Not a digital-only workaround: a traditional Portuguese bank account, opened at the branch by a licensed team acting on a signed mandate - solo or joint.
Plenty of neobanks will onboard you from your phone in ten minutes. The catch shows up later, when an embassy, a landlord, or a notary asks for something a purely digital account can't provide.
| Digital-only bank | Traditional bank, via us | |
|---|---|---|
| Accepted for a D7 / D8 / Golden Visa file | Not always | |
| Physical debit card by post | Rarely | |
| Real branch and staff behind it | — | |
| Opens without you in the country | Through us |
Four things to have ready.
Full page, clearly legible.
Issued outside Portugal, less than 3 months old.
A payslip, pension statement, or recent bank statement.
Every Portuguese bank requires it before anything else.
Three steps, no branch visit.
Pay the flat €149 fee and pick whether the account is just for you or shared with a partner.
Upload the four items above, then sign the power of attorney we generate for you - no printer trip to a notary.
We submit the file and follow it through. Your IBAN and online banking access land on your dashboard the day it clears.
One fee, whichever way you apply.
solo or joint, same price
A joint account costs the same as a solo one - it's one account either way.
Start my applicationA local IBAN unlocks the next form, not just the account itself.
Most applicants aren't opening an account for its own sake - it's a line item on somebody else's checklist: a visa office, a landlord, a notary. Having it ready in advance, from a bank those offices already recognize, avoids a second round trip later.
Track it without calling anyone.
Every document has its own status, every rejection comes with a reason, and the account details show up here the moment they exist - never in your inbox.
Solo or joint, your call. Open the account alone, or with a partner - both tracked on the same order.
Know exactly what to send. Clear, specific guidance for every document you need to send.
We couldn't confirm this document: the name we read ("Antonio Ferreira Silva") doesn't match. Fix your details below if they're wrong, or re-upload a clearer document if they're correct.
If something's off, we say why. A specific reason, not a black box, so you know exactly what to fix.
A quick word on why we check so closely
The bank reviews every detail closely, so we do too, upfront. What you type needs to match your document exactly, so nothing gets rejected on their end later.
We explain the why. If checks feel strict, it's because we're matching the bank's own standard from the start.
A date for every step. Always know where your case stands, no need to check in.
Your online banking access is ready right here on your dashboard.
A clear finish line. Your IBAN and online banking access, delivered securely on your dashboard.
Frequently asked questions
You can - but a digital-only account is often rejected as insufficient proof of funds by visa offices, and comes without a physical card or a branch to fall back on. A traditional bank solves that, but generally won’t onboard a non-resident online, which is exactly the gap this service closes.
Primarily Novo Banco, through a direct partnership. On the rare file Novo Banco can’t take on, we open the account with another traditional Portuguese bank instead (currently Millennium bcp) - either way, it’s a real branch-based account, never a digital-only workaround.
Get that first - no Portuguese bank will proceed without one. Our sister service, NIF Online, handles it remotely the same way this does.
No. You sign a power of attorney authorizing our licensed team to act at the branch on your behalf. Portuguese law exempts this kind of mandate from notarization, so there’s no apostille step either.
One order, two people. Both of you upload your own documents and both sign the power of attorney, but it’s a single account with both names on it - not two separate accounts.
Once we have your signed mandate and complete file, Novo Banco typically takes 2-6 weeks to process the request. It varies by nationality (compliance checks aren’t uniform) and we don’t control the bank’s queue, so treat this as a working estimate, not a promise.
On your dashboard only, once the account is confirmed - your IBAN and online banking access are never sent by email.
A Lisbon immigration law firm handling relocation cases for internationals for years. This service and NIF Online are both built by the same team of lawyers regulated by the Portuguese Bar Association, wrapped around software instead of a waiting room.
