Opening a bank account and buying a SIM card in Spanish, in Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina
A new arrival has two errands to run before life is normal: a bank account and a working phone number. Both involve a counter, a queue, a form and a run of questions about documents you may not have yet. Below: the ID words, what to say and what you will be asked at the bank, prepaid against contract phone plans, topping up, and the payment apps everyone uses in each country.
The documents
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The foreigner’s ID number | la CURP and, for tax, el RFC | el NIE | la cédula de extranjería | el DNI and el CUIL |
| The national ID card locals carry | la INE or la credencial | el DNI | la cédula | el DNI |
| Proof of address | el comprobante de domicilio | el certificado de empadronamiento | el certificado de residencia or a utility bill | el comprobante de domicilio |
| Proof of income | el comprobante de ingresos | la nómina | el certificado laboral | el recibo de sueldo |
Mexico. The CURP is the population registry code everyone has, including foreign residents. The RFC is the tax number, and banks ask for it when you open anything beyond a basic account. A comprobante de domicilio, a recent utility bill in any name at your address, is asked for almost every time.
Spain. Nothing happens without the NIE. Non-residents can open una cuenta de no residente with a passport and a certificado de no residencia, and residents open a normal account with the NIE and often the empadronamiento, the town hall registration.
Colombia. With a visa you get the cédula de extranjería, and most banks want it rather than a passport. Ask directly: ¿Puedo abrir la cuenta solo con pasaporte?
Argentina. The DNI for foreign residents and the CUIL, the number that identifies you for tax and social security, are the pair banks ask for. A CDI is the version for people without work income.
At the bank counter
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I’d like to open an account | Quisiera abrir una cuenta. | The opening line everywhere |
| What do I need? | ¿Qué necesito? ¿Qué papeles me piden? | |
| I’m a foreigner | Soy extranjero. / Soy extranjera. | |
| I don’t have residency yet | Todavía no tengo residencia. | |
| Can I open it with a passport? | ¿Puedo abrirla solo con pasaporte? | |
| A savings account | una cuenta de ahorros | The everyday account in Latin America |
| A current account | una cuenta corriente | Spain’s everyday account. In Mexico and Colombia it is a business account |
| Does it have fees? | ¿Tiene comisiones? | Spain and Mexico. Colombia asks about la cuota de manejo |
| Is there a minimum balance? | ¿Hay saldo mínimo? | |
| When does the card arrive? | ¿Cuándo me llega la tarjeta? | |
| Can I do it online? | ¿Se puede abrir por internet? | Often yes, and it skips the queue |
| Do I need an appointment? | ¿Necesito cita previa? (Spain) / ¿Necesito hacer cita? (Mexico) | Spain: yes, usually |
The words on the account
| English | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| debit card | la tarjeta de débito | |
| credit card | la tarjeta de crédito | |
| PIN | el NIP (Mexico), el PIN (Spain), la clave (Colombia, Argentina) | La clave works everywhere |
| balance | el saldo | |
| statement | el estado de cuenta (Mexico), el extracto (Spain, Colombia), el resumen de cuenta (Argentina) | |
| fee, charge | la comisión | Colombia’s monthly card fee is la cuota de manejo |
| transfer | la transferencia | |
| to withdraw cash | retirar | sacar plata is the everyday phrase in Colombia and Argentina |
| a withdrawal | el retiro | |
| to deposit | depositar, ingresar (Spain) | |
| cash machine | el cajero | Long form el cajero automático |
| account number | la CLABE (Mexico), el IBAN (Spain), el número de cuenta (Colombia), el CBU or el alias (Argentina) | |
| online banking | la banca en línea, el home banking (Argentina) |
Account numbers are different objects in each country. In Mexico people pay by CLABE, an eighteen-digit number. In Spain it is the IBAN. In Argentina it is the CBU, and every account also has un alias, a short word chain you can read aloud, which is what people actually send each other. In Colombia you usually need the bank name, the account type and the number.
What they will ask you
| They say | It means |
|---|---|
| ¿Me permite su pasaporte? | May I have your passport? |
| ¿Cuál es su CURP? / ¿Tiene NIE? | Your CURP, please / Do you have an NIE? |
| ¿A qué se dedica? | What do you do for a living? |
| ¿De dónde provienen los fondos? | Where does the money come from? A standard question, not suspicion |
| ¿Tiene comprobante de domicilio? | Do you have proof of address? |
| Firme aquí, por favor. | Sign here, please |
| Ponga su huella. | Put your fingerprint here. Normal in Mexico and Colombia |
| ¿Desea que le llegue la tarjeta a su domicilio? | Shall we post the card to you? |
| Le va a llegar un código al celular. | A code is being sent to your phone |
| Pase a la caja tres. | Go to window three |
Prepaid or contract
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prepaid | prepago, de prepago | prepago | prepago | prepago |
| Contract | pospago, plan | contrato, tarifa | pospago, plan | abono, plan |
| SIM card | un chip | una tarjeta SIM, una SIM | un chip | un chip |
| Top-up | una recarga, tiempo aire | una recarga | una recarga | una carga, una recarga |
| To top up | recargar | recargar | recargar | cargar crédito |
| Data | datos, megas | datos, gigas | datos, megas | datos, gigas |
| Phone, the device | el celular | el móvil | el celular | el celular |
Prepaid is the sensible choice for a visitor everywhere. For a contract, un plan or un contrato, you generally need local ID, a local address and sometimes a bank account, which is the same wall as the bank.
The carriers worth knowing: Telcel, AT&T and Movistar in Mexico; Movistar, Vodafone, Orange and Yoigo in Spain; Claro, Movistar and Tigo in Colombia; Personal, Claro and Movistar in Argentina. Coverage outside the cities is the reason locals pick one over another, so the useful question is ¿cuál agarra mejor en…?, which one works best in wherever you are going.
Buying the SIM
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I’d like a SIM card | Quiero un chip, por favor. (Mexico, Colombia, Argentina) / Quería una tarjeta SIM. (Spain) | |
| Prepaid, please | De prepago. | |
| What plans do you have? | ¿Qué planes tienen? | |
| How much data does it include? | ¿Cuántos datos incluye? | |
| How long does it last? | ¿Cuánto dura? | Most prepaid bundles run thirty days |
| Does it include calls? | ¿Incluye llamadas? | |
| Can I keep my number? | ¿Puedo hacer portabilidad? | Same word in all four |
| Do you have an eSIM? | ¿Tienen eSIM? | |
| Can you activate it for me? | ¿Me lo puede activar? | Say yes to this. Activation is fiddly |
| My phone is unlocked | Mi teléfono está liberado. | Liberado everywhere, also desbloqueado in Mexico and Colombia |
| It’s not working | No me está funcionando. | |
| I’ve run out of data | Se me acabaron los datos. |
Bring the passport. In Spain, Colombia and Argentina a prepaid line is registered against your document number, and the shop will type it in. Buy in a carrier shop rather than a street stall if you want the paperwork done properly the first time.
Topping up
You can top up at the corner shop in all four countries. In Mexico, say the amount and the carrier at the till of any OXXO or small shop: Una recarga de Telcel de doscientos, por favor. The word for the credit itself is tiempo aire. In Colombia, una recarga de diez mil at any shop or drugstore. In Argentina, cargarle crédito al celular at a kiosco, and in Spain una recarga de diez euros at an estanco, a supermarket or the phone shop.
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| A top-up of two hundred, please | Una recarga de doscientos, por favor. | Say the number, then the carrier |
| It’s for Movistar | Es de Movistar. | |
| How much credit do I have? | ¿Cuánto saldo tengo? | |
| I have no credit | Me quedé sin saldo. | |
| Can I top up in the app? | ¿Puedo recargar por la app? |
Paying with the phone
Each country has its own everyday payment app, and knowing the word is the difference between paying a friend back and going to a cash machine.
Bizum, Spain. Phone-to-phone payments built into the banks. ¿Te lo hago por Bizum? is how a Spaniard offers to pay you back. You send it to a phone number, and it arrives at once.
Mercado Pago, Argentina. A wallet app with a QR code accepted in shops, taxis and kiosks. ¿Aceptan Mercado Pago? or ¿tenés QR? at a counter. Transfers between bank accounts go by CBU or alias.
Nequi and Daviplata, Colombia. Two phone wallets tied to Bancolombia and Davivienda, used constantly, including by shops with no card machine. ¿Tiene Nequi? is a normal question at a market stall. PSE is the online option for paying bills from a bank account.
CoDi and SPEI, Mexico. SPEI is the bank transfer system, and a transfer is what you make with a CLABE. CoDi is the QR payment scheme built on it. Cash is still king in small shops, and OXXO takes payments for all kinds of bills.
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Do you take cards? | ¿Aceptan tarjeta? | |
| Do you take Nequi? | ¿Tiene Nequi? | Colombia |
| Shall I send it by Bizum? | ¿Te lo paso por Bizum? | Spain |
| Can I pay with a QR code? | ¿Puedo pagar con QR? | Argentina, Colombia |
| I’ll transfer it to you | Te hago una transferencia. | |
| Send me your details | Pasame tu alias. (Argentina) / Mándame tu CLABE. (Mexico) | |
| Cash only | Solo efectivo. | What you will be told |
When something goes wrong
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The cash machine took my card | El cajero se tragó mi tarjeta. | |
| My card was declined | Me rechazaron la tarjeta. | |
| I lost my card | Perdí la tarjeta. Quiero bloquearla. | |
| They charged me twice | Me cobraron dos veces. | |
| There’s a charge I don’t recognise | Hay un cargo que no reconozco. | |
| The transfer hasn’t arrived | No me llegó la transferencia. |
Ten sentences you can say tomorrow
- Quisiera abrir una cuenta. ¿Qué papeles me piden? I’d like to open an account. What documents do you need?
- Soy extranjero, todavía no tengo residencia. I’m a foreigner and I don’t have residency yet.
- ¿Puedo abrirla solo con pasaporte? Can I open it with just a passport?
- ¿Tiene cuota de manejo? Is there a monthly card fee? (Colombia)
- ¿Necesito cita previa? Do I need an appointment? (Spain)
- Quiero un chip de prepago, por favor. I’d like a prepaid SIM, please. (Mexico, Colombia, Argentina)
- ¿Cuántos datos incluye y cuánto dura? How much data does it include and how long does it last?
- Una recarga de doscientos de Telcel, por favor. A two hundred peso Telcel top-up, please. (Mexico)
- ¿Aceptan tarjeta o solo efectivo? Do you take cards or is it cash only?
- Pasame tu alias y te hago la transferencia. Send me your alias and I’ll transfer it. (Argentina)
Questions people ask
Can I open a bank account without residency? In Spain, yes, as a cuenta de no residente with a passport and a certificado de no residencia. In Mexico, some banks open a basic account with a passport and a comprobante de domicilio, others insist on residency. In Colombia and Argentina you will usually need the cédula de extranjería or the DNI first.
What is a CURP, and is it the same as an RFC? No. The CURP is the population registry code that every resident of Mexico has. The RFC is the tax number. Banks often ask for both.
What is a CUIL? The Argentine number that identifies you for work and tax, made from your DNI. Banks, employers and payment apps all ask for it.
Cuenta corriente or cuenta de ahorros? In Spain, cuenta corriente is the ordinary current account. In Mexico and Colombia, the ordinary personal account is la cuenta de ahorros, and cuenta corriente means a business account with a chequebook.
Is it “chip” or “tarjeta SIM”? Chip in Mexico, Colombia and Argentina. Tarjeta SIM in Spain, and everyone understands SIM. If you ask for un chip in a Madrid phone shop, you will still get one.
What is Bizum? The Spanish phone-to-phone payment system inside the banking apps. You send money to a mobile number and it arrives immediately. Most people with a Spanish bank account use it, for splitting bills and paying small traders.
What is Nequi? A Colombian phone wallet, used for everything from paying a friend to buying at a market stall. Daviplata is the equivalent from the other big bank.
How do I say “top up my phone”? Recargar el celular in Mexico, Colombia and Argentina, recargar el móvil in Spain. Mexicans also call the credit itself tiempo aire, and Argentines say cargar crédito.
Practise these words
cuenta, abrir, tarjeta, clave, saldo, comisión, retirar, cajero, transferencia, recargar, datos, señal, efectivo. Vozelu is a free website for practising Spanish, and it has each of these. You see a sentence with one word missing, you type the word, and a native voice reads the sentence back. Practise the words on this page.