NBP restrictions cause banks to shun foreigners
Despite recent advertisements from major banks such as Bank Pekao that they want foreigners as clients, expats are still finding it difficult to open a bank account here.
In November, Pekao began offering international credit and debit cards to foreigners through its Eurokonto accounts, in hopes of finally attracting this segment of the market which numbers roughly 14,000 throughout the country. Those who have applied for the corresponding bank accounts, however, have found that actually signing up for the offer is not so easy.
"It was a nightmare," said an employee of an embassy in Warsaw who in July tried to open a Eurokonto account with Pekao. "It took me several trips to the branch and hours spent in line. And at the end of the day, my money was sent back."
The most troublesome and time-consuming task, the employee said, was to get a statement from the tax office confirming that she had paid all relevant taxes in Poland.
Banks such as Millennium, Slaski and Handlowy have rolled out modern retail branches within the last year and expanded the number and quality of services offered to the Polish populous. But some of them are choosing not to offer those services to foreigners because of complicated restrictions imposed by the National Bank of Poland (NBP).
The problem is that the NBP wants banks to make detailed statements on any financial activity made by non-permanent residents, said Agnieszka Zygo, public relations manager with Bank Millennium, the retail arm of BIG Bank. Those guidelines become less cumbersome for foreigners who are full residents of Poland. The result is that the NBP's rules make it unduly difficult for many banks to open accounts for foreigners, and the stack of accompanying paperwork is often daunting, expats said.
David Faulkes, account manager with public relations firm Burson-Marsteller Poland, said that he had little trouble opening a Eurokonto account at Pekao, but was denied the full service promised in the advertisement. "I received an ATM card that can only be used in Poland," Faulkes said. "And I was told I couldn't apply for any international ones."
Despite claims by some banks that they are more than willing to accept foreign customers, the institutions do have to abide by externally imposed limitations, such as the new currency law of Dec. 18, 1998. The law, which came into force this year, requires that foreigners wishing to transfer money out of the country first prove that they have paid all taxes on the transferred amount.
"In the case of a money transfer going abroad, the bank is required to check whether the non-resident paid taxes from this amount," said Piotr Dmowski from Pekao's press office. "Thus, with a credit card issued, we can assume that such a transfer will take place sooner or later."
That's why the bank requires non-residents to prove they have paid their taxes in full from the very beginning, for example, when money is first transferred into their account.
"There is no problem when it's a salary transferred by the employer," Dmowski said. "It's the employer that has to present confirmation to its bank that the tax has been paid." This means that if a foreigner chooses to make a cash deposit, proof that taxes were paid on the amount has to be presented every time a deposit is made.
Pekao's offer to foreigners is part of the bank's overall push to bring cards that can be used internationally to its clients. In May, Pekao's customers began being able to use their ATM cards outside of Poland, and in November the bank started issuing those cards to foreigners. The hassle has some banks refusing to offer temporary residents any kind of accounts. For example, Handlobank, the retail branch of Bank Handlowy, will only take on expats who are full residents of Poland.
"It's not that we have anything against foreigners," said Grzegorz Bobrownicki, public relations officer with Handlobank. "And we hope we will start to open such accounts in the future. But not at the moment." The reason for the bank's decision is that it feels the restrictions on temporary residents make it impossible for the bank to deliver its promise of timely, convenient service, he said. "And with foreigners, we simply can't provide the required level of service," he added.
Zygo of Millennium, also said that managing an account for foreigners is complicated due to the necessary documentation required by the NBP. "In the case of foreign accounts, banks are required to submit information about every single transaction on a particular account," Zygo said.
