Answer

What do you need to open a bank account?

Updated October 2026. Evergreen page — refreshed in place as facts change.

Photo ID

Required

License, state ID, passport or military ID

ID number

SSN or ITIN

Some banks accept a passport instead

Verified by law

4 items

Required since 2003 (USA PATRIOT Act)

Minimum age

18

Younger: joint or custodial account

Address

Residential

A P.O. box alone is not accepted

Opening deposit

$0–$100

Typical US range, 2026

Screening records

5 years

Typical retention at screening agencies

Free screening report

Yearly

Every 12 months under the FCRA

What you need to open a bank account is shorter than most people expect: one photo ID, one identifying number, your date of birth and where you live. The detail that trips applications up is not missing documents but mismatched ones — a nickname instead of a legal name, an old address, a phone in someone else's name. This page gives the full checklist, what each item proves and why the law requires it, what to bring if you are not a US citizen or don't have a Social Security number, what changes for joint, custodial and student accounts, and what to do if something in your past banking history gets in the way.

The complete checklist

Nearly every US bank, credit union, and fintech asks for the same core set:

• Government-issued photo ID — a driver's license, state ID card, passport, or military ID. Expired documents generally fail.
• Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN).
• Date of birth — you must generally be 18 to open an account alone; minors need a joint or custodial account with an adult.
• A residential address — a P.O. box can receive mail but does not satisfy the residential requirement.
• Contact information — phone and email in your own name, where verification codes and status updates go.
• Funding details if you choose to add money at opening — a linked account, debit card, or cash, depending on the institution.

Why do banks ask for all this?

It is federal law, not curiosity. The Customer Identification Program rule, adopted under the USA PATRIOT Act and in force since 2003 as part of the Bank Secrecy Act framework, requires financial institutions to collect and verify each new customer's name, date of birth, address, and identification number before opening the account. Banks also screen every applicant against US sanctions lists. Every legitimate institution, from the largest bank to a licensed money services business like Anytime Capital, runs the same checks.

That makes the requirement itself a useful fraud test in reverse: a 'bank' that will open an account with no identity verification at all is telling you what kind of operation it is.

What if you don't have a Social Security number?

An ITIN — the IRS-issued Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, applied for on IRS Form W-7 — satisfies the identification-number requirement at many banks and credit unions, and some institutions accept a passport number with supporting documents under their customer-identification program. Policies genuinely vary here, so check the institution's requirements before applying rather than discovering them at the document-upload step.

What no legitimate US institution offers is an account with no identifying number at all; offshore or 'no-verification' pitches are where account-opening scams live.

What do non-citizens and new arrivals need?

Citizenship is not a requirement for a US bank account; identification and an address are. What you bring depends on your status:

Do you need money to open an account?

Less often than people assume. Many online banks and fintechs — Anytime Capital included — let you fund the account after it opens rather than demanding a deposit at signup, with no minimum balance to maintain. Traditional banks more commonly ask for an opening deposit, frequently $25–$100 in 2026, and accounts certified under the Bank On national standards cap it at $25. If the deposit requirement is the obstacle, our guide to bank accounts with no opening deposit lists what to look for.

Online vs in-branch: does the paperwork differ?

The required information is identical; the verification method differs. Online, your details are checked electronically — most applications finish in minutes, with a document upload (a photo of your ID) requested only when something needs a second look. In a branch, a banker inspects the physical documents, which can help when electronic checks struggle with a recent move or a name change.

Either way, accuracy is the accelerant: your legal name exactly as the ID shows it, your current residential address, and a phone in your own name clear electronic verification far more often than not.

What do you need for a joint, custodial or student account?

The rule is simple: every owner of an account goes through the same identification, so a joint account needs the full checklist from each person. The variations:

• Joint account — both owners provide ID, SSN or ITIN, birth date and address; both have full access, and both are responsible for the account.
• Custodial account for a child — the adult custodian provides their own ID and number plus the child's name, birth date and Social Security number; the money legally belongs to the child.
• Teen account — typically ages 13–17, opened with a parent or guardian as co-owner who passes identification for both.
• Student account — the standard checklist, sometimes with a student ID or enrollment letter to qualify for student terms.
• Authorized user on a card — a lighter process at some providers, but an authorized user does not own the account.

What can stop an application — and what to do about it?

The two common blockers are identity details that will not verify (fix: correct typos, use the address your records actually show, respond to document requests promptly) and a negative record in account-screening systems from a past account closed with unpaid fees. Screening agencies typically keep those records for five years; you can request your report free once every 12 months under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, dispute errors, or settle old balances and ask the bank to update the record — and some institutions offer accounts designed to accept applicants rebuilding their banking history.

Names are the quiet third blocker: applications under nicknames, maiden names, or missing suffixes verify poorly against official records. Apply with the name your Social Security records carry, and after a legal name change, update those records first — an application filed mid-change tends to land in manual review.

A five-step check before you apply

Ten minutes of preparation is the difference between a same-session approval and a document request:

What does Anytime Capital ask for?

The cash account application asks for your legal name, email, phone, your address (plus a billing address if it differs), and the last four digits of your Social Security number — or a government ID instead: a driver's license, state ID, passport or military ID, with its issue and expiration dates. Identity verification runs before the account opens; most accounts open in minutes, and verification that needs review typically completes within 1–2 business days with email updates along the way.

There is no personal credit check, and no minimum balance to maintain. Once the account is open, its account and routing numbers are in the app, ready for payroll, and you can fund it by direct deposit, ACH, mobile check deposit or cash at 90,000+ retail locations.