Business accounts: New Zealand

Updated 7 October 2026

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

Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009, New Zealand banks must identify a company's owners and understand its business before opening an account. So the key question when opening from overseas is the business's link to New Zealand: a company in the country, clients, suppliers or staff. Since 1 July 2025 deposits of businesses, as well as of individuals and trusts, are protected by the compensation scheme up to about $56,000 per depositor per bank, according to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.rbnz.govt.nz/dcs">Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

What the depositor compensation scheme covers

The scheme covers money in standard banking products: transaction, savings, notice and term deposit accounts. It does not protect investments such as KiwiSaver, bonds and shares, or protect against fraud and scams, according to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. It applies automatically and is funded by levies on the industry, not by depositors.

What the bank will check

• the company's registration and details of directors and owners;
• passports and proof of address of directors and beneficial owners;
• what the company does and how it is linked to New Zealand;
• expected volumes, payment countries and typical counterparties;
• the owners' source of funds.

How opening works

1. Profile review and choosing a bank that works with such structures.
2. The document file and business description.
3. The bank's review, often with a video call or a director's visit.
4. Account opening and online banking setup.

A New Zealand company: resident director and taxes

• Under the Companies Act at least one director of a New Zealand company must live in New Zealand, or live in Australia and be a director of an Australian company. Without such a director the company will not be registered, and a bank will not open its account.
• Company income tax is 28%.
• Goods and services tax is 15%; registration is mandatory once turnover exceeds about $34,000 over 12 months.
• The bank needs the company's tax number and a New Zealand address for documents.
• A foreign company doing business in New Zealand registers as an overseas company and also obtains a tax number.

Amounts are converted to US dollars at the European Central Bank rate and rounded up.

The company's annual return

Every New Zealand company files an annual return with the Companies Office once a year, in the month set at registration, confirming its directors, shareholders and addresses. If the return is not filed, the registrar can remove the company from the register and the bank will close its account, so we track the deadlines in advance. Filing requires the director's access to the registry's online account.

Who a New Zealand account suits

A New Zealand bank account is for a company that sells in New Zealand or Australia, employs staff there, pays local suppliers or earns revenue in the local currency. For a holding with no activity in the country, or a company that only needs an account number to settle with third countries, a New Zealand bank is usually the wrong choice: it will see no link to the country and refuse.

There is a tax reason too. A company or owner treated by Inland Revenue as an offshore person gets a tax number only with a functioning New Zealand bank account or after an identity check under anti-money laundering rules. So the account and tax registration are planned together, not one after the other.

How to certify documents for the bank

The bank accepts copies of passports and proof of address certified by a trusted referee: a lawyer, notary, justice of the peace or bank officer. The copy carries a signature, a date and a statement that it is a true copy and that the photograph is of the person presenting it. Documents not in English are translated by a certified translator.

For a company with a complex structure, prepare an ownership chart down to ultimate owners holding 25% or more and documents for each legal entity in the chain. If the structure includes a trust, the bank will ask for the trust deed and details of the settlor, trustees and beneficiaries.

Timeline step by step

Review time depends on the ownership structure: the more countries and legal entities in the chain, the longer the bank takes to gather information.

Mandatory payments

Registry fees include goods and services tax. We fix the cost of our support in writing before work starts.

Common reasons for refusal

• the business has no link to New Zealand: no clients, suppliers or staff;
• the owners' source of funds is not documented;
• the ownership chain runs through several countries with no clear explanation;
• the company has no director living in New Zealand or Australia and cannot be registered;
• the business description does not match actual payments;
• an owner or director is on a sanctions list.

After a refusal, reapplying to the same bank is almost pointless, so we match the profile and the bank before filing.

Restrictions for certain nationalities

The law does not bar owners of any citizenship from opening an account, but the bank assesses risk by country of citizenship and residence. New Zealand introduced its own sanctions under the Russia Sanctions Act 2022: banks may not deal with listed persons and companies, and other citizens of Russia and Belarus get accounts only after enhanced checks and are refused more often. Owners from countries with a high money laundering risk should expect extra questions about the source of funds.

Owners with New Zealand or Australian residence and companies with a local director, office and clients pass the checks most easily.

What the bank monitors after opening

Checks do not end on the opening day. The bank watches whether payments match the declared business and periodically asks you to update details of directors, owners and addresses. By law the bank reports international transfers from about $560 and cash transactions from about $5,600 to the police Financial Intelligence Unit: this is routine reporting, not a sign of trouble.

If a director or an owner with 25% or more changes, tell the bank and update the Companies Register. The bank will close the account of a company removed from the register for a missed annual return, and the balance then has to be recovered by restoring the company.

Bank or payment institution

A company with no office or staff in New Zealand sometimes finds it easier to start with an account at a payment institution listed on the Financial Service Providers Register: it completes checks faster and provides account details for several currencies. But this is not a bank account: the depositor compensation scheme does not cover it, loans and trade finance are unavailable, and some counterparties accept payments only from a bank account.

A full bank account is worth opening once the company has local clients, staff or a goods and services tax registration. We decide which option suits the start based on your profile.

What we do

Murblz specialists review the company's and owners' profile before applying, choose a bank in New Zealand where the chances are higher, prepare the document file and business description to the bank's requirements and handle the correspondence with the bank until it decides. The quote is fixed in writing before work starts; the decision to open the account is always the bank's, so we assess the chances honestly in advance.

The work goes step by step. First we look at why the company needs the account and what already links it to New Zealand. Then we review the ownership structure and source of funds documents through the bank's eyes and say plainly if the chances are low. After that we prepare a certified file, a business description and answers to standard review questions, file the application and support the director's interview. Once the account is open, we help with the tax number, goods and services tax registration and the annual return.

What we do

• Corporate account - opening assistance

See also

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

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