The main differences lie primarily in the conditions and the fees charged by banks.

At a time when debate is the obligation of the bank to provide a free bank account for all Portuguese, know the differences between basic accounts and minimum banking services.

the minimum banking services costs limited to 5.3 euros per year.

Banks can not charge commissions, fees or other charges in excess of 1% of the national minimum wage (NMW) in minimum banking services, commonly known as low cost bank accounts. With the rise of the SMN in 2016, these accounts have a maximum annual cost of 5.30 euros. The banks may not require a minimum amount of opening.

In practice, the bank low cost accounts were created to allow all citizens the right to acquire a set of banking services considered essential at a reduced cost, including the opening of a deposit account to order and the availability of appropriate debit card . They include the opening and maintaining an account of demand deposit, provide a debit card for handling the account, and allow access to home banking and branches of the credit institution. Customers with a minimum banking services account can still make deposits, withdrawals, payments for goods and services, direct debits and national interbank transfers, without restrictions on the number of operations that can be performed.

The account minimum banking services can have multiple owners, but the client can only hold a single deposit of the current account in the national banking system. This restriction does not exist in the base account because the bank customer may hold multiple base accounts.

Commissions account freely established basis by banks

The base accounts, arising from a recommendation of the Bank of Portugal include the same set of services in all banks, allowing you to compare the commissions more easily.

The account base provides the turn-down service and maintaining an account of demand deposit, access to a debit card and operate the account through ATMs, the home banking service and branch of the credit institution. Also allows the realization of deposits, withdrawals, payments for goods and services, direct debits and national interbank transfers. In this type of deposits, institutions may limit to three the number of surveys conducted at counters in the same month.

The marketing of these accounts is free enterprise banks. The basic account maintenance fee and the minimum deposit of opening are also freely set by the credit institution.

The basic account may have more than one holder, which can have several base accounts. “They may be holders of the base account the individuals, of legal age, resident and non-resident and not using the account in support of their professional activity,” explains the Bank of Portugal.

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