As HowToPay continues to improve and develop its services it is necessary for us to meet the new global standards for Financial and Payments businesses. Just like the Banks it’s a legal requirement that we identify each and every customer. Should we fail to do this it would bring unnecessary risks to our entire business including fines. 

In short HowToPay is now required to identify every account holder and have a copy of a government issued ID as proof. We are unable to accept payments from any customer unwilling to supply KYC/ID  information . 

Q. What is KYC?

KYC is “Know Your Customer”. This enables banks and financial related companies to know who their customers to serve them better and manage possible fraud and or Money Laundering. This also assists to identify the Age of Clients and confirm they are of legal age to use the services and be able to consent to the terms and conditions.

Q. What is AML?

AML is “Anti Money Laundering”. Financial Services providers are required to identify clients and the destination of any funds to meet AML Requirements. 

Q. Why KYC?

To establish the identity of the client. This means identifying every customer and verifying their identity by using reliable, independent source documents, data or information. For individuals, we need official identification documents to verify the identity of our customer and proof of address. This will be required for all persons listed on the account. 

For non-individuals, HowToPay must obtain additional identification data to:

• verify the legal status of the legal person/ entity (Company Documents)
• verify identity of the authorized signatories and (Government issued ID) 
• verify identity of the Beneficial owners/ controllers of the account (Who owns the company/shares)

To ensure that sufficient information is obtained on the nature of employment / business that the customer does / expects to undertake and the purpose of the account
 

Q. Are KYC requirements new?

No, KYC requirements have always been in place Banks and financial service providers have been taking KYC (Identification documents) documents in accordance with the guidelines issued by governments from time to time. This requirement has now been extended to Corporations like HowToPay that handle Payments and Financial services. 

Q. Is KYC mandatory?

Yes. It is a regulatory and legal requirement. Regulatory: In terms of the guidelines issued by the industry and Financial regulators in each country. All banks and financial providers are required to have in place a comprehensive policy framework covering KYC Standards and AML (Anti Money Laundering) measures.

Q. When does KYC apply?

It is current regulation and as such our staff will contact all clients to assist in updating your records in our system to ensure compliance. 

Q. Who is my contact point at HowToPay for KYC purposes?

Your contact point in HowToPay will be the Relationship Manager or the officer who opens your account and who is in touch with you for your transactions. Any other staff in Customer Service listed in the contact page of our website can also assist. Visit www.howtopay.com or Email [email protected]

Q. What will happen if I do not provide the required KYC information / documents to HowToPay?

HowToPay will be forced to close the account and any credits would be forfeited. Should you provide the required information the account may be reopened and credits restored at the sole discretion of HowToPay. 

Q. How can I supply the information?

Simply email [email protected]  with your account information.

Include a copy of Government Issued Photo ID i.e. Passport / Driving Licence as well as proof of address. Two separate documents are required for each part of the process, this means that if you use your Driving Licence as your Photo ID it cannot be used as proof of address also, for this we will require a bank statement, credit card statement, or utility bill (Phone, Internet, Water or Power) in your name and not more than 3 months old.

Q. Is my information safe? 

Yes, we don’t keep your information in paper format and it’s not made available to third parties. We will only release information to comply with a legal request formally in writing from a Government agency or Police. We will not make this information available to any other person.

If you have any other questions please contact our Call Center or Staff online for further assistance.