How to Open a Dutch Bank Account Without a BSN in 2026

Quick answer: You just arrived in the Netherlands and need a bank account before you get your BSN. There are three routes: ABN AMRO, bunq and Wise.

Yes, at some providers. ABN AMRO lets you open an account before your BSN arrives if you are registered at a Dutch address (BSN within 120 days), bunq lets you start without a BSN and asks for it within 90 days, and Wise gives verified customers EUR account details with a non-Dutch euro IBAN (Wise uses a Belgian BIC and address). bunq and Wise are affiliate partners of this site; see our affiliate disclosure.

Why You Don’t Have a BSN Yet

The BSN (Burgerservicenummer) is the personal number the Dutch government uses to identify you. It is allocated when you register in the Personal Records Database (BRP) at your municipality (government.nl). The Belastingdienst, employers, health insurers and many other organisations use it.

So the BSN follows your registration at a Dutch address. You need an address and an appointment at your gemeente first. For non-EU nationals, the residence permit comes into it as well: for a highly skilled migrant permit the IND has a statutory decision period of 90 days (IND, checked 8 October 2026). Many new arrivals therefore spend their first weeks without a BSN, and they need a way to receive their salary and pay rent in the meantime.

Why Most Dutch Banks Ask for a BSN

Banks have to identify their customers before opening an account, and for Dutch residents the BSN is part of that. Some let you start before the number arrives: ABN AMRO lets you open a personal account if you are registered at a Dutch address and provide the BSN within 120 days, and bunq lets you start without a BSN and provide it within 90 days.

You can read more about the differences between the big banks in our comparison at /blog/ing-vs-rabobank-expats-2026/.

There are three routes.

Route 1: Wise, a Euro IBAN Before You Have a BSN

What Wise Actually Is

Wise is not a bank. In the EU it operates as Wise Europe SA, an authorised payment institution supervised by the National Bank of Belgium, and it serves customers across the EU, including the Netherlands, from Belgium.

The euro account details you receive are not Dutch: Wise uses a Belgian BIC and a Wise address in Belgium (Wise help centre). For bank transfers that makes no difference, but it does for iDEAL: Wise is not on iDEAL’s list of issuers (the banks and payment firms whose customers can pay with iDEAL).

Your money in Wise is not covered by the Dutch deposit guarantee scheme, which protects up to €100,000 per person per bank at Dutch licensed banks (DNB). Wise is a payment institution and publishes how it safeguards customer funds on its help pages (Wise Europe SA). The protection structure is different from a bank’s, so read it before you decide how much to keep there.

Step by Step: Opening a Wise Account

1. Download the Wise app (iOS or Android) or go to wise.com in your browser.
2. Create an account with your email address.
3. Verify your identity. Wise’s sign-up steps include confirming your identity with an ID document (wise.com/nl, checked 8 October 2026), and the app guides you through it.
4. Enter your address as the app asks.
5. Receive your account details. Once Wise has verified you, you can get EUR account details with a non-Dutch euro IBAN (Wise uses a Belgian BIC and address). Wise offers account details for 22 currencies, free of charge (wise.com/nl/pricing, checked 8 October 2026).
6. Order your debit card if you want one. Wise lists the card at EUR 7 with no subscription fee; withdrawals up to EUR 250 per month are free and above that 2.69% of the amount over EUR 250 applies (wise.com/nl/pricing, checked 8 October 2026).

Wise’s sign-up page does not list a BSN among the steps. If Wise asks for more information in your case, it will tell you in the app.

What Works With Wise in the Netherlands

• SEPA salary payments: your employer can pay your salary to a euro IBAN from another EU/EEA country. SEPA transfers work the same whichever country the IBAN is from.
• International transfers: Wise uses the mid-market exchange rate and shows its fee upfront; the fee varies by currency and starts from 0.2% (wise.com/nl/pricing, checked 8 October 2026).
• Paying Dutch bills: regular SEPA transfers to pay rent, utilities or subscriptions.
• Debit card: for spending in the same currency online, in shops and abroad, per Wise.

What Does Not Work With Wise in the Netherlands

• iDEAL: Wise is not on iDEAL’s list of issuers, so you cannot pay Dutch webshops with iDEAL from your Wise account. bunq, Revolut Bank UAB and N26 are on that list.
• Direct debits and other payers: if a Dutch company will not accept your non-Dutch IBAN, ask them to check this against the SEPA rules; DNB describes refusing EU/EEA IBANs as IBAN discrimination and takes reports.

Check Wise →

Route 2: bunq, a Dutch NL IBAN Without a BSN at the Start

bunq is a Dutch bank, licensed by De Nederlandsche Bank, and accounts opened in the Netherlands get an NL IBAN.

You can start without a BSN: bunq’s Dutch page says to start banking right away and provide the BSN within 90 days (bunq.com/nl, checked 8 October 2026). You need to live in a country bunq supports.

Step by Step: Opening a bunq Account

1. Download the bunq app (iOS or Android).
2. Sign up with your email address and phone number.
3. Choose your plan. bunq Free costs nothing per month and includes 3 bank accounts (Money Pockets, each with its own IBAN); bunq Core is €3.99 per month and includes 5 bank accounts (bunq.com/nl, checked 8 October 2026).
4. Verify your identity. bunq lists the documents it accepts on its help pages, and the accepted passports and ID cards depend on your nationality. Check the list before you start.
5. Confirm your address.
6. Receive your NL IBAN. Accounts opened in the Netherlands get a Dutch IBAN (NL…).
7. Add your BSN when you have it, within the 90 days, through the app.

What bunq Gives You That Wise Does Not

• A Dutch IBAN: accounts opened in the Netherlands get an NL IBAN, which you can use for salary and Dutch direct debits.
• iDEAL: bunq is on iDEAL’s list of issuers.
• Dutch deposit guarantee: bunq is a bank, so the Dutch scheme applies (up to €100,000 per person per bank, DNB).

On cost, bunq has a free tier: bunq Free is €0.00 per month, bunq Core €3.99, bunq Pro €9.99 and bunq Elite €18.99 per month (bunq.com/nl, checked 8 October 2026). bunq also lists a bunq Pack group plan at €28.99 per month (bunq Help, checked 6 October 2026). With bunq Free you can spend up to €1,000 a year in foreign currency at the standard exchange rate; after that, 1.5% applies to each further transaction (bunq Free plan page, checked 8 October 2026).

Route 3: ABN AMRO Without a BSN

ABN AMRO lets you open a personal account without a BSN if you are registered at a Dutch address, as long as you provide the BSN within 120 days. For ING and Rabobank, check the bank’s own requirements before you apply.

Rabobank says its app is available in English and that it has English-speaking staff (rabobank.nl/en/personal/expats, checked 6 October 2026). We cover the banks in /blog/best-banking-expats-netherlands-2026/.

The Employer IBAN Problem: What to Do

If your employer accepts any SEPA IBAN (under the SEPA Regulation it may not refuse one from another EU/EEA country): you can use Wise first. Email HR and tell them you are temporarily using a non-Dutch euro IBAN while your Dutch account is being set up.

If your employer insists on an NL IBAN: open bunq, which gives accounts opened in the Netherlands an NL IBAN; bunq Free costs €0.00 a month. Your employer should not refuse a euro IBAN from another EU/EEA country, but an NL IBAN avoids the discussion.

If you are unsure: you can open both. Wise has no subscription fee, and bunq has a €0.00 per month plan, so you can start on bunq Free and upgrade later. For the full bunq sign-up walkthrough, see how to open a bunq account as an expat.

What the BSN Application Process Looks Like

The full guide is at /blog/expat-bsn-application-guide-2026/. The basic shape:

1. Find accommodation. You need an address to register at. Check with your municipality which proof of address it accepts.
2. Book your gemeente appointment as early as you can; the municipality’s website usually has an online booking system.
3. Bring your documents. A valid passport or ID, proof of address and, for non-EU nationals, your residence permit. Check the municipality’s list.
4. Register. The municipality registers you in the BRP, and you are allocated a BSN (government.nl).
5. Tell your bank. Add your BSN to your bunq account in the app, or give it to ABN AMRO within the term they set.

For non-EU nationals going through the IND process, your employer or sponsor typically guides you through the residence permit steps. The BSN follows your registration, so the timeline is longer, but the same interim banking options apply.

Once You Have Your BSN: What Changes

Add your BSN to bunq if you have not done so yet: bunq asks for it within 90 days.

Later: you can also open an account at ABN AMRO or ING if you want a traditional Dutch bank alongside bunq.

For international transfers: many expats keep Wise after opening a Dutch account. Compare the fee and exchange rate per transfer before you choose.

Update your employer payroll: if you first gave your employer your Wise IBAN and later open a Dutch account, tell HR if you want your salary paid there instead. There is no obligation to switch: a Dutch employer must accept a euro IBAN from any EU/EEA country (De Nederlandsche Bank).

The full picture of Dutch banking options is in /blog/best-banking-expats-netherlands-2026/.

Timeline: Your First Weeks

Arrival Sign up with Wise and verify your ID; once verified you get EUR account details with a non-Dutch euro IBAN. If you want an NL IBAN, sign up with bunq as well and add your BSN within 90 days.

First week Give your employer your Wise IBAN or your bunq NL IBAN; both are valid for salary under the SEPA Regulation. Book your gemeente appointment for BSN registration as soon as you can. Use bunq for iDEAL payments in Dutch webshops.

After registration You are allocated a BSN. Add it to your bunq account, and consider a traditional Dutch bank account if you want one.

Later Reassess your banking setup. Some expats combine a traditional bank for Dutch-specific needs, bunq for day-to-day use and Wise for international transfers. For the cost side of choosing a city, see /blog/cost-of-living-amsterdam-vs-rotterdam-2026/.

Comparison Table: Wise vs bunq vs Traditional Banks

Our Recommendation

If you have just arrived and need banking immediately:

Start with Wise if you need a euro IBAN before anything else. Once verified, you get EUR account details with a non-Dutch euro IBAN, and your employer has to accept that IBAN for your salary.

Add bunq if you want an NL IBAN and iDEAL; you can start before your BSN arrives.

Once you have your BSN, add it to bunq. Then decide whether you want a traditional Dutch bank account as well.

For the wider picture of your first year, see /blog/first-year-netherlands-expat-pillar-2026/.

Good luck with the move.

— Wilco