What are the benefits?
You have been admitted to the British university of your dreams and you have finally landed in the UK. What next? One of the first things you should do in order to best organize your new life is to open a UK bank account.
You might think that this is an additional burden to take care of when you are already very busy moving to your new residence, dealing with university registration procedures and many other things.
However, the convenience of having a UK account is real. In fact, if you continue using your credit card from your country (e.g., your Italian one), you will have to pay a commission on each payment. In addition, you may want to take advantage of some services that necessarily require a UK account, such as signing a telephone contract or joining a gym.
Find a local bank branch
Therefore, we advise you to find as soon as possible a local bank branch that you can easily reach from your residence and apply for the appropriate bank account. The most popular British banks among students are:
- Natwest
- Barclays
- HSBC
- Lloyds Bank
- Santander
- Royal Bank of Scotland
These banks offer specific services for international students, so be careful to apply for an ‘International Student Account’ rather than a generic ‘International Account’.
What you need to open a UK account
The procedure for opening a student account is usually easier and has fewer requirements. Generally, you will need to show a valid passport, an account statement from your national bank not older than three months, the certificate of enrollment at your university and, potentially, a document certifying your residence in your new domicile in the UK.
Having a UK bank account will allow you to withdraw money in British currency from any branch in the UK and make purchases without commissions; in addition, the accounts for international students allow international transfers in euros (therefore both from your country and to your country’s accounts) without extra cost.
The services supplied by the various banks differ substantially in the additional services offered to their account holders, such as discounts in certain restaurant chains or telephone companies, and in the commission costs on international transfers in currencies other than euros. This detail should not interest you too much if you do not intend to receive or send money to / from countries outside the EU.
At this point, it is up to you to find the bank that best meets your needs, and above all that you can reach more easily if you need in-person assistance at the local bank branch.