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Opening an account abroad Opening a bank account in Romania

Mykola Sirenko

Lawyer

E-mail

sirenko@prikhodko.com.ua

Phone numbers

Expert in corporate and international corporate law. Has extensive experience in supporting the acquisition of financial licenses in Ukraine, as well as business incorporation in the EU, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the UAE, and key Asian jurisdictions.

Opening a bank account in Romania

Romania is rarely named as the first choice among European jurisdictions, and this is arguably one of its advantages: the country is in the EU and the Schengen Area, company maintenance costs are low, and share capital requirements are symbolic. For Ukrainian businesses and individuals, this makes it a convenient, although underestimated, option. Let us examine how accounts are opened here and what banks review.

Get advice on an account in Romania

How can a non-resident open an account in Romania?

There are no direct prohibitions: Romanian banks serve non-residents, including citizens of non-EU countries. The key difference compared with a resident is the document package and servicing costs, rather than the ability to open an account itself.

The second important point is the tax identification number. The bank identifies the client using the tax number of the country of residence, while for transactions within Romania a non-resident may require a separate number issued by the tax administration.

The following documents may be required to open an account:

an international passport; for EU citizens, a national identity card;
proof of address: a statement from another bank or a utility bill no more than three months old;
the tax identification number of the country of residence or a Romanian number obtained from the tax authorities;
an explanation of the purpose of establishing a relationship with the bank;
for students and employees — a certificate from an educational institution or an employment agreement.

Can an account be opened online in Romania?

Romanian banks have well-developed digital platforms, but fully remote opening is mainly available to those who hold a Romanian identity document. For a non-resident, the standard procedure remains a branch visit, sometimes preceded by completing an online application.

Some institutions have introduced video identification, but the range of accepted documents is narrower. The fastest remote option is offered by payment institutions providing a local IBAN, although they do not replace a bank in scenarios where lending or company banking services are required.

Which bank is best for opening an account in Romania?

The market is concentrated: several major players cover most needs, and the differences between them lie primarily in procedures rather than the range of services.

Bank	Strength	Consideration for a non-resident
Banca Transilvania	The largest branch network following the merger with OTP Bank România	A separate fee for maintaining a non-resident account
BCR (Erste), BRD (Société Générale)	Corporate banking, cross-border settlements	Larger document package and longer review
ING Bank România, Raiffeisen, UniCredit	Convenient mobile banking, fast transfers	Requirement to demonstrate a connection with the country
CEC Bank	State-owned bank, more accommodating towards non-standard applicants	Less developed English-language service

If the account is being opened for a future company, it is advisable to choose from the outset a bank that works with non-resident corporate clients: transferring the banking relationship later is more expensive.

It will also be useful: Opening a bank account in Poland

Account in Romania for an individual

A personal account is opened for salary, rent, studies or property-related expenses. Practical considerations include:

for non-residents, account maintenance is usually paid, whereas residents often use a basic package free of charge;
the main currency is the Romanian leu, and not every bank issues a card in euros;
a Romanian tax identification number is not required for the account itself, but for tax-related transactions within the country;
Romania is in the Schengen Area but has not adopted the euro, so currency conversion cannot be avoided entirely;
account information is exchanged under the automatic exchange of tax information framework.

Select a bank for opening an account

Account in Romania for a business or company

A Romanian limited liability company is attractive because of its low entry threshold: the minimum share capital is one leu. An account is needed at the incorporation stage for depositing the capital, and after registration the company opens an operating account.

A non-resident may be both founder and director, but the bank will review such structures more closely. The standard package for a corporate client includes:

an extract from the trade register and the company’s constitutional document;
the company’s tax code and, where necessary, VAT registration;
a declaration of ultimate beneficial owners;
proof of registered office together with the premises agreement;
a description of activities, counterparties and projected turnover.

The corporate procedure is described in more detail on the page concerning opening a bank account for legal entities in Romania.

Foreign currency account in Romania

The standard currencies are the Romanian leu, euro and US dollar, usually within one banking package. As an EU Member State, Romania provides for the free movement of capital, so there are no restrictions on cross-border transfers, while euro payments pass through the single payment area at domestic rates.

Because Romania remains outside the eurozone, exchange-rate risk is real. Companies that earn income in euros but incur expenses in lei should consider maintaining parallel accounts and avoiding automatic currency conversion: the default spread is often higher than an agreed exchange rate for regular transactions.

Experience of Prikhodko & Partners in supporting account opening in Romania

Romanian banks do not create artificial barriers, but their procedures are highly formalised: a discrepancy between the address in the application and the supporting document, or an inaccuracy in a translation, may return the application to the beginning of the process. The main loss is not money but time, and with it the deadlines for the underlying transaction.

The Prikhodko & Partners practice in international corporate law is focused on ensuring that the document package passes review on the first attempt. Our lawyers prepare and legalise documents, coordinate the requirements of the particular bank, support the process of obtaining a tax identification number and manage communication with the institution when additional questions arise.

For businesses, the work covers the full cycle: company registration in Romania, a registered office, a capital contribution account, an operating account and subsequent accounting support. The bank assesses not only the applicant but also the quality of the structure behind them.

Do you need to open a personal or corporate account in Romania? The lawyers at Prikhodko & Partners will help determine the requirements of the particular bank, prepare and legalise documents, obtain the necessary tax identification number, pass bank compliance and coordinate the account opening with company registration.

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1 question

Are you currently in Ukraine?

Yes

2 question

Are you currently in Romania?

Yes

3 question

Do you need advice on opening an account for an individual?

Yes

4 question

Do you need advice on opening an account for a legal entity?

Yes

Frequently asked questions for the topic:

Do you need to register a company in Romania to open an account there?

No. A non-resident individual can open a personal account without any connection to a local business. A company is only required when a corporate account and settlements with Romanian counterparties are involved.

How much does it cost to maintain a non-resident account?

The monthly fee is usually modest and amounts to the equivalent of a few euros. The main costs are not account maintenance fees but charges for international transfers and exchange-rate differences during currency conversion, so banks are more accurately compared on these items.

Does having an account create an obligation to file tax returns in Romania?

Not by itself. The obligation arises when Romanian-source income appears or when tax residence changes. At the same time, information about the account is transmitted to your country of tax residence, so income must be reflected in the tax reporting of the relevant jurisdiction.

Successful cases on the topic: