Getting a Monzo bank account as a recent immigrant to the UK

If you’ve recently arrived in the UK, welcome!

One of the first things you’ll need to do is open a bank account. But it can be incredibly time-consuming and confusing trying to open one here.

You can end up going round in circles with banks and other officials, unable to get the right documentation to even get started. It often turns out that staff you interact with don’t know or understand the relevant regulations, so your experience can vary branch-to-branch and bank-to-bank. We believe that shouldn’t be the case and we’re working to make it better.

We want everyone to be able to access basic financial services like bank accounts, and are working hard to make sure that’s the case wherever possible.

A bank account is essential to starting your life in the UK. Things like renting a flat or getting a phone usually need you to prove you have a bank account. And without one, we know it can be very difficult to settle in and access important services.

To open a bank account with Monzo you need one of the following:

• Passport

• Driving licence (provisional is fine)

• National ID card

• Other government issued photo ID

When you sign up through the Monzo app, we’ll ask you to take a picture of that ID and a short video of yourself. That’s it! You’ll need a UK address where we can send your debit card, and then you’re good to go.