Case: OPENING AN ACCOUNT IN A SPANISH BANK FOR AN INDIVIDUAL (REMOTELY, BY POWER OF ATTORNEY)

Client: An individual — a resident of Ukraine, an entrepreneur in the field of online education
Region: Kyiv
Target: Opening a personal account in a Spanish bank to receive payments from the EU and purchase real estate

Customer request

In March 2025, a client approached the law firm “Prikhodko and Partners” with the aim of opening a personal bank account in Spain without being present in person.

The client is actively working in the EU markets, receives payments from partners in Spain and France, and also plans to invest in real estate on the Costa Blanca. Due to travel restrictions and the lack of a visa at that time, the client was looking for a legal solution for opening an account remotely.

Stages of cooperation

03/12/2025 — first consultation: discussed bank options, KYC and AML requirements in Spain, as well as legal mechanisms for remote identification.

03/17/2025 — A legal representation agreement was concluded, a power of attorney was prepared for a representative in Spain with the right to submit documents to the bank, conclude an agreement, and undergo identification. The power of attorney was notarized in Ukraine, translated into Spanish, and apostilled.

04/25/2025 — the format and list of documents have been agreed with the bank (CaixaBank), in particular:

• passport and TIN of the client;
• a document confirming the source of funds (bank statement, individual entrepreneur tax return);
• confirmation of residence address.

03/27/2025 — the representative in Spain submitted a full package of documents to the bank.

07/05/2025 — confirmation of account opening has been received; the client has been provided with access to online banking and IBAN details.

Results

A personal account was opened at one of the largest banks in Spain, CaixaBank, without the client being present in person.

Full compliance with the requirements of Spanish legislation regarding financial monitoring and legalization of documents was ensured.

The account is ready for receipt of funds, the client was able to legally place savings in the EU and use the account for real estate transactions.

The procedure from request to account opening took less than 2 months.

This case illustrates that opening an account in Spain is possible even without physical presence, provided that the documents are properly prepared and cooperation with a bank that accepts such cases is established.

We support the opening of personal and corporate accounts in EU countries, including Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Germany, Bulgaria, Estonia, and Cyprus.

If you are planning to open an account in a European bank, but don’t know where to start, contact us. We will help with jurisdiction analysis, document preparation, power of attorney, and support in negotiations with the bank.