Consultant

by John
(London, UK)

I did a short-term contract in Copenhagen of less than 6 months. I'm an EU citizen and I registered and got a CPR number. I didn't find that getting a bank account was that difficult. Some banks obviously didn't want me as a customer because I was a foreigner and was not here for the long-term. Eventually I settled on COOP Bank. Online banking is free as is bill payment. Everything generally went fine for the duration of my contract.

However once my contract was over, then things got a bit weird. I left Denmark and de-registered my CPR. With most banks you're able to keep your bank account open for a year after you leave Denmark to pay taxes and settle debts. However not at COOP Bank. They will immediately close your account, even before you're able to transfer your funds if they learn that you've left the country. I received weird messages from COOP customer service about how I was using my account for business purposes because I had transferred money out of the country (well yes).

All-in-all the whole experience was a bit like dealing with a jilted girlfriend.