Opening a bank account at an early age can help you kickstart your children’s financial education, giving them good experience (and habits) in terms of organising and saving their money.
Some banks even offer specialist accounts created for children, often without fees or extra charges.
But how does it work in Spain? How do you open a bank account for a minor — and which are the best on offer?
READ ALSO: The changes to bank transfers in Spain in 2025
Kid’s bank accounts in Spain
Firstly, some important legal context about bank accounts in Spain before looking at the best available.
According to advice from the Banco de España: “Minors are not legally authorised to enter into contracts unless they are over 16 and are ’emancipated’. Therefore, a legal representative (usually a parent) will have to be present when the account is opened.
“Although the minor has ownership of the deposited funds, the representatives can make deposits, withdrawals and other operations in the account.”
So, that means, legally speaking, despite the child being the legal owner of the account opened in their name, the legal guardian is often the one running it in their name and the account holder (ie. the minor, in this case) can only make deposits.
“Once they reach adult age, the minor will be able to operate the account on their own as normal. Of course, the legal representative could also register as account holder, meaning they would have co-ownership over the funds, with all the attendant legal and fiscal implications,” Banco de España adds.
Some banks allow parents or guardians to be a joint holder of the account, and therefore co-owner of the funds.
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How to open a bank account for a minor in Spain
Advice from Banco Santander suggests you’d need the following documents to open a bank account for a child in Spain.
Note this may vary slightly depending on the bank but these are the main documents you’ll likely need to prove who you and your child are:
- DNI, NIE or NIF of the minor, to prove their identity.
- DNI, NIE or NIF of the parent or legal representative or guardian.
- A document proving the relationship, for example, the Family Book or birth certificate.
“In most banks, these accounts for children can be opened from birth and the process can be done online or in person, depending on the institution,” Santander notes.
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Best bank accounts for minors in Spain
Revolut
Revolut has an account aimed at under-18s with the option for parents to set up an allowance so that it is automatically paid to their children. This way, your child will receive a set amount at regular intervals.
Another benefit is that it allows for the option of rounding up on purchases or charges, which means always paying a whole number and saving the remaining cents.
Revolut also provides the child with a card to use when shopping.
CaixaBank – Imagin
One of the accounts offered by Imagin, the youth bank belonging to Caixabank, is available to customers aged between 12-17 and also provides a card free of charge.
Like Revolut, it allows you to set up an allowance, but in this case it will be necessary for parents to have a Caixa account.
It also has a Bizum service, which allows users to send money free of charge.
READ ALSO: Bizum – Why you probably need this free payment app for life in Spain
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BBVA
The BBVA kid’s account can be opened from the moment the child is born and, when the child turns 12, they can have a card and access to Bizum if the parents agree.
In this case, as with Imagin, parents need to have a BBVA bank account. Another big advantage of the BBVA account is that from the age of 12 it offers discounts on travel.
Santander
Santander Mini Infanti account also has a children’s account aimed between the ages of 0 and 17. Unlike the banks mentioned above, Santander provides a prepaid card, i.e. a card that is not directly linked to a bank account but requires money to be loaded onto it in order to use it.
Obviously, this is handy for security reasons (thieves won’t be able to take more money than was previously loaded onto the card) but it’s also good for setting limits and instilling financial discipline in the child.
Openbank
Openbank, the digital bank owned by Santander, also offers an account for kids. As with Santander, the minor will have a prepaid card and, when they turn 18, the right to request a debit card for use.
This is one of the easier accounts to set us as parents can open online without having to go to a branch.
READ ALSO: Can you use €100, €200 or €500 banknotes in Spain?
