Receiving and sending money in Denmark
Banking in Denmark is very serious, perhaps more serious than in many other countries. They have strict rules to prevent money laundering and take them very seriously.
This strictness is particularly noticeable when opening a bank account.
While in some countries, apps like Revolut let you open an account in minutes, in Denmark it’s quite different…
You should be prepared that opening a bank account in Denmark can take several days as banks carefully assess your KYC (Know Your Customer) process.
Note that to open a bank account, you will need to have MitID ready.
In this blog post, I will go through some of the banks available in Denmark.
Lunar
Lunar is popular among expats and young people. As an online bank, they are usually faster, have a great app with modern design, and are easier to use than traditional banks where everything is more bureaucratic.
Here is the link:
They will need some information from you, like your MitID and passport, and will ask you questions about your spending plans and international transfers - this process is known as KYC.
I personally opened a bank account with Lunar. After completing the process, they asked me to wait approximately 10 days for KYC validation.
However, I’ve asked several people about their experience, and depending on when you arrive, it might take longer as they sometimes experience higher demand. For instance, in September, when many people are settling in, the wait could be longer.
Note that 10 days is just an approximation - it might take less or more time depending on how well you provide the required information.
Danske Bank
Danske Bank is another popular bank.
I can elaborate on my experience with them, as I wanted to open a bank account as quickly as possible when I arrived.
Most people coming to Denmark don’t receive their first month’s salary due to delays in opening a bank account. The tax administration is very strict and typically requires payments to be made to your NemKonto (your primary Danish bank account). While I’ve heard of some people getting paid to their foreign accounts while setting up their Danish bank account, the majority either manage to open their account quickly upon arrival or receive two months’ salary in their second month.
I initially wanted to use Lunar since it’s a neo-bank focused on user experience, modern design, and performance - and many people recommended it.
However, opening a bank account with Lunar took longer than expected. The standard waiting time was 10 days for KYC verification.
The cons with Danske bank However, is that it’s a traditional bank, I’m calling them dinosaur bank, as they are somehow still blocked in technology like 20 years ago.
Moreover, it appears that the most challenging part of opening the bank account, is when the account is open but you need to access it.
At the time I’m writting those lines, when you just opened the bank account, you need to set up your Service Code in order to use the app on iOS and Android which is much better than the web app.
But the tricky part is that Danske Bank has two different interface (maybe more?) for Banking in the web app. Meaning that one of the two, cannot set up the service code but the other, he can.
So we must be careful to use the one that can.
Here is the link to the wiki to set up the service code:
They will give a Service Code, make sure to save it somewhere. You can also change it for a custom one.
Once the Service Code is setup, you will be able to access your account through the app, with MitID authentification.
You can download the following app:
To signup:
It also appears that in Denmark, there is the account number and the reg number. You may need both of them when getting paid. From what I saw is that the reg number is like the bank code, it consists of 4 digits, when the account number consists of 10 digits.
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3100 - 2921393683
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Danske bank typically start with 3000
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Nordea starts with 2400
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Jyske bank starts with 7858
MobilePay
MobilePay is not a bank but a payment solution for receiving and sending money.
It’s extremely popular in Denmark and has been widely adopted - to the point where some merchants in town only accept MobilePay.
To open a MobilePay account, you’ll need a Danish phone number and a bank account to which MobilePay will be connected.
If you’re planning to stay long-term, I would recommend getting a Danish phone number so you can use MobilePay.