Opening of a bank account in Estonia

Estonia allows non-resident companies and individuals to open bank accounts without citizenship or permanent residency in Estonia. Despite that you need to prove a connection to Estonia. It’s a good idea as a natural person to investigate the e-residency program, which doesn’t guarantee your ability to open a bank account, but it could help. If you are an EU citizen, then the opening of a bank account will be considerably easier.

Estonian banks require a personal identification of all new customers and in case of a company, the legal representative of the customer. But before you are initiating the procedure for opening a bank account in Estonia, you should consider whether you actually need one. It really depends on your business model, target market, and also the business activity in which you are engaged to or going to be engaged in. NJORD can assist you to evaluate your actual needs, so, please feel free to contact us for legal assistance.

If you do, however, need an Estonian bank account as a non-resident business client, then the bank might ask you to provide the following documents that you need to hand in in person:

• CV's of the board members and beneficial owners;
  
• Valid passport copies of the board members and beneficial owners; 
• A clear overview of the ownership structure leading to the actual beneficiaries. In case of a more complex ownership structure, the bank may ask additional information, including agreements;
• A business plan relating to Estonia;
  
• Reference letter from your home bank;
  
• Company statutes in Estonian or in English (notary-approved);
  
• A list of the signatories of the company (notary-approved);
  
• A business register extract not older than 6 months, in Estonian or English (notary-approved);
  
• An account statement of the past 12 months account statement;

If you need an account as a non-resident individual, then the bank will ask you to present in person:

• A copy of your valid passport (or a two-sided copy/photo of a valid ID-card issued in an EU country)
  
• Documentation verifying your connection with Estonia, which could be: a signed accommodation lease agreement; a signed employment agreement; a certificate from an educational institution proving your ongoing studies; a relation to a business in Estonia or any other documentation that proves the need for a bank account in Estonia.
  

The list of information and documents the banks require is not regulated by law, so the procedure and internal rules may differ depending of the bank selected.

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