A lot has been written about opening an account for an Estonian company. Almost every guide stays silent about one thing that in 2026 weighs more than the business plan or the turnover: the owner's passport and place of residence. That is how it happens that an entrepreneur does everything by the rules. And still receives a refusal that the bank does not explain.
Russia or Belarus and Ukraine are not the same situation
These have to be told apart at once. Ukrainian owners are not under sanctions. Their checks are more thorough than usual, but the road is there.
With a Russian or Belarusian passport, the circle is narrower. The sanctions check is mandatory, and it is not for a single bank to decide. The law says that a sanction “may prohibit the entry of the subject of the international sanction into the country, restrict international trade and international transactions and impose other prohibitions or obligations” (International Sanctions Act § 3 subsection 3). These prohibitions have to be followed by everyone — by people and by companies, banks included. This layer does not depend on your business plan. Everything else, however, does depend on you.
What the bank really wants: a link with Estonia and a solid file
The most concrete fact is the one from LHV. The bank requires a clear link with Estonia. It charges a fee for reviewing the application. That fee is not refunded if the bank does not open the account. If the owner does not live in Estonia, the fee for an Estonian company is 300 euros. For a company registered elsewhere it is 600 euros (lhv.ee). The e-Residency digital ID on its own is not a sufficient basis for opening an account.
The practical conclusion: submit the application only when the link with Estonia can be shown with documents. Otherwise you are paying for a “no” you could have predicted.
Three things make a file strong:
- Real clients and contracts. One or two signed contracts weigh more than a promised turnover.
- A clear personal geography. Where do you live, where do you pay taxes, from where do you run the company? The answers have to match each other and the bank's form.
- The origin of the capital, with a document. The share capital contribution has to match your tax history cleanly.
One thing you should not do: do not “simplify” the structure. Putting the company in the name of a spouse with a more convenient passport, or hiding the beneficial owner, is worse than open complexity. Identifying the beneficial owner is the bank's duty, not its choice.
Two accounts, not one
Keep two accounts at the same time: one at a proper bank, the other at a payment institution. Not “either–or”, but “and”. A single account means that freezing it stops the whole company.
If you are planning an application and do not want to lose the fee for nothing, let us talk for 15 minutes first. I will tell you honestly whether you would pass the sanctions check at all, and what else your file is missing. And all of that before you pay a fee that is not refunded.
This article was prepared with the help of artificial intelligence.