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What you need for an ID check

There may be times when we need to see your documents to confirm your identity (ID) and/or address. This can be done in several ways, but we’ll always let you know which is right for you.

Please make sure your documents are in date and have your current and correct information.

Take me straight to:

Uploading documents online
Presenting documents at a branch
Children under 18
Sending documents from outside the UK
International relocations (corporate clients)

Uploading documents online

What ID documents can we accept online?

You'll need to upload a photo of one of these documents:

  • UK photocard driving licence
  • Passport
  • National identity card issued in the EU, or by one of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Norway, Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, Switzerland, UAE or USA
  • Full UK birth certificate (under 18s only)

We can't accept national identity cards issued in Greece or Romania.

What proof of address documents can we accept online?

If you uploaded your UK photocard driving licence as proof of ID, you don't need to upload separate proof of address. Otherwise, upload one of these documents:

  • UK photocard driving licence
  • Bank or credit card statement
  • Council tax bill
  • HMRC (HM Revenue and Customs) tax notification
  • UK personal tax summary
  • Mortgage statement
  • Sky, cable TV or utility bill
  • Department for Work and Pensions, Jobcentre Plus or Veterans UK letter confirming your right to benefits
  • Letter from a UK Border Agency accredited college or university, confirming your acceptance onto a qualifying course

You can upload either a photo of the document or PDF.

When uploading statements and bills, make sure that:

  • The document is addressed to you
  • The document is dated within the last 4 months
  • You upload the page that shows your name and current address
  • The whole document is visible

If using council tax bills, these need to be either for the current billing year and dated within the last 13 months, or next billing year and dated within last 4 months.

Presenting documents at a branch

If you only have a limited number of documents, it's better to visit a branch instead - because we can accept a wider range of documents that way.

What ID documents can we accept at a branch?

You'll need to bring one of these documents:

  • UK driving licence
  • Passport
  • National identity card issued in the EU or by one of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Norway, Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, Switzerland, UAE or USA

If you don't have any of these, you may still use other documents. However, this may limit the range of services available to you.

Other acceptable documents include:

  • Biometric UK residence permit
  • Travel documents (issued in the UK by the Home Office)
  • Current Northern Ireland voter's card
  • HMRC (HM Revenue and Customs) tax notification (dated within the last 4 months)
  • Department for Work and Pensions, Jobcentre Plus or Veterans UK letter confirming your right to benefits (dated within the last 4 months)
  • Letter confirming Refugee Status

You can use your UK photocard driving licence to confirm both your identity and address.

We can't accept national identity cards issued in Greece or Romania.

If you don't live in the UK, you must always present a passport or national identity card.

What proof of address documents can we accept in branch?

We'll need to see the original (not a copy) of one of the following documents:

  • Council tax bill (for current year), including online bills
  • Utility bill (dated within last 4 months), including online bills
  • Phone bill (dated within the last 4 months) - mobile phone bills are not acceptable
  • Satellite or cable TV bills (dated within the last 4 months), including online bills
  • A valid overseas driving licence (must state address)
  • Credit card bill (dated within the last 4 months), including online credit card statements - certain conditions may apply for financial providers outside the UK
  • Bank, building society, or credit union statement (includes online statements), showing current activity dated within the last 4 months - certain conditions may apply for financial providers outside the UK
  • Mortgage statement from a recognised lender (dated within the last 12 months)
  • HMRC tax notification (dated within the last 4 months)
  • Tenancy agreement (must be from a local council or reputable lending agency)
  • Department for Work and Pensions, Jobcentre Plus or Veterans UK letter confirming your right to benefits (dated within the last 4 months)
  • National Health Service letter (under 18s only)
  • Conditional or unconditional proof of acceptance on to qualifying course – letter or slip issued by UCAS (student accounts only)
  • Letter from a UK Border Agency-accredited college or university confirming your acceptance onto a qualifying course
  • Local education authority (LEA) notice of financial support (student bank accounts only)
  • Letter from employer, confirming your address and that you currently work for them (it must be a known employer)

Children under 18

If a child doesn't have their own proof of address, we will need to see proof of the parent or guardian's address.

What ID documents can we accept for a child?

Whether you're uploading documents online or bringing them into a branch, we need to see one of the following documents that belong to the child:

  • Passport
  • UK photocard driving licence (for children over 16)
  • National identity card issued in the EU, or by one of the following countries: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Norway, Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, Switzerland, UAE or USA.
  • Full birth/adoption certificate issued in the UK or Channel Islands, Isle of Man

The birth certificate must include:

  • Child’s full first name and surname
  • Parent’s name and surname
  • Date of issue
  • Place of issue
  • Child’s date of birth

If you're applying online, we will send you a separate request for this.

What ID documents can we accept in branch?

In the branch, we can accept the same documents as online. Additionally, you can also use:

  • National Health Service (NHS) letter
  • Child Benefit or Child Tax Credit documentation

The child must be present to complete the verification. If the child is under 16, a parent or guardian must also be there.

Sending documents from outside the UK

This advice can vary depending on where you live. The process can be completed online or via post. We'll advise exactly what you'll need to provide, and which channel is relevant to you.

What ID documents are accepted if I'm outside the UK?

Provide one of the following documents, either by posting a certified copy, or by uploading photos of the original documents online.

  • Your current passport or travel document (copies of passports should include all pages that contain signatures, the passport number and any extension dates where applicable)
  • Your national identity card issued by one of the following countries: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE or USA

What proof of address documents are accepted if I'm outside the UK?

You'll need one of the following:

  • Utility bill dated within the last 4 months
  • Bank statement dated within the last 4 months (statements from HSBC Group outside of the UK are acceptable)
  • Valid and current drivers licence (must include your full name, signature and photograph)
  • Valid national ID card (must include your full name, photograph, date of birth, ID number and issue date)

Certifying non-UK documents

We may need non-UK documents to be certified by an independent authority.

You don't need to certify original documents uploaded online, unless they're in a language other than English. In which case they'll need to be translated and certified.

All other documents (including copies of passports and ID cards received in the post) be must be certified.

You'll need to do one of the following:

  • If you're resident in a country or region of equivalent jurisdiction to the UK, contact your local bank and ask them to certify your documents - if you're not sure this applies to you get in touch with our team on 03457 404 404, or if you're a Premier customer call 03457 70 70 70
  • Contact the UK Embassy or Consulate where a certification service is provided
  • Contact a lawyer, solicitor or barrister in your country/region of residence listed on the Legal 500 or on this UK Government list of lawyers abroad

Ask your chosen certifier to write a note on the document they are certifying, as follows.

For copies of documents which include a photo of you:

I [full name of certifier] confirm that this is an accurate copy of the original [type of document] and the photo is a true likeness of the named person.

For copies of documents without a photo of you (proofs of address):

I [full name of certifier] confirm this is an original [type of document], in the name of [applicant's name] issued by [issuing institution] on [date of issue].

Your certifier should also write:

  • Their signature and full name
  • Their occupation, company (or professional) address and phone number
  • Their professional registration number (if they have one)
  • The date 

If you use the postal process, you'll need to send us the certified documents using the pre-paid envelope we provided.

Please print and complete the return form (PDF, 99KB) for certified documents and enclose it with your certified documents and then send them to:

HSBC UK

Customer Service Centre

BX8 1HB

International relocations (corporate clients)

If you work for one of our corporate clients and have recently relocated to the UK (in the last 6 months), we can also accept a letter from your employer confirming your employment online.

The letter must:

  • Be on an official headed paper
  • Contain your full name
  • Contain your new UK address
  • Include a telephone number and email address of your HR department who can confirm the details

Please use this option only if you work for a qualifying employer. Contact your HR department if you are unsure whether this applies to you. Letters from other employers will be rejected which will delay your application.

We can only accept the  full (otherwise known as ‘long’ or ‘A4’) UK birth certificate because it contains the child's details, parents’ details and exact place of birth. The short version doesn’t include these details.

It's easy to answer your query online. Visit our Help page to find out how.