A corporate account with a British payment system for a Portugal-based company – from 5,299 EUR

In comparison to a traditional bank account, an account with a payment system is easier to set up and less expensive to maintain. Yet, the level of capital security is exactly the same. Your company registered in Portugal will benefit greatly from opening a corporate account with the British Payment Service Provider described below.

Payment Service Providers vs. traditional banks

Today, you can obtain financial services not only from banks but also from various payment systems, or ‘Payment Service Providers’ (PSP’s) as they are usually referred to. PSP’s are primarily used for making and receiving payments but they provide other services as well. You can set up a savings account with a PSP and use its IT, commerce, and/ or marketing services.

While in most cases you have to pay a personal visit to the bank in order to open an account there, you can set up an account with a PSP wherever you are in the world as the services that payment systems provide are essentially remote. Obtaining service from a PSP involves much less red tape and thus the account establishment takes less time.

Another important advantage of a PSP over traditional banks is that these organizations are not considered depository institutions and thus they are not obliged to follow the CRS (Common Reporting Standards) requirements. In other words, your financial activities will remain much more confidential if you set up an account with a PSP rather than with a normal bank.

The British PSP: an introduction

We will gladly assist you in setting up a corporate account for your Portuguese company with a rapidly expanding British PSP. The cost of account opening with them is 750 EUR if you reside outside the EU and only 20 EUR if you are an EU resident.

The PSP is a virtual channel that you can use for making payments to both private individuals and legal entities, performing cryptocurrency operations, invoicing, installing and servicing POS terminals, and so on. Apart from their banking products, the PSP also offers such services as internet site design, internet marketing, website security system development, and others.

The PSP was launched in 2015 when around forty banking, IT, and marketing professionals gathered in Riga, the capital of Latvia and put their heads together. On December 9, 2015 the new Payment Service Provider was registered with the Latvian authorities as a commercial enterprise.

Early in 2016, an IPhone application was created, which made the services even more accessible by a large number of clients. Indeed, it is very comfortable when you do not have to go anywhere to make or receive a money transfer or perform some other financial operation. All you have to do is touch the screen of your smartphone. As a consequence, the popularity of the PSP with businesspeople grew immensely. 

The PSP also grew fast and already on September 15, 2016 it acquired a FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) license in Great Britain. The PSP has been registered in the United Kingdom ever since. Now it operates via two offices – one in London and one in Riga.

The PSP line of services for corporate clients

The payment system offers a wide range of financial services to businesspeople from all over the world and Europe in particular. You can set up a corporate account there in Euros, dollars, zlotys, crones, rubles, etc. The total number of currencies that the PSP works with is thirty-four. You can access your account from any electronic device such as a smartphone, a tablet, a notebook, or a desktop computer.

The PSP also provides the following services to its clients:

• Money transfers and payments in 34 world currencies;
• Internet acquiring services;
• Invoicing services;
• Crediting and trade financing;
• Installation and servicing of POS terminals (in Baltic states only);
• Escrow accounts;
• Marketing and IT developments (web design, site development for internet shops, their promotion, security audit, and so on;
• Cryptocurrency project facilitation: opening current accounts, processing, and support of cryptocurrency sale and purchase.

In addition to the wide choice of currencies that can be used with the British PSP, its clients enjoy the following opportunities:

• To open a corporate account remotely;
• To make use of the full spectrum of the IT services that the PSP offers (this feature will be especially beneficial to entrepreneurs whose business is somehow connected with site promotion and internet marketing).

A current account with the British payment system

A current account with this PSP is an effective payment instrument. You can use it to make payments at any time to any place in the world. All the information about incoming and outgoing payments is instantly available via the Internet. The statements can also be obtained in the form of a .pdf document.

Since late 2018, the following opportunities are also available to the PSP clients:

• To open multicurrency accounts;
• To convert currencies;
• To make recurrent payments;
• To import payments from other databases;
• To open accounts via the Internet.

Since this year, the British PSP issues contactless MasterCard pay cards and virtual cards. Now direct transfers to bankcards are also possible. In addition, the company continues improving its mobile application.

The current account tariffs effective today:

NB: All tariffs and other PSP prices are effective on the date this text is written. As these can change over time, we recommend that you acquire the updated information by requesting it via e-mail [email protected].

The EEA countries are Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway, and 28 EU countries. To qualify as an EU client you have to meet the following criteria:

• Your company shall be registered within EU;
• Your company shall have an office and conduct business activities in the country of registration;
• The company beneficiary (you) shall be a legal resident of the country where the company is registered.

Companies registered in Luxemburg, Cyprus, Malta, and Great Britain are not considered EU resident companies.

The fee for transactions in other currencies is 0.5% of the transaction amount. There is a minimum fee, however, that depends on the currency. If the PSP client makes less than ten transactions per month to other banks, his or her account is deemed inactive. In this case, the account holder has to pay a monthly commission of 500 EUR plus 0.5% of the average remaining balance for international clients, or 2.99 EUR for EU resident clients.  

For an additional pay, the client can also make use of the express transfer service that allows making a money transfer within one hour. The commission will depend upon the amount of transfer and the destination. Normally, it is between 65 EUR and 150 EUR for international clients and between 15 EUR and 30 EUR for EU clients.

The PSP crediting services

You can also obtain a loan from the British PSP for business development: in order to purchase basic assets or finance working capital. The following crediting conditions are in place:

• The loan amount is between 1 million EUR and 8 million EUR. The minimum loan amount for international trade operations and navigation companies is 500 thousand EUR;
• Maximum loan term is ten years;
• The interest rate is between 4% and 10% per year. The rate depends on the overall client’s profitability for the PSP.

Trade financing with the British PSP

You can use the trade financing service to fill in the gap between the moment of the goods shipment and that of receipt of payment. The PSP administration does not care where your counteragent and the goods are located. Neither are they interested in the shipment method(s) that you use.

The trade financing conditions are as follows with this PSP:

• The amount is between 1 million EUR and 8 million EUR;
• The tern is between 6 and 24 months;
• The interest rates fluctuate between 5% and 8% per year. If the loan amount is above 1 million EUR, the rate can be lower.

Internet acquiring with the British PSP

This service will be interesting for internet shop owners in the first place. Internet acquiring allows receiving payments from any bankcard, which will undoubtedly increase sales and net profits.

By placing a request for this service, the client acquires the following instruments:

• A dashboard that reflects the sales statistics;
• A possibility to customize the payment page;
• A possibility to choose from nine available modules and API;
• A possibility to work with 34 currencies and localization in any language;
• Remote access and identification.

Both the installation of the internet acquiring software and the signing of a corresponding agreement are performed remotely and the process takes no more than seven days.

Invoicing with the British PSP

By use of this service, the PSP clients can forward invoices via e-mail and SMS as well as accept online payments. The invoicing service is designed for companies engaged in production and service provision as well as individual entrepreneurs engaged in art, design, education, sports, etc.  

The invoicing service agreement is made remotely. The PSP specialists will integrate the service software with the client’s records system also remotely.

Below please find the main reasons to open an account with the British PSP:

• 34 currencies available;
• All transactions as well as account control are performed remotely;
• The information about the balances and the transactions is outside the fiscal bodies’ reach;
• Multiple language service;
• A wide range of financial services accompanied by the availability of a large spectrum of services for electronic commerce;
• No bureaucracy typical of traditional banks: the account can be opened remotely and the whole process takes about one week;
• High reliability: the payment system works under the FCA license, Great Britain;  
• The PSP operates in compliance with the UK legislation.

The list of documents required for opening a corporate account with the British PSP

In order to open a corporate account with this payment system a foreign national has to accurately complete all the forms, sign them, and then scan them.

All the scans must be of high quality and easily legible, otherwise, service may be denied. You have to supply color images. No spots, shadows, flares, or blurred fragments must be present. When photographing a document, make sure that all four corners are visible. You will also have to make a selfie with your opened passport in hand. Please make sure that the passport does not cover any part of your face. The passport text as well as your photo in it must be clearly visible. Your face should have a normal expression. (You certainly can give a smile!)

The images are accepted in the following formats: .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .pdf, and .bmp.

The images shall contain no objects or inscriptions that are not found in the document original.

All the company owners and managers will have to supply scans of the following documents:

• Foreign passport;
• Proof of address (a utility bill or a rent agreement – originals or notarized copies);
• A brief CV.

Company corporate documents:

• Certificate of Formation or Registration;
• Memorandum and Articles of Association/ Bylaws/ Operating Agreement, etc.;
• Proofs of business activities (a bank statement, a tax declaration, an audit report, a registration certificate from the tax authorities, etc.);
• A brief description of the company sphere(s) of operations, turnover, major partners, payment schemes, fixed assets, etc.

Note: all documents shall be written or translated in English. The translations have to be apostilled and all copies notarized. The PSP legal department reserves the right to require additional documents.

Set up a business in Portugal

If you do not have a company registered in Portugal yet, we will gladly help you set one up.

There are some good reasons to relocate to Portugal indeed. First, the country is recovering from the world economic crisis of a decade ago faster than many of its neighbors. Currently, the Portuguese economy is growing at a great pace. The Government has implemented several meaningful measures that make the contemporary Portugal very attractive for foreign investors.

Second, if you make a substantial investment in the country’s economy – create several jobs or buy a piece of real estate – you will be eligible for a Golden Visa. This Government program allows obtaining Portuguese permanent residence permit, which will make you a legal resident in the European Union. This means visa-free travel all around the continent plus multiple additional benefits. The Golden Visa holder is required to spend only seven days in Portugal during the first year and fourteen days each subsequent year to qualify as a permanent resident. If you meet this easy obligation, you will be eligible for full Portuguese citizenship after seven years.

Third, Portugal is still the cheapest Western European country to live in. Living in Western Europe has so many advantages that it would be impossible to list all of them in one article. The largest disadvantage that this part of the world has, however, is the generally high cost of living. Strange as it may sound, this general rule does not apply to Portugal. In fact, it is among the thirty-five cheapest countries in the world!

Fourth, the climate in Portugal is very comfortable and its nature is diverse and beautiful. The temperature seldom goes below 15 degrees centigrade (69 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter there. The country is abundant in forest areas and large meadows and the views of the coastline are absolutely fantastic.

Of course, there are many other benefits that Portugal offers and it is no wonder that many foreigners, and North Americans and Brits in particular, choose this country to put down new roots in. Indeed, Portugal is the most convenient gateway to Western Europe and anyone wishing to move to this lavish area must give Portugal some serious consideration.

British people may be especially interested in relocating to Portugal. With the Brexit in sight, Great Britain is soon going to lose many ties and privileges in enjoyed in Europe before. At the same time, the British presence in Portugal has always been quite substantial, so you will find a great number of fellow Brits if you move to Portugal from the UK.

However, Portugal welcomes foreign nationals from all countries in the world. There is no discrimination at all in what concerns the sources of investment capital coming to the country. Currently, there are not too many immigrants coming to Portugal from Asia nor Africa but we are certain that time will come one day when they discover the vast opportunities that the country offers.

Company registration in Portugal

Portugal used to be notorious for its government bureaucracy and a vast amount of red tape that the businessperson had to deal with when trying to start a company in Portugal. This problem has not been eliminated completely yet even though some serious improvements have taken place.

In any case, the bureaucracy issue is not going to be your problem if you hire us to establish a company in Portugal for you. If you intend to register the company in the name of a physical person rather than a legal entity, you will only have to supply two documents to us: a copy of your passport and a proof of address.

A third document to be submitted to the Portuguese Trade Register is your prospective company Articles of Association. However, we have samples of the Articles of Association types that the Portuguese Registrar will be happy to see. You will only have to fill out the forms under our guidance and this will make the application documents package complete.

You will not even have to leave home in order to establish your foreign company in Portugal: our Portuguese representative will see the Registrar and submit the application on your behalf. (Well, you will also have to issue a Power of Attorney that authorizes him to do so but that is not a big problem nor an extravagant expenditure.)

After approximately two weeks, your foreign company will be registered in Portugal and you can start setting up a corporate account for it with the British PSP described above. Without doubt, we will assist you in this matter as well. As you must have noticed, the PSP service fees are much lower for corporate clients that come from the EU jurisdictions. This fact should make it especially tempting to open a corporate account for your Portuguese company with the PSP rather than a traditional bank.

The procedure of setting up a company in Portugal and an account with the British PSP

If you are interested in this offer, the first thing that you have to do is inform us of your interest via e-mail [email protected].

Then we will have to develop a clear understanding of your personal situation, your plans, and your preferences. Before billing you, we have to ascertain that we are able to provide these services to you as every personal situation will be different.

If everything is fine and we can work for you, we will ask you to cover the cost of the services (from 5,299 EUR) and supply all the necessary documents to us. We guarantee full support in completing the forms and drawing up the documents.

On receipt of the payment and the document package, we will start the company registration procedure in Portugal on your behalf. This should not take more than two weeks.

When the company is registered with the Portuguese authorities, we will apply for service to the British Payment Service Provider for you. In a week’s time, your corporate account should be opened.

If you would like to ask any questions prior to filing an application for services with us, please contact us by e-mail [email protected] without hesitation. We will be happy to answer all your queries related to this matter.