How it goes
Get an IBAN early, even a digital one
You need an Italian or European for rent, for university payments and for a scholarship to reach you. Digital banks generally open faster and with fewer documents than traditional branches, and a plus an address is usually enough. A traditional bank becomes worth having later, when you need counter services or a certified statement.
Understand what your scholarship needs
Regional scholarship payments are made to an account in the student's own name. An account belonging to a friend or a relative will not do, and sorting this out after an award is announced is a slow way to delay your own money.
Compare transfer routes before the first big transfer
The difference between a bank wire and a specialist transfer service on a semester's rent is not small. Compare the total landed cost. The fee plus the exchange rate margin, which is where most of the cost hides, rather than the advertised fee.
Keep some cash for the first fortnight
Several of the counters you will visit in your first weeks are cash-only or awkward with foreign cards, and the residence permit fees are among them.
Total to budget:≈ €116.46
What actually goes wrong
Collected from students who hit these. This section is the reason to read the page twice.
Judging a transfer by its fee
A zero-fee transfer with a poor exchange rate is usually more expensive than a small fee at the interbank rate. Always compare the amount that actually arrives.
Leaving the account until you need it
Verification, card delivery and activation take days to weeks. Start the account in your first week, not in the week the rent is due.
Where this comes from
This page describes practical experience rather than an official procedure, so it cites no official source. Treat everything on it as student-reported.
Reviewed every 180 days. Something changed? Tell us.