KYC

KYC, short for Know Your Customer, is the identity-verification process a financial app or bank completes before letting a user send, receive, or hold money. In the United States, the Bank Secrecy Act requires banks and money-service businesses to verify a customer’s identity and monitor transactions for signs of fraud or money laundering. A typical KYC check collects a user’s full legal name, date of birth, address, and a government-issued photo ID, sometimes paired with a selfie to confirm the ID belongs to the person using it. For a US-to-LATAM remittance sender, KYC is usually a one-time step completed before a transfer goes through, not a recurring requirement or a form of financial advice.

See also: KYC explained: why apps ask for your ID for a deeper walkthrough of the verification process and required documents.