Germany and wanting to make purchases in SEK before registering for a personnummer or mobile BankID to get an idea of how helpful Wise may be for foreigners living there. You can: With the Wise Multi-Currency Account:

• Send euros from your bank account in Germany to your Wise Euro account; convert to SEK at the mid-market rate, less a small fixed cost (for example, if you convert €1,000.00 to SEK, the total fee will be roughly 0.45% or €4.58);
• Keep the converted money (10,556 SEK),
• Use your Wise debit card to make purchases in Swedish stores and make cash withdrawals from ATMs.

How to Transfer Funds to Sweden

You might want to send money across borders now that you know how to open a bank account in Sweden.

You will need to use your home bank to conduct an international transfer in one of the following two ways to introvert your funds into SEK in your new Swedish bank account:

sending a bank transfer using a third-party money transfer service; sending a wire transfer straight through your bank.
Because your bank will probably wire cash using the SWIFT network, a worldwide bank network that charges “middlemen” fees for transferring your money across borders and currencies, our experts at Monito advise against using your bank to make international money transfers.

Utilize a service for online money transfers

We advise you to move your money to your Swedish bank account through a professional money transfer service. One company that provides these services is called Wise, although there are many more that run around the entire globe. Visit Monito’s travel money comparison page to find out which company offers the best rates for sending money from your home country to Sweden.

Make use of a foreign exchange broker

Foreign exchange brokers may be a preferable option for you if you need to transfer sizable sums of money, like life savings or business profits, into your bank account in Sweden. On your side, they negotiate favorable exchange rates, which can help you save a lot of money when sending out sizable transactions.

FAQ

To open a bank account in Sweden, what do I need?

The prerequisites for opening an account vary depending on the bank. The best course of action is to have all of the following paperwork on hand:

• an EU passport, a non-EU passport with residency permission from Sweden, or a Swedish national ID
• Personal identification number Personnummer
• evidence of address (utility bill or rental contract)
• evidence of work or enrollment in school

In Sweden, can I open a bank account without a job?

It shouldn’t be difficult to create a Swedish bank account without a job or other source of income if you have the legal right to be in Sweden. Despite possessing a personnummer, I am aware that dependents of work permit holders struggle to obtain their bank accounts.

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