Anyone who holds 25% or more of your business needs to complete an identity check before your account can be used. You complete yours as part of the application. For everyone else, the simplest route is to send them a verification link by e-mail and let them do their own.
Who needs to verify
Person | Identity check required? |
You, as the applicant | Yes, always - as part of Step 2 of your application |
A director or shareholder holding 25% or more | Yes |
A director or shareholder holding less than 25% | No individual check needed |
A company that is a shareholder | No individual check - we will ask for the ownership structure so we can identify the people behind it |
The process is the same whether or not you are also a director or shareholder yourself. List everyone exactly as they appear on your Registry Extract - that is the document we check your list against.
If you change someone's ownership percentage while you are still applying and it crosses the 25% line, we recheck automatically. A verification step may appear or disappear as a result - that is expected.
How to get them verified
The check is required for anyone at 25% or more, but you choose how it happens:
1. Send them a verification link. This is the quickest route and the one we recommend. They receive an e-mail with a personal link and complete the check themselves in minutes. There is nothing for you to collect, nothing to upload, and you never need to see or store their ID - which also means you can apply on the company's behalf without holding anyone's personal details.
2. Enter their details yourself. If you would rather complete everything in one sitting, you can enter their details and upload their ID document as part of your own application.
You can mix the two - send a link to one person and enter details for another. If someone has not completed their check yet, we send them a reminder, and you can chase them directly, which is usually faster.
What the check involves
Minutes, not days. What happens depends on where the person is:
Market | What they need | How long |
Sweden, Denmark and Finland | Their local digital ID - BankID, MitID or FTN. No documents and no camera needed. | Seconds |
Elsewhere in Europe | A government-issued ID document and a device with a camera | About 5 minutes |
Everyone also confirms their address. For businesses registered in Italy and in the Nordics it is often filled in from official registry data, but it still has to be checked and confirmed. An address that does not match official records is one of the most common reasons an application stalls.
If a shareholder is a company
Where a shareholder is a company rather than a person, we look through it to identify the individuals who ultimately own the business. We will ask you for the ownership structure documents and handle this part manually.
Your account opens before everyone has finished
Your application moves forward as soon as your part is done - you do not have to wait for everyone else. Your account is opened but stays frozen until all outstanding checks are complete, so you can sign in and see it without being able to send or receive money or use cards yet.
Nothing has gone wrong and you have not been rejected. Check the app to see what is still outstanding - usually a check someone has not finished, or a document such as proof of address. Once the last item is cleared the freeze is lifted and the account becomes fully active.
This is not the same as an account frozen over unpaid fees, which is lifted by settling the balance - see Understanding how fees work. It is also not a rejection: the reasons for those are on Why was my business account application rejected?.
If you have been sent a verification link
This section is for directors and shareholders who have received an e-mail from wamo. You are being asked to verify because you hold 25% or more of a business that is opening a wamo account. You do not need a wamo account of your own and you do not need the app.
What to do: open the link on the device you want to use - use your phone if you need a camera - confirm your details and address, then complete the check with your local digital ID, or your ID document plus a short video. You will see a confirmation on screen when you are done.
If you cannot find the e-mail, check your spam or junk folder. If it is not there, contact us with the name of the business.
If you are still getting reminders after completing your check, contact us with the name of the business.