Key takeaways

  • Nine banking groups are designated by HM Treasury to offer a basic bank account to eligible applicants.
  • A designated bank must refuse where opening the account would be unlawful, and the regulations list the Fraud Act 2006 and the money laundering regulations as examples.
  • The regulations do not name Cifas markers. Whether a marker affects an application is a decision for the bank.
  • If a basic account is refused, the bank must give its reason in writing if it may lawfully do so, and must point you to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

What is a basic bank account?

The right to a basic account comes from the Payment Accounts Regulations 2015. They describe a “payment account with basic features”: a sterling account that lets you open, operate and close it, pay in and withdraw cash, and make direct debits, card payments and credit transfers including standing orders.

It cannot have an overdraft. A bank must not charge a fee for the listed services when they are provided in sterling. If you are unsure what a marker is, start with what is a CIFAS marker.

Which banks must offer a basic account?

Only banks that HM Treasury has designated. Under regulation 21, the Treasury designates enough UK credit institutions to guarantee access for all eligible consumers and to prevent distortions of competition.

HM Treasury’s publication Basic bank accounts: July 2023 to June 2024 (published 5 November 2025) names nine designated institutions:

  • Barclays UK
  • The Co-operative Bank
  • HSBC UK
  • Lloyds Banking Group (including the Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands)
  • Nationwide Building Society
  • NatWest Group (including the RBS and Ulster Bank brands)
  • Santander UK
  • TSB
  • Virgin Money UK

This is a list of banks with a legal duty to offer basic accounts. It is not a list of banks that accept CIFAS markers, and it does not say how any of them treat markers. The Treasury can change designations, so check the latest Treasury publication.

Who is eligible?

Under regulation 23, you must be legally resident in the UK. You must also either not hold a UK payment account with at least the basic features, or be ineligible for all the bank’s other accounts. Legal residents include people with no fixed address and asylum seekers.

When can a bank refuse a basic account?

Regulation 25(1) says a designated bank “must refuse to open a payment account with basic features for a consumer where it would be unlawful for it to do so, including where opening the account”:

  • “would be contrary to the Fraud Act 2006”
  • “would be contrary to the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017”
  • “would be contrary to section 40 of the Immigration Act 2014”
  • “would breach a requirement or limitation imposed by the Authority” that prevents it accepting new customers

Regulation 25(2) also says a bank may refuse where it considers your conduct towards its staff amounts to certain offences, such as under the Public Order Act 1986 or the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.

Regulation 25 does not mention Cifas markers. Whether a marker is relevant to these grounds in a given case is for the bank to decide, and this guide cannot say how it would apply to you.

How quickly must a bank decide, and what must it tell you?

Regulation 24 says the bank must open or refuse to open the account “without undue delay, and no later than 10 business days from receipt of the completed application”.

If it refuses, regulation 25 says it must without delay tell you in writing and free of charge the reason, if it may lawfully do so. Any reason given must be sufficiently detailed and specific for you to understand why, unless providing that would be unlawful. It must also advise you how to complain to it and of your right to complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service. The wording of paragraphs (4) and (5) was substituted on 28 April 2026.

Why there is no list of banks that accept CIFAS markers

Lists of “banks that accept CIFAS markers” circulate online, but they do not come from the regulations, Treasury or Cifas, and we have found no official source that publishes one. The regulations give each bank’s decision a legal basis in the facts of the application, not in a fixed list. We therefore do not publish such a list, and you should treat anyone selling one, or promising an account for a fee, with caution.

What to do next

Finding out what has been recorded is free: see how to check if you have a CIFAS marker. If a basic account application has been refused and you want to understand your options, you can find a solicitor for advice on your own situation.