Bank and payments in Romania: the leu, the basic account you are entitled to, and why your Dutch account keeps working

Do you need a Romanian bank account in Romania? For most people yes, and the reason is the currency: Romania counts in lei (RON), not in euros. EURES gives all wages, rents and benefits in lei, with the euro only for comparison, and reports that rent is often paid in cash. The find at Your Europe: as a legal resident of an EU country you are entitled to a basic payment account, and a bank may only refuse it for money-laundering rules or because you already have one. The pitfall is the order: the bank wants your personal number, and that only comes with your certificate from the IGI.

Which account do you use for what?

What	Account	Rule
Receiving AOW and Dutch pension	your Dutch or another SEPA account	the SVB pays in euros, around the 24th, at most 0.48 euro in costs
Euro transfer between EU countries	Dutch account	costs no more than a domestic one
Rent, groceries, municipality, local taxes	account in lei or card withdrawing lei	Romania counts in lei; rent often in cash
Salary from a Romanian job	account in lei	the employer pays in lei
Basic payment account at a Romanian bank	—	a right for anyone legally resident in the country
Reversing an unauthorised direct debit	any EU account	within 8 weeks

Why your Dutch account simply works

The European rule is that a payment in euro within the EU may not cost more than a domestic payment: for transfers, withdrawals, card payments and direct debits. And anyone who accepts domestic direct debits or transfers may not refuse your account because it is in another EU country; that is called IBAN discrimination, and you can complain about it to the competent authority of the counterparty's country. Your Dutch account therefore remains usable for everything in euros, and the SVB transfers your AOW to any SEPA account in euros, around the 24th of the month, with at most 0.48 euro in bank costs.

What goes in lei is another story. A card payment in lei with a Dutch card costs you your bank's exchange rate, and a Romanian landlord or municipality wants lei. For that you open a Romanian account, or choose a bank that offers an account in lei to EU residents.

The basic account: your right, and the two grounds for refusal

A Romanian bank may not simply refuse you. Your Europe is clear: anyone legally resident in an EU country is entitled to a basic payment account, and the bank may not reject the application because you don't live in the bank's country. Refusal is only allowed if you don't comply with the rules on money laundering and terrorist financing, and in some countries if you already have a similar account with another bank in that country. So don't open an account at two banks at once to compare.

A basic account covers, according to Your Europe, the ordinary transactions: deposits, withdrawals, receiving and making payments, direct debits and card payments, with a payment card and, where available, online banking. An overdraft or credit needn't be included. The bank may charge an annual fee, but it must remain reasonable. What Romanian banks exactly charge we could not check at an official source; ask for the fee overview before you sign.

What does the bank want from you?

Your identity document and your personal number. EURES writes that the number on your residence document matters in your relationship with the banks when opening an account, and article 41 of the ordinance on free movement provides that that number is on your registration certificate. In practice the bank also asks for an address, and for that you use your registered tenancy agreement. So the account comes after the IGI; anyone who needs lei in the first weeks withdraws them with the Dutch card or exchanges them.

Proof of means for the IGI needn't come from a Romanian bank; your pension decision and Dutch statements suffice, see registration and numbers in Romania.

What do you keep in the Netherlands?

Your Dutch account. That is where your AOW and pension arrive, where you pay what goes in euros, and what your DigiD bank login hangs on; how you keep it is covered separately. When the bank's turn comes in the rest of your move is in the step-by-step plan for Romania.

In Vertrekklaar this is phase 4 of 5 of the journey, step 4.3: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Romania or go straight to step 4.3 in the open plan.