Required Documents and Organization Details to Open a Relay Account (by Entity Type)

Overview

The registration process on Relay varies slightly based on your business structure. This guide outlines exactly what documents and information are required for each entity type, and includes key compliance requirements for identity verification and ownership.

When you're ready to get started, you can sign up on our website to begin enjoying no-fee business banking with Relay!

Beneficial Owner Requirements (All Entity Types)

All business owners or individuals with control over the business must provide:

A photo of a government-issued ID
- U.S. citizens: driver’s license or passport
- Non-U.S. citizens: passport only (no national ID cards)¹
Social Security Number (SSN) or passport number
Personal address (must be a physical U.S. address—no PO boxes or virtual mailboxes)²
Position/title within the business
Personal mobile phone number (for two-factor authentication)
Email address

If one or more Beneficial Owners are not U.S. residents, all owners will be asked to provide:

Source of income that started the business
Whether the business is new or established
Annual personal income
Countries in which the business operates

Who qualifies as a Beneficial Owner? Anyone who:

Owns 25% or more of the business (directly or indirectly), or
Holds significant management responsibility (e.g., CEO, CFO, Managing Member)

Please Note: All Beneficial Owners must be over 18. Relay does not support businesses partially or wholly owned by minors.

Required Business Information

During the application process, you will be asked to provide the following information about your organization:

Entity Type³
Source of Funds⁴
Countries of Operation
US Nexus (does your business have ties to the USA?)⁵
Transaction Volume (Monthly)⁶
Account Purpose⁷
Business Industry
Business Description⁸
Regulated Status (is the business regulated by any government authority or financial regulator?)⁹

Required Documents by Entity Type

LLC (Limited Liability Company)

Employer Identification Number (EIN)¹⁰
U.S. business address and phone number (must be physical address)¹¹
Industry and business description
Articles of Organization or Certificate of Formation¹²
Operating Agreement (signed, if multi-member LLC)

Corporation (C Corp or S Corp)

Employer Identification Number (EIN)¹⁰
U.S. business address and phone number¹¹
Industry and business description
Articles of Incorporation or Certificate of Incorporation¹²
Corporate Bylaws (if available)

General Partnership

Partnership Agreement (signed)
Employer Identification Number (EIN)¹⁰
U.S. business address and phone number (must be physical address)¹¹
Industry and business description
Articles of Organization or Certificate of Formation¹²

Sole Proprietorship

Social Security Number (SSN)
DBA or Fictitious Business Name (if applicable)
Business license (if applicable)
U.S. business address (must be physical address)¹¹
Industry and business description

Please Note: Relay does not support sole proprietors without a valid SSN or physical U.S. address.

International Applicants with U.S. Entities

Relay accepts U.S.-registered businesses owned by non-U.S. citizens or non-U.S. residents. However, the business must have an operating presence in the U.S. and applicants will be asked to provide:

Source of initial income for the business
Status of the business (new or established)
Annual personal income
Countries in which the business operates

Address Verification Documents (All Entity Types)

Relay may request address verification. Acceptable documents include:

Utility bill (including mobile phone or internet service)
Bank statement
Lease agreement¹
Pay stub
Insurance bill or statement — including auto, or medical insurance
U.S. driver’s license (must be unexpired)

Please Note: Address must be a physical location. No PO boxes or virtual mail services allowed.

Business Address

As part of your business information, you'll be asked to enter your legal business address.

If your legal business address is a Registered Agent:

You’ll need to provide a second address, called your operational business address — this is where your business activity takes place. It must not be another RA address. Relay might require documentation to verify this address.

Government-Issued ID Requirements

Must be original, valid, and unexpired
Format: PNG, JPG, JPEG (color image, no blur or flash)
Must show all four corners of the ID
U.S. citizens: driver's license or passport
Non-U.S. citizens: passport only

Please Note: Scanned copies are not accepted. Temporary or expired IDs are not allowed.

Accepted File Formats

Legal documents must be uploaded as PNG, JPG, JPEG, or PDF.
Accepted documents:

EIN Confirmation Letters (CP-575 or 147c)
Articles of Incorporation or Organization
Company Bylaws
Operating Agreements

Multiple Ownership (25% or More)

If multiple people each own 25% or more of the business, they must all be invited during the Relay sign-up process. Have all owner emails ready at the time of registration.

Changing Your Entity Type

Relay does not allow changes to your entity type after account approval. If your business structure changes (e.g., Sole Prop → LLC), you’ll need to:

Open a new account under the new entity
Close your original Relay account (optional)

Unsupported Industries

Relay cannot support businesses involved in:

Crypto (inclusive of Virtual Currency or Cryptocurrency)
NFTs
Cannabis-related Businesses (including the sale or manufacture of products containing CBD)
Debt Collection
Prescription Drugs
Payday Lenders
Gambling (including fantasy-sports platforms)
Direct marketing/telemarketing

See the full list of prohibited industries.

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Disclaimers

¹ For non-U.S. citizens and/or residents, Relay requires a photo of a passport for the government-issued ID requirement.

² This address must be a physical address; we are not able to accept PO boxes, virtual mailboxes, or Pack & Ship location addresses at this time. An address verification document may be requested for additional verification (accepted document types listed here).

³ Stock symbol will be required if entity type Publicly Traded Company is selected.

⁴ Additional Information will be requested if the following fields are selected:

Government Contracts or Grants
- Government Agency paying the business
- Type of contract or grant
- Payment frequency and method
- Countries involved, if international
Donations or Fundraising
- Identify the donor(s)
- Where donations are collected
- How funds are transferred to the business account
- Countries involved, if international
Import/Export Revenue
- What goods are imported/exported
- Countries involved / location of trade partners
- Who pays the business
- Payment method

⁵ For compliance purposes, this information is collected to better understand the scope of your organization’s operational presence in the United States of America.

⁶ For monthly amounts exceeding $1,000,000.00, or $150,000.00 for sole proprietor accounts, a brief description explaining the primary drivers of the transaction volume is required.

⁷ Additional Information will be requested if the following fields are selected:

Cash-Heavy Operations: Explain why the business handles cash and identify the source of the cash.
Professional Services (Handling Funds): Indicate whose funds are managed and describe the purpose for which the funds pass through this account.
Charitable or Non-Profit Organization Operations: Identify mission, source of funding, and whether operations are international.
Third Party Payment Processing: Identify for whom payments are processed, type of customers, and approximate transaction volume.

⁸ Provide a clear and detailed description of business activity.

⁹ An organization should select “Yes” if it is:

Licensed, chartered, or overseen by bodies such as the below:
1. A federal banking regulator, such as the FDIC, OCC, or Federal Reserve
2. A state banking department
3. FINRA / SEC, for broker-dealers, investment advisers, or RIAs
4. NCUA, for credit unions
5. State departments of insurance, for insurers
Subject to Mandatory AML/CTF, anti-money-laundering, regulatory requirements such as:
1. Money Services Businesses, MSBs, registered with FinCEN
2. Certain lenders, payday loan companies, or check cashers
3. Casinos subject to AML rules
4. Futures commission merchants / introducing brokers, CFTC-regulated
Accredited or regulated in a highly supervised sector such as:
1. Healthcare organizations with federal/state regulator oversight
2. Public utilities
3. Government agencies
4. Publicly traded companies subject to SEC rules

¹⁰ An Employer Identification Number, EIN, verification letter, CP-575 or 147c, may be requested for verification purposes.

¹¹ This address must be a physical address; we are not able to accept PO boxes, virtual mailboxes, or Pack & Ship location addresses at this time. An address verification document may be requested for additional verification, accepted document types listed here. As part of your business information, you’ll be asked to enter your legal business address. If your legal business address is a Registered Agent, you’ll need to provide a second address called your operational business address, which is where your business activity takes place. It must not be another Registered Agent address. Relay does not require documentation to verify this address, but we collect it for compliance purposes.

¹² Additional documentation, such as Articles of Organization, Company Bylaws, Certificates of Formation, etc., may be requested for additional verification.