When you open a Wise Business account, we need to verify some details about your business and the people associated with it. This helps us keep your money safe and comply with financial regulations. We aim to make this process quick and fully online.
What are the verification steps?
Here’s how the verification process generally works:
1. Sign up and tell us about your business.
You'll need to provide details like your business registration number, registered and trading addresses, industry, online presence (if any), and information about key people (like directors and owners). We also need personal details for the person opening the account.
If you're not a director, you'll need to provide proof you're authorised to open the account (like a signed letter of authorisation, power of attorney, or board resolution).
2. Pay the one-time fee or set up your first transfer.
For businesses in certain regions (like the EEA, UK, Switzerland, Brazil), there's a mandatory one-time setup fee.
In other regions, you might choose between paying the fee to unlock all features or setting up a transfer.
3. The fee or transfer triggers our main verification review.
Check the fees for your region on our pricing page.
4. We review your information.
First, we perform an initial review using the information you provided during sign-up.
5. Provide documents if we ask for them.
Sometimes, we need more information. This might happen if we can't confirm all your details during our initial review, or if your business operates in certain industries, or requests specific features.
If we need more details, our specialist verification team will review your account.
They will email you directly if they need specific documents or information. Please check your inbox (and spam folder).
What documents might I need to provide?
We capture most information during sign-up. However, if our team needs to review your account further, they will email you to ask for specific documents.
These commonly include:
Proof of Business Registration: Like your certificate of incorporation, articles of association, or an official registry excerpt.
Proof of Address: For your trading address (e.g. a recent utility bill, lease agreement, or bank statement addressed to the business at that location).
Ownership Documents: Documents showing who ultimately owns and controls the company (e.g. a recent shareholder register, operating agreement, or partnership deed).
Personal ID: For the account administrator and potentially other directors or owners.
Are there country-specific requirements?
Yes. Verification requirements can vary depending on your country of registration. We have specific guides for some regions.
If your business is registered in any of the following countries, there may be additional information or documentation we need to collect:
EEA (European Economic Area)
We only support charities registered in Canada, EEA, Switzerland, UK, US, Australia, and New Zealand.
We only support trusts in Canada, EEA, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, US, and the UK.
If your business is registered in Brazil, we only support: Empresário Individual (including MEI, Micro Empresa Individual), Sociedade Limitada Unipessoal, and Sociedade Unipessoal de Advocacia.
If your business registered address and trading address are in different countries, we can only offer you services that are available in both countries.
How do I provide my documents?
If our verification team needs documents:
Check your email. Our team will send an email from a Wise.com address detailing exactly what's needed.
Reply to the email or use the secure link. Follow the instructions in the email. You'll usually reply directly with the documents attached or a secure upload link.
Important: Don't send documents unless specifically requested by our team via email or through an official prompt in your Wise account.
How long does verification take?
We'll carry out an initial review after you sign up.
If additional verification is needed after you pay the fee or fund a transfer, our team will review your information or documents. This review usually takes up to 10 working days.
We'll email you as soon as verification is complete, or if we need anything else. If your transfer was paused for verification, it will resume once verification is done.