How to open a Bank Account in Poland

If you are moving to Poland, you might want to open a new bank account. Even if you plan to sustain existing chequing or savings accounts at home, in order to pay some bills or to manage your savings, you may find out that you need a local account too. This is also essential especially if you want to work and study in Poland.

A local account will allow you to pay local bills, and your salary can be deposited into it. Your other options, with regard to banking, include opening an international account with your recent bank, if they allow this, or opening a nearshore bank account that can be accessed from anywhere you are.

Creating a bank account in Poland is fairly straightforward, and you do not need to be a resident to do so. Whereas, if you are a resident, you will find the process much simpler, and some banks will even give you the chance of opening your account online, so long as you have a Polish phone number.

Opening a bank account in Poland used to be difficult but with Poland becoming ever more popular, Polish banks have taken some extra steps to offer banking in English.
Can you create a bank account in Poland, in English, without knowing any Polish?
Yes!
Not only that but it’s really quite simple and pretty much everything is done for you by the bank.
I’m going to show you steps on how to open a bank account in Poland, in English, with full support & apps all in English.

How to open a bank account in Poland
You have several options when opening a bank account in Poland, which are as follows:
Bank Millennium
Bank Polski
Bank Pekao
Mbank
Santander
Alior Bank
Inteligo
BNP Parabis
ING
CITI Handlowy

You should on your own do research on which bank to choose, while we recommend Bank Millennium for being in English, this does not mean that it is necessarily better than any other bank mentioned above.

Bank Millennium has gone to great lengths to ensure they are available for people from all over the word.
They are by far the best bank for foreigners in Poland who haven’t yet learned the Polish language.

Now, let’s help you create a Polish bank account.

If you’ve clicked on the link above you will be on the English language homepage, from there you can also click ‘Open Account’ in the main menu or ‘Open Now’ in the slider.
You ought to be on this screen, from this point it’s all very straightforward but if you’re wondering which is the best option to choose between:
Courier
Branch
Online

Courier
Bank Millennium send a courier to your address, a time will be fixed when the courier will be visiting your address in Poland and you just need to make sure you’re at home when they visit.
The courier will demand to see your identification and you’ll need to sign some forms, so have a pen and your ID ready next to the door.
This option is best if you’re not sure how to use smartphones and you cant go over to a branch.

Branch
The branch is where you visit with all of your documents, I would advise trying one of the other procedure, it can be a bit stray sometimes in branches with staff not being able to speak English.

If you do go to a branch, try and meet a member of staff that can communicate in English or take one of your Polish friends to help you. A lot of the staff can and will communicate in English but sometimes they might be a little anxious so be friendly and patient.
This option is best if you prefer a more personal experience and want to make enquiry.

Online
This is by far the simplest way to open a Bank Millennium account.
If you’ve ever opened an all-online bank account, like Monzo, you’ll find this the simplest and most straightforward way to get a Polish bank account set up in minutes.

The only disadvantage to opening your bank account this way is that you’ll still need to visit a Bank Millennium branch between 90 days or your bank account will have limits imposed on it where you’ll only be allowed to make transactions up to a maximum of 5000zl per month.

You’ll need your ID and you’ll need to take a shot to prove your identity.
If you’re just starting a new job and need to provide bank particular to your new employer ASAP then this will be your best choice.

This is the best choice if you need your Polish bank account open fast or before you arrive.
Do I need a Polish ID or PESEL number?
No. You can use your passport or driving license from your home country as identification for your account.

You will be allowed to use your Polish bank account without a PESEL number for the lifetime of your account with little restrictions, for example, you won’t be able to use any Bank Millennium credit service without a PESEL number.

I am currently applying to study in Poland and would definitely need to open a Polish bank account. If you found this post helpful, please let me know. You may also check out my other posts here on Setlinn.