🎙️ Episode title: Opening a Bank Account: A Right for Applicants of International and Complementary Protection

 🎙️ Episode title:

Opening a Bank Account: A Right for Applicants of International and Complementary Protection

🎧 Podcast script (English version):

Welcome to a new episode of Diritto dell’Immigrazione — Immigration Law.
Today, we’ll talk about a practical issue that still creates confusion and unnecessary obstacles: the right of applicants for international and complementary protection to open a bank or postal account in Italy.

Opening a bank account is not a privilege.
It’s a fundamental right, recognized under both Italian and European law, and it represents one of the most important tools of social and financial inclusion.

Since 2018, Italy’s Ministerial Decree no. 70 of the Ministry of Economy and Finance has introduced what is known as the basic bank account — accessible to anyone who is legally residing in Italy, including those waiting for a decision on their protection application.
This account guarantees essential services such as deposits, withdrawals, salary payments, and electronic transactions.

This right has also been formally confirmed by Poste Italiane, which, since June 2019, has recognized that applicants for protection can open a Bancoposta basic account by presenting their temporary residence permit or the receipt of renewal issued by the Questura.
It was an important step forward, partly thanks to legal efforts and formal complaints brought by professionals in immigration law, including my firm.

In several official communications — including protocols PB-250109170, PB-250521121, PB-250201058, and PB-250606324, all from 2025 — Poste Italiane clearly stated that the temporary residence permit for protection, whether international or complementary, is a valid identification document for opening a basic account.
Moreover, if the tax code is printed on the document, it can also serve as a valid fiscal identification.

Denying this right means violating a recognized individual right, and in some cases, it may even amount to discriminatory behavior.
Anyone facing such a refusal can file a formal complaint with Poste Italiane or the relevant bank, appeal to the Banking and Financial Ombudsman (ABF), or report the violation to the Bank of Italy, which supervises the banking system.

Opening a bank account is much more than a financial operation — it’s the foundation for working legally, receiving wages, paying rent, accessing healthcare, and participating in civil life.
It is, in every sense, a form of economic citizenship.

The right to open a bank account, for those applying for international or complementary protection, is a concrete expression of personal dignity and a key instrument of true integration.
Making this right effective means building a society that doesn’t exclude but includes —
a society where legality and integration start from something as simple, yet essential, as a bank account.

I’m Lawyer Fabio Loscerbo, and this is Diritto dell’Immigrazione — the podcast that explores laws, rights, and real-life cases in immigration law in Italy.

See you in the next episode.