Opening a Foreign Company Bank Account: Australian Director Documents

When a foreign company opens a bank account, the bank checks each director and signatory personally. An Australian-resident director usually provides a certified passport copy, recent proof of address, a tax residency self-certification and the bank's signed forms. The company's records come from the country where it is registered. The bank decides who may certify, often a notary.

Key takeaways

• The bank runs know-your-customer checks on the company and on every director, signatory and significant owner.
• The company's documents come from its own registry abroad; an Australian notary cannot vouch for them.
• Your personal documents are prepared in Australia: certified identification, proof of address and the bank's forms.
• The bank decides who may certify: some accept a lawyer or accountant, many ask for a notary, a few want an apostille too.
• Banks often prescribe certification wording, such as confirming the photograph is a true likeness; follow it exactly.
• Tax residency forms have tax consequences; ask your accountant, not the notary, what to declare.

What does the bank need from you personally?

Banks everywhere must identify the people behind a company before opening an account for it. So as well as the company's records, the bank asks each director, authorised signatory and significant beneficial owner for evidence of who they are and where they live, and often for more about their background. As an Australian resident, you will usually be asked for some or all of the following.

• Identification: a certified copy of your passport, sometimes with a second document such as a driver licence.
• Proof of residential address: a recent utility bill, council rates notice or bank statement showing your name and home address.
• Tax residency: a self-certification form stating where you are tax resident and your tax identification number.
• Background: a short CV or professional profile, and sometimes a reference from your own bank.
• Source of wealth or funds: for owners, an explanation of where the money in the company came from, with supporting documents.
• The bank's forms: mandate, signature specimen and declarations, often to be signed in front of a certifier.

Document	Where it comes from	Usual certification
Company certificate and register extract	The foreign company registry	As the bank or that country specifies
Company resolution opening the account	The foreign company's board	Signed by directors; certified if asked
Your passport copy	You, in Australia	Certified by a notary or other accepted person
Your proof of address	A utility, council or your bank	Certified copy, recent
Tax residency self-certification	The bank's form, completed by you	Signed; sometimes witnessed
Signature specimen and mandate	The bank's form	Often signed in front of the certifier

Who can certify your documents?

The bank is the authority that decides, and its instructions usually say. Some banks accept copies certified by a lawyer, a chartered accountant or a notary; some accept only a notary; some also want the notarised documents apostilled or legalised. A Justice of the Peace is recognised for Australian purposes, but foreign banks generally do not accept a JP, and DFAT will not legalise a JP's certification. If the bank's list is unclear, ask its relationship manager or onboarding team in writing, because a copy certified by the wrong person is simply sent back.

If a notary is used, you attend in person with your original passport and the original proof of address. The notary checks your identity, compares the copies with the originals, and certifies them. If the bank wants the notary to witness your signature on its forms, bring those forms unsigned. Our guide to identity verification by a notary explains what the notary checks.

What wording does the bank want on the copies?

Many banks prescribe certification wording, especially for identity documents. Common requirements include a statement that the copy is a true copy of the original, that the photograph is a true likeness of the person the certifier met, and the certifier's name, capacity, contact details and date. Some want the certifier's registration or practising number.

Give the bank's wording to the notary before the appointment, and check that every page of a multi-page document is dealt with the way the bank asks. A notary will use wording that is accurate: they will confirm what they saw and did, but will not certify anything they cannot confirm, such as that a utility bill proves where you live.

What about proof of address?

Proof of address trips up more directors than identification does. Banks usually want a document in your name showing your residential address, issued within a recent period they specify, and some will not accept a mobile phone bill, a PO box or an online screenshot.

With paperless billing, some people have no paper original at all. A notary certifying a copy must see an original, so if your bills are electronic, ask your utility or bank for a paper statement, or ask the foreign bank whether it will accept an electronically issued document and how. Our guide to notarising a bank statement covers the electronic-statement problem.

Do you need an apostille as well?

Some banks want notarised copies of a foreign director's documents apostilled or legalised. If so, the notarised copies go to DFAT, which issues an apostille for a country that is party to the Hague Apostille Convention, or an authentication certificate followed by embassy legalisation for one that is not. DFAT's page on documents it can legalise explains that private and copied documents must be notarised first. Membership changes, so check the HCCH status table on the day.

Many banks do not ask for this at all, so do not add it unless the bank's list says so.

What about the tax residency form?

Banks in many countries now ask account holders, and the people who control company accounts, to self-certify their tax residency and give a tax identification number, so that account information can be reported to the right tax authority. For an Australian tax resident, the number asked for is usually the tax file number.

The form has tax consequences for you and for the company, and questions such as whether you control the company for reporting purposes are not always obvious. Ask your accountant how to complete it. A notary will witness your signature if the bank asks, but will not advise on what to declare.

What if the company is owned by an Australian company?

If the foreign company is a subsidiary of an Australian company, the bank will usually also want to see the Australian parent: its ASIC records, its own ownership, and sometimes a resolution of the parent's board.

Those are Australian documents, so they are prepared here. DFAT can legalise original ASIC documents as government documents, subject to its rules on electronic documents, while resolutions and other documents the parent creates must be notarised first. Our guide to registering a foreign subsidiary covers the parent-company side, and our guide to appointing an overseas director covers the director's appointment itself.

How do you prepare your documents as a director?

1. Get the bank's list in writing. Including who may certify, the wording, how recent proof of address must be, and whether an apostille is needed.
2. Collect originals. Your passport, a second identity document if asked, and a paper proof of address in your name.
3. Complete the forms, unsigned. Mandate, signature specimen, declarations and tax self-certification, after advice where needed.
4. Attend the certifier. Sign the forms in front of them if the bank requires, and have the copies certified with the bank's wording.
5. Legalise if asked. Send notarised documents to DFAT for an apostille or authentication certificate.
6. Send the set together. By the bank's chosen route, and keep a copy of everything you sent.

Common mistakes to avoid

The first mistake is having copies certified by someone the bank does not accept, such as a JP for an overseas bank. The second is proof of address that is too old, in the wrong name, or a screenshot rather than a document. The third is signing the bank's forms before the appointment, when the bank wanted them signed in front of the certifier. The fourth is expecting an Australian notary to certify the foreign company's registry documents, which have to come from that country. The fifth is completing the tax self-certification without advice. Our guide to notarial requirements for an overseas bank account covers the account-opening process as a whole.

Here is an illustration, not a real case.

Liam lives in Melbourne and is a director of his employer's Singapore subsidiary, which is opening a new account. The bank's list asks each director for a notarised passport copy with a true-likeness statement, a proof of address issued in the last few months, a signed mandate and a tax residency form. His energy bills are paperless, so he asks the retailer for a paper statement. His accountant helps with the tax form. He signs the mandate before a notary, who also certifies the copies with the bank's wording.

In short

A foreign company's bank checks each director personally. As an Australian-resident director, you prepare your own pack here: certified identification, recent proof of address, the bank's signed forms and a tax residency self-certification. The company's own documents come from its registry abroad. The bank decides who may certify and whether an apostille is needed, so get its list in writing first, and ask your accountant about the tax form. Our apostille and authentication services page explains the DFAT step if the bank asks for it.

People also search for

• How do I get a passport copy notarised?
• What does a foreign company registry need from me?
• What documents do I need to set up a business overseas?
• Should I use a JP or a notary?
• What is a certified true copy?

Asked by a foreign bank for notarised director documents? Send us the bank's list and wording, and we will explain each step before you book.