Opening a Bank Account
Learn about the major banks in Costa Rica.
| Banco Banex Cuscatlán Banco de San José Banco Nacional |
Scotiabank Interfin BICSA Banco de Costa Rica |
BANCO BANEX
| Personal Accounts | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account: | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Transactional | none* | none* | ||
| Classical | $1,000 | ¢100,000 | ||
| Savings Account: | none* | none* | ||
| *Must maintain a minumum balance to write checks | ||||
| Requirements: | 1. Must have resided at least 6 months in Costa Rica. 2. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 3. Letter of recommendation by a Costa Rican or a letter from the applicant's respective embassy. |
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| Banex Personal Accounts have 2 Checking Accounts: | Transactional - fee pf $1 or ¢250 (respective of the currency of the check) per check written. Classical - up to 25 checks per month free. The penalty for not maintaining the minimum balance in this account is $10 for the USD account or ¢2,000 for the colón account. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: (No Minimum Balance)* |
$1,500 | ¢250,000 | ||
| *To write 50 checks | ||||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 25 checks | $3 (or ¢1,000) | ||
| Limit on checks written per month: | none | |||
| Debit Cards: | free | |||
| Online Banking | ||||
| Issues Credit Cards | ||||
CUSCATLÁN
| Personal Accounts | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| $ Account | ¢ Account | |||
| Checking Account: | $300 | ¢100,000 | ||
| Savings Account: | $100 | ¢5,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). | |||
| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: (No Minimum Balance) |
$500 | ¢150,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 25 checks | ¢8,000 | ||
| Limit on checks written per month: | none | |||
| Per Year | ||||
| Debit Cards: | free | |||
| Savings Account: | ¢1,200 | |||
| No Web-based Online Banking. | Customers may purchase PC software to view their accounts online for $30 | |||
| Issues Credit Cards | ||||
BANCO DE SAN JOSÉ
| Personal Accounts: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Initial Deposit: | $250 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance | $250 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Savings Account | ||||
| Initial Deposit: | $250 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance: | $100 | ¢25,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Reference from another bank. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit & Minimum Balance: | $250 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. 5. Reference from 2 other banks. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 24 checks | |||
| Personal Account: | ¢1,250 | |||
| Corporate Account: | ¢750 | |||
| Limit on checks written per month: | Arranged with bank | |||
| Debit Cards: | free | |||
| Online Banking | ||||
| Issues Credit Cards | ||||
BANCO NACIONAL| Personal Accounts: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Initial Deposit: | $2,000 | ¢300,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance | $2,000 | ¢300,000 | ||
| Savings Account | ||||
| Initial Deposit: | $30 | ¢3,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance: | $30 | ¢3,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Original telephone or utilities bill with the applicant's name. 3. Reference letters from 2 people who have accounts with BN. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: |
$2,000 | ¢250,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. 5. Original telephone or utilities bill with the applicant's name. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 40 checks | $5 | ||
| Limit on checks written per month: | none | |||
| Debit Cards: | $7.50 | ¢2,500 | ||
| Online Banking | ||||
| Credit Cards: | No annual fees | |||
SCOTIABANK
| Personal Accounts: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Initial Deposit: | $500 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance | none | none | ||
| Savings Account | ||||
| Initial Deposit: | $100 | ¢5,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance: | none | none | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Reference from 2 other banks. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: |
$500 | ¢100,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. 5. Reference from 2 other banks. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 25 checks | ¢1,000 | ||
| Limit on checks written per month*: | 8 in conjunction with bank card use | |||
| Bank Cards: | 8 transactions a month: (in conjunction with checks written)* |
¢600 | ||
| Additional 20 transactions a month: | ¢500 | |||
| *To avoid additional charges, bank card transactions and number of checks written per month combined cannot exceed 8. | ||||
INTERFIN
| Personal Accounts: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Initial Deposit: | $1,000 | ¢75,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance | none | none | ||
| Savings Account | ||||
| Initial Deposit: | $100 | ¢10,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance: | none | none | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Reference letters from 2 other banks. 3. Proof of income. 4. Passport-size photograph of applicant. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: |
$2,000 | ¢100,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. 5. Reference from 2 other banks. 6. Company has been in business for at least 1 year. 7. Must be registered in the Public Registry (Registro Público). |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 25 checks | $3 | ||
| Limit on checks written per month: | 25 | |||
| Fee after the limit: | $1 per check | |||
| Debit Cards: | free | |||
| Lost or stolen cards: | ¢1,000 | |||
| Damaged cards: | ¢500 | |||
| Online Banking | ||||
| Issues Credit Cards | ||||
BICSA
| Personal Accounts: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Initial Deposit: | $1,000 | ¢200,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance | $1,000 | ¢250,000 | ||
| Savings Account | ||||
| Initial Deposit: | $1,000 | none | ||
| Minimum Balance: | $5,000 | none | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Reference from another 2 banks. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: |
$1,500 | ¢500,000 | ||
| Minimim Balance: | $1,500 | ¢500,000 | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 25 checks | $5 | ||
| Limit on checks written per month: | none | |||
| No Debit Cards | ||||
| Online Banking | ||||
| Issues Credit Cards | ||||
BANCO DE COSTA RICA
| Personal Accounts: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Checking Account | $ Account | ¢ Account | ||
| Initial Deposit: | $500 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance | none | none | ||
| Savings Account | ||||
| Initial Deposit: | $100 | ¢10,000 | ||
| Minimum Balance: | none | none | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Reference from another bank. |
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| Corporate Account: | Initial Deposit and Minimum Balance | |||
| Initial Deposit: |
$500 | ¢50,000 | ||
| Minimim Balance: | none | none | ||
| Requirements: | 1. Passport or Resident Visa or Costa Rican ID (cédula). 2. Carta de Constitución de la empressa. 3. Personeria Juridica (no más de tres meses de emitida. 4. Cédula Juridica. |
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| Checkbooks: | Book of 25 checks | $3 | ||
| Limit on checks written per month: | none | |||
| Free Debit Cards | ||||
| Online Banking | ||||
| Issues Credit Cards | ||||
