Any recent information on opening bank accounts without DNI?

[jbeas176]

i am going to try banco galicia at las heras y ugarteche when i get there in october i hope they are agreeable. i miss not having a bank account. i own property and have a cdi.

 

[barbablanca]

It is possible to open, but you need to get a CDI first

I've heard CDI is one way of doing it but not if you're applying for residence as it conflicts with CUIL.
What worked for me is getting CUIL in local ANSES and opening an account in Santander with CUIL, precaria and passport.

 

[Hellek]

I'm a non-resident seeking to buy real estate. Santander refused, stating at least precaria would be needed (in line with what barbablanca wrote above) and they can't open a bank account for a non-resident.
Galicia accepted me, based on DNI and Passport. They also asked a few of the typical KYC questions (income and wealth situation and if I will be able to provide documentation on that, haven't been asked to provide any specific documents yet though).
Now awaiting the account details, then the interesting part will be if I can really just wire and withdraw USD that easy. I would be positively surprised if it works.

 

[MarshallE]

I'm a non-resident seeking to buy real estate. Santander refused, stating at least precaria would be needed (in line with what barbablanca wrote above) and they can't open a bank account for a non-resident.
Galicia accepted me, based on DNI and Passport. They also asked a few of the typical KYC questions (income and wealth situation and if I will be able to provide documentation on that, haven't been asked to provide any specific documents yet though).
Now awaiting the account details, then the interesting part will be if I can really just wire and withdraw USD that easy. I would be positively surprised if it works.

I have Santander and Galicia both. You just have to keep trying various branches until you find one that will do it. I will note that Galicias online banking straight up doesn't work if you don't have a DNI. While Santander has around 90% functionality including transferencias

 

[FLEggs]

With these accounts at Banco Galicia is is possble to transfer money electronically? A guy in another thread said no. Thats one of my main reasons is to transfer $ to friends and get paid for some freelance work. Also, i use apple pay for vendors all the time but not for indivuals...really want to get rid of paper cash exchanges here. Paypal is really the only optoin but locals get charged fees...

 

[FrankPintor]

With these accounts at Banco Galicia is is possble to transfer money electronically? A guy in another thread said no. Thats one of my main reasons is to transfer $ to friends and get paid for some freelance work. Also, i use apple pay for vendors all the time but not for indivuals...really want to get rid of paper cash exchanges here. Paypal is really the only optoin but locals get charged fees...

No, of course not. Us locals move our cash in wheelbarrows.

What, on Earth, is your problem?

 

[Hellek]

Just FYI, the CDI is being replaced with a CUIT, also for non-resident foreigners, as per boletin official from 22.12.2025. If I understand it correctly, any existing CDI remains valid until any modification of details is needed, in which case it will be converted to CUIT. So anyone who thinks they need a CDI based on guides/experience found here, may now need to go for a CUIT instead. If you already have a CDI, there is no need for action, just keep in mind the conversion to CUIT once you need a data update.

No obstante, conservarán su validez:

a) Los formularios Nros. 460/F, 460/J, 581 y 981.

b) Las Claves de Identificación (CDI) otorgadas en el marco de la Resolución General N° 3.995 (DGI), sus modificatorias y complementarias.

De tratarse de personas humanas y sucesiones indivisas, dicha clave solo será válida hasta tanto el sujeto deba modificar alguno de sus datos registrales -de acuerdo con el procedimiento dispuesto en el artículo 9° de la presente-, en cuyo caso, esta Agencia de Recaudación y Control Aduanero procederá a su conversión en una Clave Única de Identificación Tributaria (CUIT).

 

[SlowWalker]

With these accounts at Banco Galicia is is possble to transfer money electronically? A guy in another thread said no. Thats one of my main reasons is to transfer $ to friends and get paid for some freelance work. Also, i use apple pay for vendors all the time but not for indivuals...really want to get rid of paper cash exchanges here. Paypal is really the only optoin but locals get charged fees...

I don't understand.
Are you selling things locally, or overseas?

If its overseas, then once you transfer your money to a local USD account, you can transfer USD to other people just as you would pesos with an Alias or CBU. It is considered MEP Dollars. But you can also go to the bank and withdraw cash. At least I can transfer with my Santander account, so I assume it is the same with others.

 

[SofiaMyr]

Hi, you can try this specific Galicia branch - https://maps.app.goo.gl/Y6vTASehnN6Lk9BL9

I opened mine with just my passport and precaria and everything worked smoothly. You can look out for Carolina who speaks English and helped me open mine.

 

[neurofly]

I also heard the national bank (Banco Nacion?) is obligated to open bank accounts for foreigners without DNI, with just CDI and passport. You can check with them.