A very important step to becoming a foreign investor here is to open up a Nicaraguan bank account to allow the direct transfer of money from a foreign bank account, as well as to access local bank services such as credit cards, debit cards and checks.
It is very simple to open a bank account in Nicaragua. There are two ways to do it: by applying as a “natural person” or applying as a “persona jurídica,”meaning you have a corporation here or are the legal representative of one.
Applying as a natural person means that you will have a bank account under your name and that your signature is the authorized signature for any activity in that bank account.
In order to open a bank account under your name it is necessary to be a resident of Nicaragua, and present the following requirements to the bank:
*Passport
*Residency card
*Two reference letters from Nicaraguan citizens or residents
*Application form provided by the bank.
Once you have presented the required documents, the bank will process the application and the account will be opened.
Applying as a “persona jurídica” means that the bank account will be opened under the corporation’s name, establishing one or more authorized signatures as requested by the client.
In order to open a bank account under a corporation’s name is necessary to present the following requirements:
*Copy of the articles of incorporation and by-laws of the corporation
*Copy of the identification of the shareholders.
*Copy of the identification of the legal representative.
*A notary certification of the slip in which the board of directors authorizes the opening of the bank account.
*Two commercial reference letters from other corporations with which the applicant has or has had commercial relations.
*Tax ID of the corporation.
*Application form provided by the bank.
Once the bank has of all the required paperwork, it will proceed to open the bank account in one or two business days.
Those are the requirements that most of the financial institutions ask for in Nicaragua to open a bank account. If you have any doubts you may ask any bank officer at the bank of your preference.
Amilcar Navarro is a junior attorney at the García & Bodan law firm in Managua.
