Your supporting documents

Whether you're joining Tide or already a member, you may be asked to provide supporting documents which verify your identity, business and address.

If you've been asked to provide yours, don't worry - this page will tell you everything you need to know.

Why we need supporting documents

To help keep our members safe and meet our regulatory duties, we need to make sure that we know who joins our network.

There are only certain people and businesses we can accept to join Tide. This is called our eligibility criteria.

We need to prove that we're only onboarding those within our eligibility criteria, and that once they've joined they then continue to meet it.

Supporting documents provide proof of identity, address and business, which helps protect everyone from potential fraud and other illegal activity.

When you might need to provide supporting documents

You're joining Tide

All new applicants for a Tide account must prove their identity, address and, if applicable, their business.

This is to make sure they meet our eligibility criteria, and it's safe to provide them with our services.

Routine review

Once someone passes our eligibility criteria and becomes a member, we need to prove that they're still within our criteria.

For example, Tide doesn't accept gambling businesses. If a member joined with a plumbing business, and that business became a gambling business, we could no longer support them.

Supporting documents help prove that everyone is still within our criteria.

We're setting up your company

To set up your company, we need to prove various things to Companies House.

This makes sure everything is correct and legal, and that Companies House has accurate records of who owns the company and what this company is.

How to provide proof of your identity

Photos or screenshots are accepted for all documents, and they should be provided as PDF files.

Provide them by replying to our message in your app. Tap the 'Support' icon in the top right corner > 'Messages' to find it.

We only need one of any:

UK driving license

Must be non-expired, must not be provisional

Passport

Must be non-expired

ID card

Must be non-expired

Biometric residence permit

Must be non-expired

How to provide proof of your address

Photos or screenshots are accepted for all documents, and they should be provided as PDF files.

Provide them by replying to our message in your app. Tap the 'Support' icon in the top right corner > 'Messages' to find it.

We only need one of any:

UK driving license

Must be non-expired, must not be provisional

Biometric residence permit

Must be non-expired

Utility bill

Must be issued within last 3 months

Gas, electric, internet, television, and landline bills are all accepted

Council tax bill

Must be issued within the current tax year (April to April)

Council confirmation of electoral register entry

Must be issued within the last 12 months

Bank, building society or credit union statement

Must be issued in the last 3 months

Letter of bank account opening or a bank letter

Must be issued in the last 3 months

Must detail your banking information, not a marketing material

Original mortgage statement

Must be issued in the last 12 months

Must be from a recognised lender

HMRC self-assessment letter

Must be issued within the current tax year (April to April)

Must be personal to you rather than your business, and show your address rather than your business address

Solicitor’s letter

Must be issued within the last 3 months

Must confirm your recent house purchase

Land registry confirmation of address

Must be issued within the last 3 months

Signed tenancy agreement

The date you provide it must fall within the date the agreement relates to

Council or housing association rent card

Must be non-expired

Must cover the current time period

Government correspondence

Must be issued in the last 3 months

Must come from an official government department, such as Department for Work and Pensions or Home Office

National Insurance Number letter

Must be issued within the current tax year (April to April)

Must be personal to you rather than your business, and show your address rather than your business address

GP practice confirmation of registry

Must be issued in the last 12 months

Court-issued cocumentation

Must be issued in the last 3 months

NHS medical card

Must be non-expired

How to provide proof of your business

Rather than clearly stating a fact, such as your driving license stating your address, proof for your business can be trickier to verify.

So it’s best if you can provide as much evidence as possible from the options below.

We need to see that the evidence you provide is genuine, and hasn’t been created simply to satisfy our request.

Provide this proof by replying to our message in your app. Tap the 'Support' icon in the top right corner > 'Messages' to find it.

Business website

Most useful if it shows your business activity, such as the goods/services provided and the industry it operates in

Most useful if it shows your business operations, such as the age/size of the business and the trading/marketing channels

Most useful if it shows your business identity, such as the company name, registered name, copyright and registered company number

Business bank statements

Most useful if they show verifiable business transactions, such as showing your purchase of a website domain name

Most useful if they show verifiable business expenses, such as employee salaries or office space rent payments

CSV and PDF files are accepted, screenshots are not

Social media profiles

Such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

More useful the longer the profile has been established

Most useful if it shows your business activity, such as regular posts about offers and new products

Most useful if it shows customer engagement, such as through likes, comments, queries and feedback