Can the bank seize my account?
14/10/2025
Generally, banks can only debit or take funds from your account if you have expressly authorised them to do so. Only exceptionally can a bank act by legal mandate or court order.
Seizing a bank account is a procedure commonly used by government agencies to collect debts (such as social security payments, taxes and fines) from individuals and legal entities. It can also be done through an attachment order.
In these cases, banks are merely intermediaries for the attaching party and their role is limited to executing the order. But to observe good banking practice, the following criteria should be met:
- Your bank must inform you. As well as the notification you receive from the government agency or court, your bank must inform you immediately so that you can exercise your right to oppose the order before the deadline.
- The bank cannot overdraw your account. The attachment applies to your account balance on the date the order is received. The bank can’t leave you in the red if doesn’t cover the whole debt. Despite the attachment, the account should continue to operate normally and you should be able to use the unattached balance in your normal transactions.
- Sometimes, there are limits on the amount that may be attached. For instance, in the case of your salary, wages or pension, generally (there are exceptions, such as alimony claims) only the amount exceeding the national minimum wage may be attached.
Lastly, if you have a joint account and you are not in debt, remember two things:
- You can file a claim against the attachment of your bank balance with the attaching party (government agency or judicial body), providing evidence that you are the sole holder of that amount.
- Since 2024, in the case of attached joint accounts that are used to pay other shared financial products (such as loans), the Banco de España considers it good banking practice for banks to offer joint account holders whose account balances have not been attached another way of making payments, to ensure that the money is actually used to settle debts and is not affected by the attachment.
