Current, Savings or Fixed Deposit account: Based on what you need a bank account for, you can refine your search criteria. Are you looking for a bank account to transfer your salary to and make payments for all your utility bills, rent and so on? In this case, you need to take a current account that comes with a cheque book. Or are you looking to put some money on the side and earn interest while still having the flexibility to access it at any time? In that case, a savings account is what you should be looking for – you also need to consider whether you want a regular savings account or an e-savings account. As for long-term savings with higher returns, fixed deposits will do the trick but you need to be sure you won’t need to access that money for the tenure you set – whether in weeks, months or years.

Citizens and residents can open accounts in banks in the UAE.

Yes. Non-residents can open a savings bank account in the UAE. To open a personal savings bank account in the UAE as a non-resident, you need to provide a copy of your passport with the UAE entry page. Banks may ask for the purpose of needing a bank account and can additionally ask for a reference letter from your bank where you have a personal/corporate account from your country of origin or any other country.

Most banks open accounts for children. Only a Savings account can be opened for Minors. The account will be setup as a Minor account for any person below the age of 18. The parent/guardian needs to visit a branch with all the documents of the parent and child, required for account opening. The Minor need not visit the branch. A debit card can be issued in the name of the guardian. Cheque books are not issued for Minor accounts.

If you transfer your salary to the bank, you aren’t required to maintain a minimum balance. Otherwise, the minimum balance requirement usually ranges from AED 3,000 to AED 10,000, depending on the bank and account type.

Current accounts are accounts used for regular transactions like salary credits, EMI repayments, business transactions, etc. These typically have a zero or very low rate of interest. They come with a cheque book, debit/ATM card and online access. A savings account is typically used for depositing extra money that you don’t need to pay short-term bills. These usually are interest paying and come with a debit or ATM card and have online access.

a) Documents required for individuals: Copy of passport and original passport for validation, NOC from sponsor, Salary Certificate or Appointment Letter or Contract Copy, most recent statement of account where customer’s salary is being transferred.

b) Documents required for business entities : Commercial registration certificate, Certificate of commencement of business (for Joint Stock Companies), Power of Attorney (if applicable), Passport copies of the authorized signatories, Board resolution specifying the titles/designations of officials authorized to open/operate the account and the extent of their authority and the manner to operate the account, Memorandum and Articles of Association, list of names and addresses of shareholders where shareholdings exceed 5%. Additional documents may also be required.

For salary transfers, your employer will require your bank account IBAN number, bank name and branch details.

IBAN is the 23-digit, alpha-numeric acronym for the International Bank Account Number. In 2011, the UAE Central Bank announced the introduction of IBAN as a standard to identify bank accounts (excluding cheques and credit cards) in money transfers – including salaries, remittances and for electronic payments. IBAN is applicable to all account categories and is mandatory for making and receiving payments domestically in the UAE and internationally. An IBAN has three components – (1) The two-letter country code (the first and second characters e.g., AE for the UAE). (2) The two-number check digit (third and fourth characters), which helps verify the number internationally. (3) The three-number code for the bank itself and the customer account number, which together make up the number. The length of the customer account number here is fixed at 16 characters and can only contain numbers.

You can easily update your mobile number and email id, through the bank’s mobile app or any of their ATMs or by visiting any of their branches.

To add or remove a joint account holder, both the parties must visit the bank branch. They need to carry their original passports & original Emirates IDs. For UAE Nationals, Khulasat-Al Qaid is also accepted.

When there is no activity in your account for a long time, the bank deems the account a dormant one. The timeline for such inactivity to be deemed dormant varies from bank to bank, but it varies from 6 months to one year. Typically, you will get a notice from the bank to perform some transaction. In the event that there is none, the bank account could be rendered as dormant, and transactions may be suspended.

When a bank account in the UAE is frozen, all withdrawals from it are suspended. Accounts are frozen in certain cases – In case of the death of an account holder, if you’re involved in a car accident, arrested for causing injuries or charged with financial damages towards your employer.

When you’re changing jobs or leaving the UAE, your bank will mark the last salary payment from your sponsor as the ‘final payment’. If you have any outstanding loans, the bank can freeze the account till it’s confident that you can pay off your debt. Once you provide the bank with evidence of your new job the account can be unfrozen immediately.

Bouncing a cheque is a serious offense in the UAE. As per the Central bank of UAE, banks here have the authority to close down accounts of any customer who bounces four checks within one year. Furthermore, the bank is obligated to update the Central bank with the names of such customers to be added into a blacklist. These customers will then be banned from having any new accounts for a whole year.

In a non-salary transfer account, you’re generally required to maintain a minimum balance in the account. Otherwise, you’re charged with a ‘fall-below’ of a ‘low-balance fee’. If your account has no funds in it, this fee will be applied the minute you deposit any money into the account. Any debit card transaction you make will be declined. Cheques, direct debit mandates and standing orders on your account will not be honored.

Your account would be considered overdrawn when you have insufficient money to fund banking charges, monthly loan repayments, standing orders, direct debits or issued cheques. If you have an overdraft facility set up with your bank, your account can be overdrawn up to the pre-approved overdraft limit, and then repaid when you are able to create sufficient funds once again. Overdraft facilities come at a change. Make sure you check with your bank what interest or profit rate will be charged on the overdrawn amount using the overdraft facility. Some banks may require you to transfer your salary to avail of the overdraft facility. If you don’t have an overdraft facility, make sure you keep your account funded since bouncing a check is a serious offence in the UAE (with possible jail time). Missing out on loan payments or denied direct debits can incur you penalty fees and lower your credit rating.

Your account may be suspended by the bank if it has been inactive for too long, or if there are any suspicious activities. In case your account is suspended due to inactivity, you can visit the branch to activate it.