Ways to Open a Business Bank Account in the United States , and 5 Alternatives ways

 

Many international businesses need to open U.S. business bank accounts to make doing business with U.S. customers more convenient and to avoid the hassle of foreign currency and exchange rates. In general, it is strongly recommended that a business entity maintains a separate bank account. This would help keep the entity in compliance with IRS record-keeping requirements and will provide for a better way to manage the company’s cash flow.

After 9/11 and with the passing of the Patriot Act it became really hard for foreigners to open U.S. bank accounts. Today all US banks are required to document verification that the person opening the account is the person on the I.D. they’re receiving. The easiest solution practically all banks chose to go with is simply having one of the employees in their branches make sure that the person opening the account in the branch is the same person in the photo I.D. 

Ways to Open a Business Bank Account in the US, and Alternatives

So what are the possible ways to open a bank account in the US for a non-US person, not residing in the US? Let me present you with several possible solutions to this dilemma, including some alternatives to opening an account in the US: 

If You Have a Personal Bank Account in the U.S...

If you visited the U.S. in the past and have opened a personal bank account your best bet would be to try to contact your bank (preferably the same branch) and see if they would open an account for your business remotely. 

Try a Few Online Bank Options

Periodically it's possible to find an opportunity to open an account remotely with an online bank. For example, you can try such banks as Silicon Valley Bank or EverBank. Also, eTrade seems to have the option of opening a bank account, even though they are technically a brokerage. It's a long shot, but worth trying before anything else. 

Keep in mind: online banks typically require an SSN (Social Security Number) but would open an account if you have ITIN (individual Tax Identification Number) as a replacement (ITIN has the same number of digits as SSN).

Use a Reloadable Prepaid Debit Card Account Instead of Traditional Bank Account 

In most cases what you need is not a bank account per se, but the functions provided by a traditional bank account. For that, you can use a reloadable prepaid debit card from companies such as NetSpend，Payoneer, etc. What you get is an internationally recognized debit card and an account number with routing and ABA numbers.

With such an account you can set up a free Direct Deposit of your paycheck, have your card reloaded at various locations (for example NetSpend list on their website more than 100,000 NetSpend Reload Network Locations throughout the U.S. to add cash or checks), and transfer money using PayPal®, a checking or savings account, or another card account (NetSpend or Payoneer). You should even consider opening accounts with several of those companies, to diversify your financial option.

Travel 

A trip to the US would present you with the best opportunity to open a bank account. If you plan a trip anyway or have the financial ability (as well as spare time) to make a trip to the US then it would probably be the best solution. Keep in mind that you need to bring a number of documents, both personal and business-related, and it's always a good idea to contact the bank directly prior to arrival to ensure you have all the documents in your possession at the time of visiting the branch. Below I list all the documents required (or those that might be required) by a typical US bank (however keep in mind that even within the same bank different branches might have slightly different requirements). 

Verify Your Identity in U.S. Embassy

Some banks would accept I.D. verification through the US embassy. A person in a foreign country looking to open a U.S. bank account could go to a U.S. embassy in their country, and someone there at the embassy could sign the I.D. verification form. Obviously, this is really only practical for someone who lives close to a U.S. embassy, however, if the only alternative is to travel to the US then it could be a better solution. Of course, this is only meaningful if you verify first with the bank in the US that they would accept it.

Partner with Someone in the US

If traveling to the US or using the embassy solution is not an option, one way to do it is by partnering with someone in the US. Many people have friends and family in the US that could assist them in opening a bank account. It is very important to understand that a person you partner with, who will also be the one listed as a company representative at the bank, should be trustworthy, so choose carefully. Keep in mind that this person will have access to all company funds going through this account, and as long as you are not listed as a co-signer on the account, would have exclusive authority to perform such operations as closing or blocking it.

Hire a US Manager/Executive Officer

If you want to keep the ownership to yourself an alternative would be to hire a manager or executive officer for your company, who would represent it at the bank. LLCs, for example, can be formed as "manager-managed", which in some states would require you to list the manager on the company's Articles of Organization. Similar to the previous solution that person would have exclusive authority in questions of managing the bank account, so choose carefully.

This solution is different from the previous one in that fact that here you will compensate the manager with a salary (or one-time payment), while in the previous solution you compensate them with shares or member interest. To grant this person the authority to represent the company you might need to issue them a Certificate of Incumbency (see below).

Alternative #1: Bank Account In Your Country

Some businesses registered in the US might not even need a US bank account. If your company would provide services to business clients in the US it might be an option to have the funds wired to a US dollar bank account of your US company that you would open instead of in your country. If you plan to have a merchant account (for example to accept credit card payments online), not being a US person your only solution might be to open a merchant account with a bank or financial institution in your country, in which case you would need to have a bank account in your country anyway.

Keep in mind, in order to open a bank account for a US company in your country the company documents need to be certified through a process called "Apostille/Embassy Certification".

Alternative #2: Bank Account in Another Country

You might as well opt for opening a bank account in an offshore jurisdiction. Many jurisdictions are known for their beneficial environment for business activity and make it easy to open a bank accounts remotely, so you might want to consider researching this option further.

Alternative #3: PayPal and Similar Services

Depending on your business needs you might want to opt for using financial services such as PayPal. If you are having a hard time opening a bank account and merchant account for your business, using PayPal or similar services (such as Google Wallet, Amazon Payments, etc.) to collect payments from your client might be your only (but nevertheless viable) option.

Alternative #4: 2Checkout, Stripe & Skrill (ex-MoneyBookers)

If the only reason why you need a U.S. bank account is to be able to collect payments from your U.S. clients you should consider using 2Checkout, Stripe, or Skrill for credit card processing. 2Checkout, Stripe and Skrill allow merchants based in a number of countries covering a wide range of industries to collect online payments from buyers across the globe.

Alternative #5: High-Risk Merchant Accounts 

If your country or industry is not covered by 2Checkout or Skrill there is an option for high-risk merchant accounts. The terms of use for those accounts usually include higher than regular fees (between 7% and 15%), and also longer payout delays (2-3 weeks, compared to 2-3 days for regular accounts). Some other terms might apply. When you establish some history with the high-risk merchant account provider (such as 6-9 months of flawless processing) you could qualify for better terms. Also, your processing history with one provider could be used in the future to apply for a merchant account with another provider, with better terms.