To verify the business opening the Stripe account, we require different documents and information depending on the business type. To check what verification requirements are outstanding on your account, check your Dashboard for notifications or go to Settings > Business details.
Sole establishments, branches of sole establishments and free zone establishments
Requirements:
- a valid (non-expired) trade license or freelancer permit issued within the UAE
- We cannot support users who do not have a trade license/permit or whose trade license/permit was issued outside of the UAE.
The only individual person on your Stripe account must be the business owner unless the only individual person listed on the trade license is the business manager - in that case, the manager is required to be the individual on the account.
Examples
- If your trade license lists a business owner and one or more managers, the business owner must be the individual person added to the account for verification.
- If your trade license only lists managers (i.e. no mention of the business owner), then the manager on the trade license must be the individual person added to the account for verification.
LLCs, branches of LLCs and free zone LLCs
Requirements:
- A valid (non-expired) trade license issued within the UAE:
- We cannot support users who do not have a trade license or whose trade license was issued outside of the UAE.
- A memorandum of association (or equivalent document)
- Proof of active bank account
The memorandum of association (or equivalent document) must show:
- The business name
- All business owners
- The split of shares/ownership between the owners
The proof of bank account must meet the following requirements:
- Includes the business name
- A non-password protected PDF exported from your bank’s online portal or app
- We cannot accept screenshots from apps or online portals
- A scan/photocopy of a physical letter or statement issued by your bank
- The bank account must be based in the UAE
- Dated within the last six months
You may also be asked for a Power of Attorney document if the representative on your Stripe account is not present on the memorandum of association or trade license. This document should indicate that your account representative has been given the power to represent the business on the Stripe account - it should include:
- Company name
- Name of account representative
- Confirmation that the representative has been given the power to create a Stripe account on behalf of the business
- In PDF format
Business ownership
As part of the verification process, we are required to verify the ultimate beneficial owners of your business - i.e. any individual who owns 25% or more. This may include owners from holding companies if your business is partially or wholly owned by other entities.
Sole Establishments
The individual person on the account must be the business owner and provide all requested information and documents for verification.
The only exception is for businesses whose trade license/permit only shows the manager of the business (i.e. no owners are listed on the trade license/permit). In this case, the manager is required to be the individual listed on the Stripe account.
LLCs
Any individual person who holds 25% or more ownership share of the business must be added to the Stripe account as an owner and provide their documents for verification.
If your business is partially or wholly owned by another legal entity, the individual owners of that business should be added to your Stripe account as owners if they ultimately have a 25% or more ownership share of your business. These owners may not be involved in the operation of your business but are still required to be present on the Stripe account as they are legally beneficial owners.
The memorandum of association (or equivalent document) for all legal entities with 25% or more ownership of your business will need to be uploaded for verification also. This document is required to identify which beneficial owners are required to be present on the Stripe account.