Business accounts: Ecuador

Updated 6 October 2026

An honest assessment before work starts, the quote is fixed in writing.

Ecuador has used the US dollar since 2000, so an Ecuadorian company account is in dollars from the start, with no currency risk. Banks are supervised by the Superintendency of Banks, and deposits in private banks are guaranteed up to $32,000 per depositor. Accounts are opened only for Ecuadorian companies: a foreign company without local registration will not get one.

What you need before the bank

• register a company, usually a simplified joint-stock company, online with the Superintendency of Companies;
• obtain a tax number from Ecuador's tax service;
• appoint a legal representative with an Ecuadorian ID card and an address in the country;
• prepare a business description, expected turnover and proof of the source of capital.

Taxes and transfers

Corporate income tax is 25% and VAT 15%. Transfers from an Ecuadorian account abroad are subject to a 5% currency outflow tax, while bringing money into the country is not taxed. So plan in advance any revenue that will later need to leave.

How opening works

1. Company. We register the company online and obtain the tax number, usually within days.
2. Representative. We appoint a legal representative with a local ID card.
3. Bank. We prepare the application, business description and capital documents, which the representative signs in person at the branch.
4. Decision. The bank checks the owners and usually answers within a few weeks, longer for foreign owners.

The account and the investor visa

An investment in an Ecuadorian company or a bank deposit of at least 100 basic salaries, $48,200 in 2026, can be the basis for an investor visa. The account is then opened together with the visa application, and money is brought from abroad: incoming capital is not subject to the currency outflow tax.

Company reporting

An Ecuadorian company files annual financial statements with the Superintendency of Companies, monthly VAT returns with the tax service and its annual income tax return in the spring of the following year. Without filed reports a company cannot obtain the certificate of compliance banks often ask for, and the Superintendency may declare a long-silent company inactive.

Why applications are refused

• no local representative, or one who cannot attend the branch;
• the source of foreign owners' capital is unproven;
• the activity has no link to Ecuador;
• links to sanctioned countries.

A company in Ecuador for the account

The account is opened for an Ecuadorian company, most often a simplified joint-stock company registered online with the Superintendency of Companies. The company obtains a tax number from Ecuador's tax service. Corporate tax is 25% and VAT 15%; non-residents are taxed at source at 25%. Payments in the country are in US dollars.

How opening an account in Quito works

• Incorporation documents, tax number, details of shareholders and the legal representative.
• A business description, expected turnover, source of capital.
• The representative's signature in person at the branch.

More on taxes on our Ecuador taxes page.

What we do

• Corporate account - opening assistance

See also

Company formation · Personal account · Investment property · Country taxes · All country programs

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