Valid ID for Non-citizen Account Opening

Answered by:

Question:

We have a person who wants to open a checking account. She gave us a Mexican Passport and a credit card as ID. She has a Social Security card. We asked her if she has any US ID and she gave us a US Visa that is valid for one year. Can we open the account for her?

Answer:

That all depends on your board approved CIP program. It should specifically outline the identification requirements of your bank for opening accounts for non-US persons. If your current CIP program does not specifically address the identification requirements for non-US persons, you would be unable to open the account until this is addressed within your board approved CIP policy. The regulations only require that you obtain:

(1) Name;
(2) Date of birth;
(3) Address;
(4) Identification number, which shall be for a non-U.S. person, one or more of the following: a taxpayer identification number; passport number and country of issuance; alien identification card number; or number and country of issuance of any other government-issued document evidencing nationality or residence and bearing a photograph or similar safeguard.

First published on BankersOnline.com 11/30/09