When Monzo becomes a fully-licensed bank, will we need a permanent address in the UK to be able to apply for the current account?
I will be travelling from April and I know the magic might happen after I leave the UK. Will it matter? Do we only need an address for correspondence?
Quite interested in this as well. Have you decided on what collateral if any you will ask for? Proof of address etc and whether you’ll use some form of body to validate.
I think this is all we know so far, as Monzo haven’t finalised the process yet -
& I expect the credit history is tied in with proof of address.
Currently Monzo ask you to send a scan of your passport & selfie video for identity verification (for iOS users anyway) so it seems like they’ve got the obvious checks covered…
We know that the Monzo team (or Tom at least) hate completing forms & posting them, just as much as we do so I’d be surprised if they don’t find a way to do all of the verification digitally.
So new customers still need a UK address to sign up for an account, we’ll request and cross reference this with your passport or drivers licence so you have higher withdrawal and daily spending limits (especially important if you’re travelling!) If you’re already a Monzo customer, I’m pretty sure you won’t need to verify your identity again if you choose to switch your pre-pay to a current account, but again this isn’t confirmed 
We will be reviewing our identification process once we start offering current accounts to ensure it’s as straightforward to complete as possible, but I expect we’ll ask for the same documents passport, drivers licence at some point.
I assume we would be able to scan these items in the app? Or just give the identification numbers? Seeing as we can’t physically give them to you in a branch
Yep, something like that At the moment you can send a photograph of your documents via the app so it will probably be a similar process!
Just signed a family member up to first direct, realise one of the aims of Monzo is to avoid the below…
(apologies for the long post)
So we can continue processing your application, please send us one document to verify your identity and a separate document to verify your address.
We understand this may seem like a lot to ask for but we need this information to help keep you and your money safe from fraud and financial crime.
There are 2 ways you can send us your documents you can upload them electronically online (with the exception of non EEA passports and national ID cards) or send us certified photocopies in the post.
If you choose to use our online service you won’t need to get your documents certified although you will need a PC or laptop device with a webcam.
To use this service, please visit identify.firstdirect.com and follow the on screen instructions.
You’ll need to enter some details including the reference at the top of this message, so keep it handy. Please make sure the information is shown clearly on any documents you upload we’ve included a list of the ones you can use below.
If you’d prefer, you can send your documents by post. We can’t accept the originals, so we need photocopies to be certified by an independent professional person who’s seen the original documents details of who can certify them and how to do this are shown below.
Any document you send must:
be a certified copy if sending by post*
*be current/valid and not due to expire in the next 3 months
*not be an internet or branch print-out
Proof of identity
Take one document from this list and have it certified - please don’t send original documents.
*current full and valid passport - we can’t accept temporary ones. If you’ve recently changed your name, please also send certified copies of any supporting documentation. As we only offer accounts to UK residents, if you send a non EEA passport we’ll also need you to include a Visa confirming your right to live in the UK
*current full or provisional UK photocard driving licence (not including counterpart)
*current National Identity Card which must include a photo (for European Economic Area or Swiss Nationals only)
*current Northern Ireland voters card.
Proof of address
Take one document from this list and have it certified - please don’t send original documents.
UK bank (excluding first direct), building society or credit union statement. These must include name, current address and be dated in the last 4 months showing active transactional history
UK credit card (excluding first direct) statement, dated in the last 4 months showing active transactional history
utility bill for your home address e.g.; gas, electricity, oil or broadband, dated in the last 4 months
landline (not mobile) telephone bill for your home address, dated within the last 4 months
Sky or cable TV bill for your home address, dated in the last 4 months
Council Tax bill for your home address and the current billing year or reminders and demand letters, dated in the last 4 months again within the current billing year.
water rates bill for your home address and the current billing period or reminders and demand letters, dated in the last 4 months again within the current billing period.
UK mortgage (excluding first direct) statement from a recognised lender, dated in the last 12 months
HM Revenue & Customs tax notification or summary, dated in the last 4 months or billing year
Benefits Agency letter (Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), Jobcentre Plus, Child Benefit Office or Veterans Agency) confirming your rights to benefits, dated in the last 4 months
**How to get your documents certified
Ask one of the possible certifiers from the list below to write the relevant statement on each of your photocopied documents and sign to say they verify them. If any of your documents are more than 1 page, please ask the certifier to complete the below on the 1st page and sign and print their name on each individual page.
We can only accept the following as certifiers, they must be registered and based in the UK : Barrister, Licenced Conveyancer, Chartered Accountant, Chartered Legal Executive, Dentist, General Practitioner, Member of the Judiciary, Member of Parliament, Nurse, Midwife, Optician, Pharmacist, Solicitor, Notary and Independent Financial Advisor.
A. For documents that contain a photo:
I (full name of certifier) confirm that this is an accurate copy of the original and the photo is a
true likeness of (full name of the customer).
B. For documents that don’t contain a photo:
I (full name of certifier) confirm that this is an accurate copy of the original for ( full name of the customer).
Each document must also include the:
*reference number at the top of this letter
*certifier’s signature and full name - they need to sign as an individual not for a company
*certifier’s occupation, company/professional address and phone number, ideally on letter headed paper.
*certifier’s professional registration number if they have one
*date of certification.
It’s important each document includes this information as without it we may not be able to accept them.
The person signing must be active in their profession and can’t be a relative, friend, or someone who lives at your address. We may contact them for further verification.
For more information on the documents you can use, visit firstdirect.com/security/how-we-help-protect-you-online
Please quote the reference number at the top of this message on your documents and send them to first direct, 40 Wakefield Road, Leeds, LS98 1FD.
In the meantime, if you have any questions please give us a call on 0800 917 24 24 and we’ll be happy to help. Lines are open 8am to 9pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 5:30pm Saturday and 9am to 5:30pm Sunday.
I’ve clicked like on this @Bruce because there isn’t a horrified button!
Funding Circle tried same stuff with me, like @Bruce’s horror story.
I found it difficult with proof of address: my bills are online as much as I can, printing online statements apparently was no good, I had only recent council tax. I also found it meh that someone needs to sign it - I would feel uncomfortable asking friends for it. If it was 3,5 years ago, when I came to UK, I’d need to ask my boss, because I barely knew anyone.
Rate Setter verified me just fine, so I didn’t finish account creation on Funding Circle.
Also, this massive block of text, scary. I forgot what was at the beginning before I finished reading all.
Spending limits - definitely an important factor while travelling!
Will you disclose information about identification process prior to launching the accounts? You said you would be reviewing them, which to me means you’ll make them better but it would still be helpful to find out what the first set of rules and procedures will be. I’m at this weird stage where I want to give up my regular bank but I know I can’t just yet until Monzo hits puberty 
Even if address is needed for some kind of correspondence purposes, that will be fine. My pessimistic side is just worried what if you’ll need the solid proof again and I’m already out of the country. @Naji thanks for the response and a bit of clarification though!
We’ll be staggering the rollout of current accounts over a number of months and will definitely share any updates to the identity verification process as and when! We won’t be prompting people to switch from prepaid to current accounts in a really limited window of time. Even if you want to switch over but don’t have the documents to hand, you’ll still have the option later in the year to switch when you touch down on home turf 
Thanks, that of course seems reasonable. Can’t wait for the magic switch to happen!
It will be interesting to see how much of this can be simplified, and how much of it is unavoidably driven by HMRC anti-laundering rules.
I investigated the requirements after some stupid finance company asked me to jump through too many hoops.
The actual European regulations require proof of name and EITHER proof of date of birth OR proof of address. A passport is perfectly acceptable and was all I needed to get my N26 account.
I don’t know if UK law goes further or if it has simply become common practice to ask for proof of address.
Firstly, the way European Regulations are implemented is by way of national enabling legislation. Those UK and other member states Laws can all be slightly different in the way they interpret European Law, although in principal shouldn’t be. Secondly, there are separate issues of verifying ID and verifying residence. In some cases checking is done to comply with UK Law (e.g. proof of identity) but in some cases to check applicants meet a bank’s account criteria (such as needing to be resident in the UK)
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