Before you start

Passport with a valid Bangladeshi visa
Work permit or NGO Affairs Bureau approval, which most banks will want to see
A Khulna address and, usually, an introducer or employer letter
A Taxpayer's Identification Number for some products

Step-by-step

1
Ask your employer which branch has opened a foreign national's account before
Bangladeshi banks operate an introducer convention and an employer's letter carries substantial weight. In a smaller city the deeper problem is unfamiliarity rather than reluctance: many Khulna branches simply have not done a foreign-national KYC file recently. Asking for a branch that has, by name, converts several visits into one.
Via employerWho: YouWeek 1
2
Open the taka account with the full document set
Passport, visa, work permit or Bureau approval, employer letter, photographs, proof of address and the introducer's details. Bangladeshi KYC is thorough and a partial file becomes several trips. Ask the branch for its own checklist before the first visit.
In personWho: YouWeek 1–2
3
Consider a foreign currency account for external income
Foreign nationals may open private foreign currency accounts with authorised dealer banks. If any part of your salary or savings arrives from abroad, this is where it belongs, and it keeps the repatriation question simple later.
In personWho: You
4
Check the NFCD minimum for your category before assuming eligibility
Non-Resident Foreign Currency Deposit accounts allow free repatriation of balance and accrued interest, but the minimum deposit differs sharply by applicant: substantially lower for individual non-resident Bangladeshis than for foreign nationals and foreign-registered firms, where the published figure is USD 25,000 or equivalent. Confirm the current threshold at the branch.
In personWho: You
5
Get a bKash or Nagad account for daily life
Mobile financial services are deeper here than in most middle-income countries and matter more in a smaller city, where card acceptance is thinner. Easy-bike fares, utility bills, household staff and small merchants all run through them. Registration is tied to a SIM and an identity document, so the SIM comes first.
Mobile appWho: You
6
Keep the paperwork on every inward remittance
In an exchange-controlled economy the documentation of money entering is the basis for money leaving. Ask for the inward remittance advice on every substantial transfer and file it — it cannot be reconstructed later, and a smaller branch is less likely to produce one unprompted.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport with valid visa
Work permit or NGO Affairs Bureau approval
Employer letter and introducer details
Proof of Khulna address and photographs
Inward remittance advices, retained throughout

Things most newcomers don’t know

In a smaller city the obstacle is unfamiliarity, not policy — so ask for a branch by name.

The rules are national and identical to Dhaka's, but the practice is not. A Gulshan branch opens foreign-national accounts weekly; a Khulna branch may not have done one this year, and an unfamiliar file gets escalated, re-checked and slowed. The fix is cheap and nobody suggests it: ask your employer or another foreign resident which specific branch has done this recently, and go there rather than to whichever bank is closest.

Source: community-reported

The NFCD minimum deposit for a foreign national is an order of magnitude above the non-resident Bangladeshi one.

NFCD accounts allow free repatriation of balance and accrued interest, which makes them attractive. But the published minimums differ by category: around USD 1,000 or GBP 500 for an individual non-resident Bangladeshi, against USD 25,000 or equivalent for foreign nationals, foreign-registered firms and institutional investors. People read the lower figure in a general guide and plan around it.

Source: Bangladesh Bank; authorised dealer banks

Exchange controls mean the exit conversation starts at the entrance.

Bangladesh regulates foreign exchange through authorised dealer banks, and the practical ability to repatriate funds later rests on how they entered and which account held them. Inward remittance advices are the documentary evidence and cannot be reconstructed after the fact. This is the most common regret among people finishing a posting in Bangladesh.

Source: Bangladesh Bank

Mobile money carries more of daily life in Khulna than in the big cities, because card acceptance is thinner.

bKash and Nagad are near-universal across Bangladesh, but in a city this size the alternatives are weaker: fewer card terminals, more cash-and-mobile-money merchants, and an easy-bike economy that runs on small transfers. Getting mobile money working in week one is not a convenience here, it is how you pay for things — and it depends on getting the SIM right first.

Source: community-reported

Common mistakes to avoid

Walking into the nearest branch rather than one that has opened a foreign-national account before.
Assuming the non-resident Bangladeshi NFCD minimum applies to you as a foreign national.
Attempting to open an account without an employer introduction.
Failing to request and keep inward remittance advices.
Closing accounts before obtaining the tax clearance certificate you need to leave.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.