Apply to become an electronic money or a payment institution

Find out how to apply to us if your firm wants to provide payment services, issue electronic money or become a registered account information service provider.

This page will help you determine whether you need to apply to be authorised by us or registered with us. In either case, follow our guidance on what to read first and how to prepare your application.

Will your firm provide payment services or issue electronic money (e-money)?

Is your firm one of the following types?

credit union
National Savings bank
bank (otherwise authorised by us)
building society (otherwise authorised by us)
e-money institution (authorised under the EMRs)
municipal bank

You don't need to register or be authorised under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (the PSRs)[1].

Will your firm provide an account information service (AIS) and/or a payment initiation service (PIS)?

Both are online services:

an AIS provides consolidated information on one or more payment accounts held by a payment service user with payment service providers
a PIS initiates a payment order at the request of a payment service user with respect to a payment account that they hold (this must only be done with the user's consent, and as an authenticated payment – a PIS provides an alternative to paying online using a credit card or debit card)

In a 12-month period, does your firm project to generate monthly average payment transactions of more than €3m?

You can choose to be registered as a small payment institution (SPI).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for payment institution applicants[2].

You must apply to become an authorised payment institution (API).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for payment institution applicants[2].

If the only payment service your firm will be providing is AIS, you should apply to register as a registered account information service provider (RAISP).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for RAISP applicants[3].

Is your firm one of the following types?

credit institution (ie bank or building society)
credit union
municipal bank

You may need a Part 4A permission[4] under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA)[5].

Please read to our page about how to apply for authorisation[6] as a FSMA firm.

Does your firm project to issue average outstanding e-money of more than €5m?

You may apply to register as a small electronic money institution (SEMI).

As an SEMI, you can't provide an account information service (AIS) or a payment initiation service (PIS).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for electronic money institution applicants[7].

You must apply to become an authorised electronic money institution (AEMI).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for electronic money institution applicants[8].

Is your firm one of the following types?

credit institution (ie bank or building society)
credit union
municipal bank

You can:

refer to the definitions[1] of payment services and e-money
consider whether you provide payment services[8]
check if the payment services activities you'll be carrying out are excluded from our regulation[9]

You may need a Part 4A permission[5] under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA)[6].

Please read to our page about how to apply for authorisation[7] as a FSMA firm.

Will you provide payment services that are independent from your e-money products?

We refer to this as ‘unrelated payment services’ because they're services that don’t arise as a direct consequence of your e-money activity.

Note that you’ll need to provide additional information in your application about your unrelated payment services.

Will your firm provide an account information service (AIS) and/or a payment initiation service (PIS)?

Both are online services:

an AIS provides consolidated information on one or more payment accounts held by a payment service user with payment service providers
a PIS initiates a payment order at the request of a payment service user with respect to a payment account that they hold (this must only be done with the user's consent, and as an authenticated payment – a PIS provides an alternative to paying online using a credit card or debit card)

Does your firm project to issue average outstanding e-money of more than €5m?

You must apply to become an authorised electronic money institution (AEMI).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for electronic money institution applicants[9].

It’s likely that your firm will only be issuing e-money, so you'll need to become an electronic money institution.

Does your firm project to issue average outstanding e-money of more than €5m?

You must apply to become an authorised electronic money institution (AEMI).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for electronic money institution applicants[16].

You may apply to register as a small electronic money institution (SEMI).

As an SEMI:

you can't provide an account information service (AIS) or a payment initiation service (PIS), and
your average monthly payment transactions in a 12-month period mustn't exceed €3m – otherwise you'll need to apply to be an authorised electronic money institution (AEMI)

Please read the rest of this page and the page for electronic money institution applicants[17].

You may apply to register as a small electronic money institution (SEMI).

Please read the rest of this page and the page for electronic money institution applicants[18].

Please also read the other page in this section that's relevant to your type of firm:

If you're already authorised or registered under the PSRs or EMRs

You can:

apply to vary your authorisation, registration, limitation(s) or requirement(s)[-6]
register changes to your firm's details[-5], which you must keep up to date
notify us[-4] before making changes to the people responsible for your firm
request our approval for a change in control[-3]
cancel your authorisation or registration[-2]

If you're an innovative firm

You may be able to get extra support with your application.

Find out more about these services in our Innovation Hub[-1].

What to read first

Whether you're applying to be a PI, an EMI or a RAISP, we expect you to read everything listed below.

The application process

Our how to apply[15] page explains:

our expectations of all firms
the application process
how to avoid delays with your application

This page is relevant whether you're applying to be authorised or registered.

You must read it in full before submitting your application through our Connect[-1] system.

The rules in our Handbook

In your application, you'll need to explain how the permissions you're applying for match up with your business model.

Please refer to the following modules in our Handbook of rules and guidance:

PERG15[0] – guidance on the scope of the PSRs
PERG3A[1] – guidance on the scope of the EMRs

You must also read our principles[2] – these are the fundamental obligations of all regulated firms.

Our approach document

In Payment Services and Electronic Money – Our Approach (PDF)[3] we set out our approach to implementing the:

Payment Services Regulations 2017 (the PSRs)
Electronic Money Regulations 2011 (the EMRs)
payment services and e-money-related rules in our Handbook

In particular, refer to section 3 on authorisation and registration.

Our letters to your sector

Our priorities letter[4] describes the actions we expect you to take to deliver the 3 outcomes that we've set for firms in your sector.

Our implementing the Consumer Duty letter[5] explains how your firm can embed our Consumer Duty[6], including examples of good and poor practice. We also set out key findings from our review of payments firms’ implementation of the Consumer Duty[7].

Our letter[8] on authorised push payment fraud reimbursement sets out our expectations about measures implemented by the Payment Systems Regulator.

Our how to apply[29] page explains:

our expectations of all firms
the application process
how to avoid delays with your application

This page is relevant whether you're applying to be authorised or registered.

You must read it in full before submitting your application through our Connect[30] system.

In your application, you'll need to explain how the permissions you're applying for match up with your business model.

Please refer to the following modules in our Handbook of rules and guidance:

PERG15[31] – guidance on the scope of the PSRs
PERG3A[32] – guidance on the scope of the EMRs

You must also read our principles[33] – these are the fundamental obligations of all regulated firms.

In Payment Services and Electronic Money – Our Approach (PDF)[34] we set out our approach to implementing the:

Payment Services Regulations 2017 (the PSRs)
Electronic Money Regulations 2011 (the EMRs)
payment services and e-money-related rules in our Handbook

In particular, refer to section 3 on authorisation and registration.

Our priorities letter[35] describes the actions we expect you to take to deliver the 3 outcomes that we've set for firms in your sector.

Our implementing the Consumer Duty letter[36] explains how your firm can embed our Consumer Duty[37], including examples of good and poor practice. We also set out key findings from our review of payments firms’ implementation of the Consumer Duty[38].

Our letter[39] on authorised push payment fraud reimbursement sets out our expectations about measures implemented by the Payment Systems Regulator.

Application fee

You have to pay a fee to submit your application. The fee is non-refundable.

The amount you'll pay will depend on what type of firm you are and what pricing category you fall into.

We will reject your application without assessing it if you don't pay the correct application fee.

Find out more about our authorisation and registration fees[7], including how to pay.

Prepare your application

You'll need to submit your application through Connect[41]. The first thing to do is register[7].

Your application must include:

the application form relevant to your type of firm
the supporting material required for PIs[8], EMIs[9] or RAISPs[10] (whichever applies to you)
everything listed below

Information you must provide

You’ll need to provide:

answers to every question on the application form – if you think something isn't applicable, explain why in your supporting documents
a main contact – this must be an individual at your firm, not a third party adviser
your firm's complete policies and procedures – these shouldn’t be generic templates, they need to be tailored to your business model
the correct forms for individuals and anyone with a qualifying holding (controllers)
evidence that the individuals have suitable knowledge and experience in payment services and/or e-money
information in relation to identifying and mitigating risks to your firm’s regulated business which arise from any unregulated activities that your firm carries out
your firm's financial forecasts (including balance sheet forecasts), and 2 stress-tested scenarios (if applicable) – learn how to prepare your firm’s financial information[11]
arrangements on capital, safeguarding, wind down arrangements and professional indemnity insurance, if applicable, within the statutory deadline

You may also wish to provide:

supporting documents, where relevant, that clearly state which section of the application form they relate to
flow of funds (usually in diagrams)
a typical customer journey (usually in screenshots or a diagram) outlining how a customer would interact with your business

How long it takes for us to allocate a case officer and determine your application

	PI *	EMI *	RAISP
Approved/registered applications (1 January to 31 December 2023)	Between 10% and 15%	Between 15% and 20%	Between 25% and 30%
Average time to reach a determination	Please refer to our operating service metrics[12]
Current timeframe to allocate a case officer	Maximum 21 days	Maximum 21 days	Maximum 21 days

* includes variations of permission

How to move from authorised to registered, or vice versa

If you want to go from being authorised to registered or vice versa, you should submit a new application, rather than applying to vary your existing permission.

Make sure you submit the correct application, or it will be rejected.

Directors' and managers' reputation and experience

You must make sure that anyone who is a director of your firm, or who will be responsible for the management of your payment services and/or e-money services:

is of good repute
has appropriate knowledge and experience

Final check and submit

Before you submit everything on Connect, give it one more check to be sure you've included everything. We'll reject your submission without assessing it if you don't provide the minimum information we ask for.

Our how to apply[13] page has 3 top tips to ensure your application goes smoothly, and explains what happens after you've submitted it.

If you need more help

Please contact us on 0300 500 0597. We're open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 9am to 5pm, and Thursday 9.45am to 5pm.

20/11/2024 : Information added 'Our letters to your sector' updated

19/09/2024 : Information added Update to fees section

19/06/2024 : Information added Applications process updated

14/05/2024 : Information changed Application details updated

16/08/2023 : Information changed Page updated again as part of website refresh

10/02/2023 : Editorial amendment page update as part of the website refresh

29/07/2020: Information added information on what to read before applying

First published: 27/04/2015 Last updated: 20/11/2024 See all updates

Apply to become an electronic money or a payment institution

On this page

What to read first

Application fee

Prepare your application

Final check and submit

If you need more help

On this page

In this section

More on EMIs and PIs