How to open a Mercury account from Sri Lanka

Can Sri Lankans open a Mercury account?

Yes. Mercury opens accounts for US companies whose founders live outside the US, and Sri Lanka isn’t on its list of prohibited countries. That matters, because several of our neighbours are: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, the Maldives and Bhutan are all on it.

The list is based on where you live, not your citizenship. A Sri Lankan living in Colombo is eligible. Mercury still reviews every application and can say no for other reasons.

What Mercury asks for

Mercury only opens accounts for companies formed in the US or a US territory. For a Sri Lankan founder, that usually means a US LLC. During the application, Mercury asks for:

• Your company’s legal name, its industry and a description of what it does.
• A physical business address. It can be residential, and it can be outside the US.
• Your company’s source of funds, for example your savings or client income.
• Your current or planned US operations, such as US customers or US suppliers.
• Business documents: your formation documents and the EIN confirmation from the IRS.
• Each owner’s home address and ID. Anyone who owns 25% or more must be listed, with a passport.

The address rule that trips people up

Mercury won’t accept a registered agent’s address, a P.O. box or a UPS Store address as your business address. Many formation services put the registered agent’s address everywhere, which gets applications sent back.

Use the address where you actually live and work in Sri Lanka. Mercury accepts residential and international addresses for the business, and it may ask for a document to prove it, so keep a recent bill or bank statement in your name ready.

For your own address as an owner, Mercury also refuses mail drops and virtual address services. Use your real home address.

What Mercury costs

The standard Mercury account has no monthly fees, no minimum balance and no overdraft fees. ACH transfers, wires and checks in US dollars are free. Mercury Plus, at $29.90 a month, adds extras most new founders don’t need.

Businesses Mercury won’t open

Mercury says it can’t open accounts for money services businesses and crypto exchanges, adult entertainment, cannabis, internet gambling or trusts. Some other industries need more information. If your business is in one of these areas, talk to us before you form a company for it.

Getting the money to Sri Lanka

Mercury holds US dollars. To get rupees into your Sri Lankan account, most founders send dollars from Mercury to their Wise account by ACH (free), then send them on to their Sri Lankan bank with Wise.

Wise can send to any bank account in Sri Lanka, up to LKR 4.98 million per transfer, and usually arrives the same working day once converted.

If you’d rather keep dollars, you can send a USD wire from Mercury to a foreign currency account at your Sri Lankan bank. Mercury doesn’t charge for it, but intermediary and receiving banks may deduct their own fees.

If Mercury says no

Your LLC and EIN aren’t affected. Mercury lets you reapply, so start by fixing the likely cause: a registered agent address, a vague business description, or details that don’t match your company documents. If Mercury still won’t open an account, Wise Business can hold US dollars for your LLC and receive payouts from many platforms.