Banking and payments in Albania: the lek, an Albanian account, and the 10,000 euro cash limit
Albania pays in lek: on 26 October 2026 one euro was worth 90.80 lek. You open an Albanian account at a branch; for a non-resident a bank may ask, besides your passport, for your residence document, your rental or employment contract and a tax number. Deposits are guaranteed up to 2,500,000 lek. If you carry 10,000 euros or more in cash, you declare it to Albanian customs and when leaving the EU.
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In Albania you pay in lek (ALL), the Albanian currency. On 26 October 2026 one euro was worth 90.80 lek according to the Bank of Albania, the central bank; the rate floats freely. For rent, bills and contributions you need an Albanian account. You open it at a bank branch, and a bank may ask a non-resident for more than just a passport. If you carry a lot of cash, there is a declaration duty on both sides.
What are the money rules in Albania?
| What | Rule or amount |
|---|---|
| Currency | lek; 1 euro = 90.80 lek on 26 October 2026 |
| Cash across the border, Albania | declare € 10,000 or more to customs, before passport control; free |
| Cash when leaving the EU | declare € 10,000 or more to the customs of the EU country |
| Deposit guarantee | up to 2,500,000 lek per person (about € 27,500) |
| VAT in shops | 20 % |
| Building tax on a home | 0.05 % of the value per year, collected by the municipality |
| Minimum wage | 50,000 lek gross a month (about € 550) |
What does a bank ask for?
BKT, one of the large banks, opens a current account at a branch with a valid identity document. For a non-resident the bank lists: a passport or, for EU citizens, an ID card, a residence document, an employment contract, a rental contract and a tax number. Whether all of these are needed at once, or one of them is enough, the page does not say. Credins Bank opens an account with a valid ID card or passport, and has a free basic account, among others for pensioners who do not yet have one.
So ask the bank of your choice in advance what it wants to see. In any case bring your passport, your registration certificate once you have it, your rental contract and proof of your income. How to get a tax number as a private individual is explained in registration and numbers in Albania.
Hold off on large sums until your account is running. Transfer money rather than carrying it in cash: that is safer, and you have proof of where it came from, which a bank may ask about.
What cash do you bring?
Anyone entering or leaving Albania with € 10,000 or more in cash, bearer securities, precious metals or other valuables declares it to Albanian customs. You do so with a free form, before passport control, stating the purpose and with supporting documents. If you forget, the first fine is 20,000 lek (about € 220) for € 10,000 to € 20,000, rising to 60,000 lek from € 50,000. On a repeat offence it is 10 to 50 percent of the amount.
On the EU side the same limit applies when leaving the EU. You declare it in the country where you leave the EU, for example in Italy if you take the ferry.
How do you pay tax and contributions?
As an employee your employer withholds contributions and tax. As a self-employed person you pay your contributions before the 20th of the following month. You file your tax return before 31 March of the following year. If you own a home, you pay the building tax to the municipality (bashkia). In shops the 20 percent VAT is included in the price.
What happens to your AOW and pension?
Your AOW moves with you, but a single person receives about 30 percent less in Albania, because there is no social security treaty. Whether Albania taxes your pension is still uncertain; see AOW, pension and tax in Albania. Your AOW and pension are in euros; your rent and groceries in lek. What you have left therefore moves up and down with the exchange rate.
What do you do with your Dutch account?
Keep it. You pay Dutch charges with it, and in the first weeks you simply use your card. Ask your bank in advance whether it keeps a client living in Albania: Albania is outside the EU. See keeping your bank account and DigiD.
Watch your phone. Albania does not yet fall under Roam like at Home, the EU rule for calling at domestic rates. The EU is negotiating it with the Western Balkan countries, but it is not there yet. Get an Albanian SIM card or eSIM, or look at a Balkan bundle with your provider.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 5 of 5 of the journey, step 5.4: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Albania or go straight to step 5.4 in the open plan.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Bank of Albania — the official exchange rate of the lek — bankofalbania.org
- BKT — opening a current account, with the documents for non-residents and the deposit guarantee — bkt.com.al
- Credins Bank — the current account and the free basic account — bankacredins.com
- Albanian customs — declaring cash from 10,000 euros — dogana.gov.al
- European Commission — declaring cash when leaving the EU, from 10,000 euros — taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu
- Ligj 92/2014 on VAT, consolidated — article 48, the 20 percent rate — tatime.gov.al
- Ligj 9632/2006 on local taxes, consolidated — article 22/2, the building tax of 0.05 percent — tatime.gov.al
- Austrian Federal Chancellery — Roam like at Home, not yet for the Western Balkans — bundeskanzleramt.gv.at
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