Choose an account for your actual needs: salary and purchases, business payments, foreign currency or transfers outside SEPA. An advertised €0 fee does not reveal cash withdrawal, currency conversion or business service costs.

Before visiting a branch

Ask which identity document is accepted for your status, whether address or residence evidence is needed, and which tax identifiers and source-of-funds details are required. Confirm online access for foreign applicants and the contract language. Requirements vary; one document list cannot be promised for every nationality.

Personal accounts, SZČO and companies

For an s.r.o., request the company, representative and beneficial-owner requirements in advance. Define payment signers, statement-only access and limits. For SZČO, check whether the product’s terms permit business transactions.

Individuals conducting business ceased to be financial transaction taxpayers on 1 January 2026. This does not make every personal account suitable for business. Legal entities still need to consider the tax; a foreign account does not automatically remove obligations.

Comparing total costs

Price your own monthly scenario: account, cards, ATMs, cash, SEPA, SWIFT, conversion and additional users. Compare the amount a foreign-currency recipient actually receives, including exchange rates and intermediary charges. Keep the current tariff and fee-waiver conditions.

Protection and access

The standard protection limit for eligible deposits is €100,000 per depositor per bank, not per account. A foreign bank branch may belong to another country’s scheme. Check the legal entity and protection scheme; a payment-app balance is not necessarily a bank deposit.

If the bank requests more evidence

Respond to the specific request with a contract, invoice, salary evidence or transfer source. Avoid unverified upload links. First submit a written complaint to the bank and retain its response; then check the NBS complaint channel. Update details when your passport, address or residence status changes.

Annual account cost: a worked comparison

Comparing monthly fees alone is not enough. Suppose plan A costs €6 a month and includes ordinary electronic transfers and a card, but four monthly withdrawals at another bank’s ATM cost €2 each. Annual cost: €6 × 12 + 4 × €2 × 12 = €168. Plan B costs €10 a month and includes those transactions: €120 a year. The higher-priced package saves €48. These are hypothetical prices for a calculation, not an offer from a particular bank.

Make the same table for your own usage: cards, withdrawals, non-SEPA payments, cash deposits, urgent transfers and paper statements. Check whether a discount is permanent or introductory, whether salary credits are required and which payments qualify for a free package. For a company, include extra users, bulk payment files and payment approval functions: a free personal account does not replace the functions a business needs.

Currency transfers: compare what the recipient receives

Example: exchange $2,000. A hypothetical reference rate of €0.90 per dollar would produce €1,800. Provider A offers €0.885 and charges €5: the recipient gets €1,765. Provider B offers €0.895 and charges €12: the result is €1,778. The second option is €13 better despite its higher explicit fee. This illustrates the calculation; the rate is not a current quotation.

Before confirming, check the recipient account currency, the transfer currency and any further conversion. For SWIFT, check fee allocation and possible intermediary deductions: the sender’s debit does not always equal the recipient’s credit. When paying contractors regularly, retain payment confirmation, transaction identifiers and a reference that connects the transfer to its invoice.

Documents and protection of your funds

For the first appointment, prepare identification, residence and address documents, tax-residency information and evidence of the source of expected receipts. The bank decides the list for each customer; foreign clients may need additional documents or translations. For an s.r.o., check proof of the konateľ’s authority, ownership and ultimate beneficial ownership, the business description and expected turnover. A residence permit alone does not guarantee access to the chosen product.

Ordinary protection of eligible bank deposits is up to €100,000 per depositor at one bank, not per account. For example, €70,000 in a current account and €40,000 in a deposit at the same bank total €110,000; the standard limit covers €100,000. Special conditions apply to some temporarily high balances, so this example does not cover all exceptions. Check the legal entity and protection scheme: another app or brand does not necessarily mean another bank. Investments and balances with an electronic-money institution cannot automatically be treated as bank deposits.

After opening, configure alerts, limits and a backup access method. In a company, separate payment preparation from approval and document permissions and the process for removing departing employees. Verify source-of-funds requests through the bank’s official channel; submit documents through its secure interface.

Related guides

Official sources