Portugal Basic Bank Account: Rights for Americans and Britons

The basic bank account, in Portuguese the “conta de serviços mínimos bancários”, is a euro current account with a debit card that an individual can ask any bank offering these services to open. The decree-law behind it ties the right to a consumer who may reside in an EU member state and who holds no other current account with a bank established in Portugal.

This guide goes deeper on that one right than our bank account guide, which covers what a bank asks when you open any account. If you do not have a tax number yet, start with the Portuguese NIF guide. It is not legal advice, and the bank that receives your request applies the rules.

What the pages say, and when

We read the consolidated text of Decree-Law 27-C/2000 (the copy hosted by Banco de Portugal, which carries the note that it does not replace the original) on 21 October 2026. Its amendment notes show Lei 24/2023 of 29 May 2023 as the latest change to the text, which altered the transfers included in the fee cap, so that is the date of the law’s last change. We also read Banco de Portugal’s customer portal page on basic bank accounts and its page on complaints the same day. The portal page gives the 2026 figure for the fee cap, which rests on the social support index (IAS) of 2026, set by Portaria 480-A/2025/1 of 30 December 2025, so that is the date of the latest information here.

Who has the right to a basic bank account?

The decree-law speaks of an “interessado”, an individual who asks for the services. The definition covers “qualquer consumidor que tenha o direito de residir num Estado-Membro em virtude do direito da União Europeia ou nacional” (any consumer who has the right to reside in a member state by virtue of EU or national law). It names three groups as included: consumers with no fixed address, asylum seekers, and consumers refused a residence permit whose expulsion is impossible for reasons of fact or law.

For an American or a Briton, the text names no nationality and no visa. It also does not list which permits give “the right to reside”. Whether your permit does is for the bank to apply and for Banco de Portugal to answer if you complain.

The second condition is that you hold no other current account with a bank established in Portugal. You declare it in the opening forms, or declare that you were notified that your payment account will be closed. Before you sign, the bank must tell you in writing that the declaration is optional, what follows if you refuse to make it, and what follows if you hold another current account, now or later. The law’s wording is about accounts in Portugal. It says nothing on a US or UK account in this article; read the guide on keeping US and UK accounts and ask the bank how it applies the declaration.

One exception: a person who holds another account may still use the basic account if a joint holder is over 65 or dependent on others, which the law defines as a certified permanent disability of 60 percent or more.

What does the basic bank account include?

The decree-law defines the minimum services as:

• opening, maintaining, managing and closing a current account, in euros
• a debit card
• access to the account through ATMs inside the European Union, online banking and the bank’s branches
• deposits, withdrawals, payments for goods and services, direct debits and transfers (including standing orders) inside the European Union, and transfers through payment apps run by third parties

The bank may not give the card features that make it more restrictive than its other debit cards, and may not give these services conditions more restrictive than the same services outside the scheme. The contract and forms must say “Serviços mínimos bancários” prominently, and the contract must describe the services and their conditions.

How much can a bank charge?

All commissions, expenses and other charges for the included services and operations in euros may not, taken together, exceed in a year the equivalent of 1 percent of the IAS (indexante dos apoios sociais). The cap covers transfers inside the same bank, transfers at ATMs, 48 transfers to other banks per calendar year through online banking or the bank’s own app, and 5 transfers a month, up to 30 euros each, through payment apps run by third parties.

In euros, the Banco de Portugal portal says the cap is 5.37 euros a year “according to the value of IAS in 2026”.

Outside the cap you pay the bank’s price list for other services and operations. You also pay for a replacement debit card requested before 18 months have passed since issue, unless its validity is shorter or the reason is the bank’s fault. Converting an existing current account into a basic account must cost its holders nothing.

What can a bank not do?

The decree-law forbids the bank to:

• ask for documents, forms or proofs beyond those needed to open any current account
• make the account depend on a minimum deposit or on buying other products or services
• require shares of the bank, unless the condition applies to all its customers
• offer overdraft facilities with the account or allow tacit overruns (the ban does not apply to operations made with the debit card)
• stop a basic account holder from buying the bank’s other products at the usual price list cost

How long does the bank take, and when can it refuse?

After a complete request, the bank opens the account or refuses, without undue delay and at the latest 10 business days after receipt. Besides situations provided in other laws and regulations in force, it may refuse only if:

1. when you apply you already hold one or more current accounts with a credit institution (subject to the joint holder exceptions above), or
2. you refuse to make the declaration that you hold no other current account.

The text does not list other grounds, but it does keep the “other laws and regulations”, so the identification checks that apply to any account still apply. The earlier bank account guide covers those and how proving your address works.

What to do if the bank refuses

The bank must tell you at once, free of charge, on paper or another durable medium, the reasons for the refusal and the means of reaction open to you, namely a complaint to the supervisory authority and out-of-court dispute resolution, with contact details. The exception is when national or EU law forbids giving that information, or it would go against public order or public security.

• Ask for the written reasons if the bank has not given them; the law requires them.
• Complain to Banco de Portugal. The decree-law makes Banco de Portugal the supervisor of the scheme, responsible for investigating the offences it lists, and names a complaint to “the supervisory authority” as a route.
• Use out-of-court dispute resolution. Banks must give holders access to out-of-court complaint and dispute resolution for disputes up to the value of the first instance courts, and must be members of at least two such bodies. Banco de Portugal publishes the bodies on its website.
• Refusing outside the permitted cases, or not giving the reasons in writing, is listed as a serious administrative offence, with fines between 200 and 20,000 euros.

Banco de Portugal’s complaints page says you can complain online through the e-platform “Livro de Reclamações” if you believe an institution has acted inappropriately in selling retail banking products or services. The page also suggests that you first try the bank’s virtual assistant for questions on banking products.

Can the bank close a basic account?

Besides other legal grounds, a bank may end the contract only when you used the account on purpose for aims against the law; made none of the listed operations for at least 24 consecutive months; gave incorrect information to obtain the account without meeting the conditions; stopped being a legal resident in the EU (not applying to consumers with no fixed address or asylum seekers); or hold another current account with a bank in Portugal that lets you use the same services (subject to the joint holder exceptions). Ending for unlawful use or incorrect information is immediate. The other three grounds take effect 60 days after the notice.

The notice is free and in writing, with reasons and the complaint and dispute procedures. If the contract ends, the bank must return the balance. A move out of the EU matters here: the account depends on legal residence in the EU, so tell your bank and read the notice carefully. For daily use, see cards, MB Way and everyday payments.

Americans and Britons

The pages we read make no distinction by nationality. A Briton holds a post-Brexit status and an American a visa or a permit, and what matters in the text is the right to reside in an EU member state. We did not read any page saying which Portuguese visa or permit gives that right for this purpose, so ask the bank to name the document it accepts before you go.

Pages read for this guide: the consolidated Decree-Law 27-C/2000 (Banco de Portugal copy), on 21 October 2026. Banco de Portugal’s customer portal pages on basic bank accounts and on complaints, and Portaria 480-A/2025/1 on the Diário da República (published 30 December 2025). The portal page lists the same services as the decree-law and adds that a bank may end the account if you stop being a legal resident in the EU.