Adyen tries to verify your users based on the information that you provide. However, in some cases, the automatic verification might fail. This could be due to incorrect data or the data can't be verified. In these cases, Adyen may ask your user to provide additional documents, such as a passport or a bank statement.
Document types for legal entities or bank accounts
The following are the types of documents that Adyen may require from your user. When uploading documents, make sure that the document meets the specific requirements for individuals, organizations, sole proprietorships, or bank accounts.
UBOs, signatories, and sole proprietors
Photo IDs
Proof of national ID number
Proof of residential address
Proof of individual tax ID
Proof of industry
Organization
Registration document
Proof of address
Proof of industry
Proof of ownership
Proof of tax information
VAT document
Sole proprietorship
Bank account
Bank statement
If the automatic verification of a bank account fails, Adyen may ask for a proof of bank account. When uploading this document, set the type to bankStatement in your /documents request.
The proof of bank account can be any of the following:
- Bank statements
- Deposit tickets or deposit forms
- Screenshots of their online banking environment
- Official emails or letters from their bank
- Cheques
- Relevé d'Identité Bancaire (RIB): bank document in France
The proof of bank account must have:
- The account holder name. - The account number or IBAN.
- The date of issuance, which must be less than 12 months ago. This requirement applies to all types of documents except for RIBs or cheques.
- The country where the bank account is located. For EU bank statements, Adyen infers the country from the IBAN.
- An indicator that the document was issued by a bank, such as the bank name, a bank logo or a bank-specific font.
We do not accept:
- Photos of bank-issued cards, such as credit or debit cards.
- Edited or personalized documents.
- Documents issued more than 12 months ago.
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Constitutional document
Adyen tries to automatically verify the sole proprietorship. In case automatic verification fails, Adyen may ask for a constitutional document. When uploading this document, set the type to constitutionalDocument in your /documents request.
The constitutional document must be:
- Issued within the last 12 months, or it must contain a signature and a state of affairs with a date not older than 12 months.
-
The following are examples of documents accepted for sole proprietorships:
- Doing business as-name filing (also known as Fictitious- or Trade name filing)
- Tax filing
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Photo IDs
If the automatic verification for an individual's identification number fails, Adyen may ask for a photo ID. The name in the photo ID must match the name sent to Adyen during onboarding.
If the names are different—for example, your user provided their married name to register but their passport has their maiden name—the photo ID check will fail.
The following are the accepted photo ID documents, along with the type that you must set in your /documents request.
| Photo ID | type |
Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Passport | passport | Must be the data page (picture, MRZ, and details) |
| Identity card | identityCard | Must be a government-issued identity card. Front and back, each side in its own file. |
| Driver's license | driversLicense | Front and back, each side in its own file. |
The photo ID must:
- Be non-expired.
- Have the machine-readable zone visible (if available).
- Be a physical photo ID document, not digital.
The uploaded document must:
- Have separate files for front and back of the ID document (only when providing an ID card or driver's license).
- Be a full color, cropped, and straightened image.
- Be a photo or a scan of the physical photo ID document. We do not accept a screenshot of a photo, a photo pasted on another document, a photo of a screen, or a photo of a printout.
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Proof of address
Adyen uses the data to automatically verify your user's address. In case automatic verification fails, Adyen may ask for a proof of address. When uploading this document, set the type to proofOfAddress in your /documents request.
The proof of address must be:
- Issued by a reliable, independent source such as the local commercial register of the country where the business is registered in.
- Issued within the last 12 months, or it must contain a signature and a state of affairs with a date not older than 12 months.
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Proof of individual tax ID
If the automatic verification for an individual's tax ID fails, Adyen may ask the individual to upload a tax identification document. Set the type to proofOfIndividualTaxId in your /documents request.
| Country | Tax Document requirements |
|---|---|
| Belgium (BE) | Official document containing Numéro National and name of individual. |
| France (FR) | Official document containing Simplification des Procédures d'Imposition / numéro fiscal de référence / numero SPI and the name of individual. The number can be found on the pre-printed income tax declaration form or on income tax/property tax notices. |
| Germany (DE) | Official document containing Persönliche Identifikatiosnummer (IdNr) and name of individual. |
| Netherlands (NL) | Official document containing Burgerservicenummer (BSN) and name of individual. |
| Spain (ES) | Official document containing Documento Nacional de Identidad (DNI) or Foreign Card Number (NIE), and name of individual. |
| United Kingdom (GB) | Official document containing Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number or National Insurance Number (NINO), and name of individual. |
| United States (US) | Official document containing Social Security Number (SSN), Employer Identification Number (EIN), or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), and name of individual. |
Proof of industry
If the automatic verification of an industry fails, Adyen may ask for a proof of industry. When uploading this document, set the type to proofOfIndustry in your /documents request.
A proof of industry can be a VAT document, a proof of tax information, or a registration document that includes a local or a global industry code. For example, SBI in the Netherlands, NACE in the European Union, or NAICS in the United Kingdom.
For the document requirements, see:
- Proof of tax information for organizations
- VAT document for organizations
- Registration document for organizations
- Proof of tax individual tax ID for individuals
Proof of national ID number
If the automatic verification of a national ID number fails, Adyen may ask for a proof of the national ID number. When uploading this document, set the type to proofOfNationalIdNumber in your /documents request.
The proof of national ID number must:
- Have the name of the individual.
- Have the national ID number.
- Be issued by a reliable, independent source such as a government agency, public authority, or judicial authority.
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Proof of organization tax information
In case automatic verification for tax ID fails, Adyen may ask for a proof of tax information. When uploading this document, set the type to proofOfOrganizationTaxInfo in your /documents request.
The proof of tax information must:
- Have the organization name.
- Have the tax ID number.
- Be issued by a reliable, independent source such as the local tax authority of the country where the business is registered in.
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Proof of ownership
If the automatic verification of a UBO through ownership fails, Adyen may ask for proof of ownership. When uploading this document, set the type to proofOfOwnership in your /documents request.
The proof of ownership can be any of the following:
- Securities register
- Shareholder register
- Ultimate Beneficial Owner register
- Articles of incorporation
- Annual reports
- Annual returns
- Certificate of Corporate Status
- Shareholder Agreements
- Assignment Agreements
- Partnership Agreements
- Board of directors' meeting records of decisions
- Registration document; or
- Certificate of incumbency
Irrespective of which document is used from the list above, Adyen requires an ownership document to contain, at minimum, a date of issue, which cannot be older then 6 months.
If the ownership document does not contain such a date, or has been issued earlier, an ownership document should contain the following instead:
- A statement of affairs (not older than 6 months)
- Name, job title and signature of signing person
- Date of signature, and;
- The name of the legal entity the signing person is representing
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Proof of residential address
If the automatic verification of a residential address fails, Adyen may ask for a proof of the residential address. When uploading this document, set the type to proofOfResidency in your /documents request.
The following sources can be used as proof of residence documentation. These documents must not be older than the period specified below.
| Residence Document type | Cannot be older than |
|---|---|
| Bank Statement | 3 months |
| Utility Bill | 3 months |
| Government-issued correspondence (receipt of benefits such as pension, unemployment benefits, housing benefits, or healthcare) |
3 months |
| Taxation Document | 3 months |
| Extract from Municipal Personal Records Database | 3 months |
| Mortgage statement | 12 months |
| Certificate of voter registration | 12 months |
| Salary slip (containing the company letterhead) | 3 months |
The proof of residency must:
- Have the name of the individual.
- Have the full residence address, residence country and residence state (when applicable).
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
Registration document
Adyen uses the name and registration number to automatically verify your user. In case automatic verification fails, Adyen may ask for a registration document. When uploading this document, set the type to registrationDocument in your /documents request.
The registration document must be:
- Issued by a reliable, independent source such as the local commercial register of the country where the business is registered in.
- Be issued within the last 12 months, or it must contain a signature and a state of affairs with a date not older than 12 months.
Check the local terms for registration numbers in different countries and the format requirements.
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB
VAT document
In case automatic verification for VAT number fails, Adyen may ask for a VAT document. When uploading this document, set the type to vatDocument in your /documents request.
The VAT document must:
- Have the organization name.
- Have the tax ID number.
- Be issued by a reliable, independent source such as the local tax authority of the country where the business is registered in.
The document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
The uploaded document must meet the following file format and size requirements:
- Formats: JPEG, JPG, PNG, or PDF (maximum 2 pages)
- Size for PDFs: minimum 1 KB, maximum 4 MB
- Size for other formats: minimum 100 KB, maximum 4 MB