Documents to open a Neon Bank account?

Finance, Taxes, Banking, Insurance and Retirement
1
Hello there, I have been living in Switzerland for 1 month and finally got to get married with my girlfriend.

We went to the Gemeinde to deliver the marriage certificate and I got an "Anmeldebestätigung".

My question is do you think this document would be valid to open a Neon Bank account instead of waiting till I have the B Permitt? This cause I am no in hopes that I get the permit any time soon due to normal bureocracy process times and I am really in need of having a local bank.

Thanks a lot!

2
Usually I think banks need a full b permit before opening accounts. Easiest way to check is to call or message neon and ask - they have good customer service in English (from my experience).

3
If on your document says which permit you'll be given, then it might work.

Share if you find out

4
I don't know about Neon, but with Postfinance it is possible to open as non-resident also, there is a fee of some sort in such case, but you can convert to 'resident' account as soon as you get your permit and that particular fee is then waived

5
Thanks, I'll try to contact them!

6
Sure, I'll keep you informed to see if it is useful for others!

7
If Neon does not work I guess I'll try this one!

8
I know this thread hasn't had any activity for a few years, but as my query is so similar, I thought I would add it here to keep all info together.

I will be moving to Switzerland soon, and want to set up a Neon bank account. I'm expecting to get my approvals for the B permit by the end of the month, which I understand is already enough to register with and start working. Does anyone have any experience as to if the approval paperwork is likely to be enough to set up an account with an online bank like Neon though? I believe it takes a few weeks extra afterwards to get the actual card with the biometric data on, which I don't want to wait for if I can avoid it.

If nobody knows, I'll get in touch with Neon directly and feedback here as to what I find out.

9
You would need to look for a bank which accepts non-residents, but beware that they might charge hefty fees for that.

It seems Neon is online only... but may traditional banks also have app only versions, example: Postfinance Yuth, Cler Zak, UBS key4, etc. These might be easier to open if you don't have the permit yet.

10
Thanks for the info!

I think I would already count as a resident though. So the time at which I would want to apply would be after the B permit has been approved, and we've moved into our apartment and registered, but before we've received the proper physical residence permit card with the biometric data on.

If I've understood correctly there'll be an interim period where we have a B permit approved on paper, and have the approval letters, but are still waiting for the physical ID card to be made and sent to us. Please correct me if I'm wrong here though, it's my first time going through the process so could easily have made a mistake.

11
Normally, for a walk-in bank in Switzerland, the registration document is enough. You’d have to ask Neon if they accept it too.

12

It's nearly always possible to manage with any valid ID and the permit number which I think you'll get in the letter before you get the physical card. However if those online only bank activation procedures will require a photo of the permit, you'll get stack with the robot

13
This was the response I got from Neon customer service:

Looks like I would only be able to open an account with them once getting the proper permit card. I'll look into an alternative one with an in-person branch to use in the meantime.

14
I remember I had a document telling I already had applied for a permit (Anmeldebestätigung in DE) and I could open an account within 15 min at the bank office. The bank opened the account, only issue is they asked me to bring a valid permit 6 months later and then 1 after after. Since then, no more questions about my residence status.

Fun thing is that I had return to the bank to cash my very first salary because the debit card took more than 1 week to arrive by post. Bank employees were a bit rude when I asked about how to get cash at the teller. After they understood I had no debit card yet, their mood switched to friendly and helpful.

15
Indeed , I begun my journey in Switzerland in VD and I did a lot of faux-pas.

Most businesses don't have offices to attend the customers, nor enough staff to attend you if you just "invade" their branch as found by google maps. You should call them first or fill in some online form. In most cases they'll just send someone to your home or your workplace or send you the documents to sign by a traditional post letter (to be also returned by snail mail).

Maybe it's different in Zurich city but I guess it holds in general for the rest of Switzerland.

16
If you are a US citizen forget it, neon sadly doesn't accept them because of insane reporting compliance by the IRS

17
So a quick update. I was able to open a Yuh account, as they let residents of a number of EU countries apply. Luckily Germany, where I currently live, was on the list, so that is all set up now and seems to be working. I'm going to stick with this at least at first, and then decide later once I'm all set up with the proper residence permit card if I want to change over or not.

18
Hi, Yuh is practically 50% Swissquote and 50% PostFinance in terms of ownership from what I know therefore it should be fine. It's a project directed at the younger generation.

In 2019 I managed to open an account in BCV (Banque Cantonale Vaudoise) literally in the first days upon my arrival based alone on the fact that I registered my address while applying for the permit.

19
I just opened a yuh account. You need to scan your permit as part of the opening process, and then make a deposit from an account where you are the beneficiary. From start to receiving the debit card to about a week for me. I have not tried all the services yet, but the Yuh experience feels.very similar to Revolut to me.