Today I went to make a bank account at Intesa San Paolo. It was my first time, so it was kind of new to me (I was not even sure if with my scarce Italian I would be able to even explain what I want).
I encountered my first strange object right at the entrance of the bank: the entrances here are not what one would call a conventional door. It is a cylinder-shaped double door: which opens up at a push of a button, you step into the cylinder, the outer door rolls in, then the inner door opens (rolls aside) and then you can get in. If anyone has seen the Jetsons, think of it like the strange elevator they used in their homes… 🙂 , it looks exactly the same! One of my colleagues told me that yes, it is nice and safe, but try getting in with a baby in a pushchair. He said for these purposes you can just sound the bell and an employee will let you in on a special, normal door, where you can fit in.
After getting in, things went a bit more smoothly: the employees seemed very friendly and advised me what kind of account to open to suit my need (well, which banker wouldn’t just to get the client 🙂 ). The bank-agent advised to open up a so called “SuperFlash” account, which is actually not an account, it is like a pre-payed card, owned by the bank. You will get a card, but you will not have your name on it, rather a user ID which you receive when signing up for this special account. It is ideal for people who want to use it just for a brief period of time, since it will automatically expire (you don’t have to close it). You also get your card and internet access info instantly, so no worries about that. Another big advantage of it is the fact that it is not actually an account, so you do not have to pay the regular account-taxes to the state for it. Here in Italy, if one has a bank account, he/she has to pay a tax of €8.00 every 3 months to the state just for having it. In case of this new special account of Intesa, you only have to pay the €9.90 yearly fee for “renting” the account. The whole process took about an hour, since these were the first special accounts they ever did (we are the little white labrats 😀 )
Theoretically a non-resident customer needs the following documents for an account:
– ID Card
– Codice Fiscale
– Passport
An important thing for people from countries which are a member of the EU but are not in the Euro zone (not using the Euro): from the banks point of view, you are not an EU citizen so only your ID card will not be enough, bring your passport along, too. They told me, that their software is a bit outdated and cannot handle this kind of situations. The interesting thing is that I have some colleagues, who actually had their account made without their passports… curious isn’t it? Well, it is Italy 😀 !
Question: Does this special SuperFlash Card/Account act like a Real account?
For instance, does it have a regular IBAN code, which enables you to receive on the platform that you are renting from the Bank regular bank money transfers directed to you, as if the money sender from other bank knew you had a normal account? And does it have the other counterpart option, to make a bank money transfer to somenone else?
Thank you for your answer. The real reason in Italy are all submissive to this strange system is the need for a recipient capable of receiving regular money transfers (Bonifici Bancari), not the mere spending capability of a regular issued Debit/Credit Card. And the State runs on it its business, with such high fees for the “Corrente” type of account (Regular Banking operational account).
It’s Italy I know!
Yes, I think it has a regular IBAN code, it is actually printed on the card. I have received a money transfer from back home (Romania) issued on the same day when I made the account. The transfer was I’d say normal, with one single strange thing: first it seemed that the money has appeared only “attached to my account” (at the Credits section, the next day) and for that day I was not able to access it using the card. The second day (actually next Monday: 2nd working day), the money was there, available to use. I just said this, because back home when I received a transfer (or on my bank account in the U.S.) it appeared instantly and I was able to use it.
About doing a transfer from it to another account… I am not sure. For me this will be a temporary account for the time I stay here and I use my other accounts from home to transfer money. The only limitation I have noticed seems to be a 10.000 euro maximum amount of money it can hold…
I hope my information helps, and thanks for reading the article 😉