How To Open A First Bank Domiciliary Account

Now that we have more people in the online business, the best time to talk about first bank domiciliary account opening is now. Because in one way or the other, you will always want to transact business that involves foreign currency. In this post, I will guide you on how to open a first bank domiciliary account.

I do receive foreign currency from my clients abroad, but not into my Naira account. If you have been receiving foreign currency into your Naira account, then you are being cheated because the bank rate is not the same as the black market rate. As of August 2021, the dollar exchange rate from the black market is 510 while the inter-bank exchange rate is pegged at 432. Do you see the difference?

Table of content

• What is a domiciliary account
• Why should you open a domiciliary account in Nigeria 
• How to Open a First Bank Domiciliary Account
  • First Bank Domiciliary Account Opening Requirements

What is a Domiciliary Account?

A Domiciliary account is a bank account opened in Nigeria with any traditional bank and that is operated in foreign currency. The account allows you to save, receive and send money in US Dollars, Pounds Sterling, or Euro with your money valued at the prevailing exchange rate. This account is funded through bank deposits, traveler’s cheques, cash inflows, and lodgement of foreign currency cheques.

Note that you cannot transfer money from a naira account to a dollar account. But you can easily transfer money from a domiciliary account also known as DOM account to another DOM account

So if you are a serious online business entrepreneur, and you don’t have a domiciliary account, then you should consider opening one for yourself. This is why I don’t too border about PayPal not receiving money because I use my DOM account to receive money from online stores abroad.

Why should you open a domiciliary account in Nigeria? 

To start with, if you want to send money into Nigeria, this is your only option. You can open a domiciliary account with most banks in Nigeria and can make transactions from in and outside of Nigeria. 

The benefits of having a dom account vary from one bank to another but usually include the following:

• International business. It is the best option for those who do business internationally as it enables them to make both domestic and international transactions
• Savings account. You can use the domiciliary account as a savings account, which proves especially useful for parents who want to save money for their children’s education abroad
• Send and receive money internationally. The domiciliary account can be used to transfer funds abroad and also to receive funds in USD, EUR, GBP, etc. from another international account
• Attractive rates. Check with your bank as usually, banks provide attractive interest rates for dom accounts
• Online banking. Gain access to online features such as mobile banking, debit card, online banking, transaction alert via Email, and more

How to Open a First Bank Domiciliary Account

Many banks offer these services but I’m going to focus on First Bank in this article.

First Bank Domiciliary Account Opening Requirements

1. Minimum opening deposit of $100, €100 or £100 (you can always withdraw some part of the money leaving a minimum of $100 or £50)
2. Valid means of Identification: e.g International passport, National ID or Drivers license.
3. Two (2) independent and satisfactory references (For Checking account only)
4. Two (2) recent passport photographs are required
5. Utility Bill, to verify your address
6. Resident permit (for non-Nigerians)

Once you have all the above in place,

• Visit any First Bank of Nigeria closest to you
• Head straight to their customer service desk and request that you want to open a domiciliary account with them.
• You might be asked if you already have current or saving account with them before. If you don’t, they will open one (current or saving) alongside with the domiciliary account.
• After that, you will be given a foreign currency account opening form, and specimen signature card to complete and sign.
• You can decide to take all the forms home, fill them properly and return back with them to submit
• After they must have gone through the forms and make necessary corrections, you will be asked to go home.
• Within 48-72hours, you will receive an SMS indicating that your domiciliary account has been open with your account.
• Go back to the bank and pay in the minimum deposit to activate the account.