How to open a PayPal business account in Ireland: Step by step

Heard about the PayPal Business account and wondering if it could be the right solution for your needs? As with all business decisions involving finances, there’s a lot to consider and knowing the facts can help you to make the best decision for your circumstances.

To that end, we’re going to run you through what there is to know about opening a PayPal Business account in Ireland. We’ll take a look at how to open an account, what’s required, if there’s fees for opening one and a few FAQs that could be relevant.

We’ll also introduce you to the Wise Business account, which allows you to receive payments as a local company in +9 currencies, including in Euro.

Wise: an international account
for your business 💼

How to set up a PayPal Business account in Ireland: Step by step

You can open a PayPal Business account completely online through the PayPal website. Here’s the step by step process you need to follow to create one for your business¹:

1. Go to the PayPal website and select the option to open a Business account
2. Fill in the business name, contact details and choose the primary currency
3. Provide information about the nature of the business and its registration
4. Give information about yourself and provide accepted ID
5. When you provide all information, submit the sign up application
6. Verify the email address attached to the account
7. Link a bank account to your new PayPal Business account

What are the requirements for creating a PayPal Business account?

To create a PayPal business account you’ll need to provide all of the information that’s requested during the application process. Here’s an idea of what you'll be asked¹:

• Country of business registration
• Business registration number
• Date of initial business registration
• Personal ID like a passport or driver's licence

Is opening a PayPal Business account free?

There’s no cost to sign up or maintain a PayPal Business account.² The account itself is free to have, but there are fees that apply to transactions made through it.

How long does it take to open a PayPal Business account in Ireland?

If you have all of the required information on hand it should take about 10 minutes to sign up for a PayPal Business account. It should then take around 5 to 10 minutes extra to link a bank account to the PayPal account, so that you can transfer money in and out, and make payments.³

Wise: Discover an international business account for your company

While a PayPal Business account might suit your needs, it’s good to know what else is out there. One alternative is the Wise Business account.

You can do business locally and internationally with the help of the Wise Business account. You can hold and spend more than 40 currencies though the account, and you get access to local account details for +9 currencies.

Anytime you need to exchange money, it's converted using the mid-market exchange rate (the same you usually find on Google).

The Wise Business Account also has many other benefits, including:

• The ability to make batch payments
• Integrate invoicing software
• Order debit cards for you and your team.

Open your Wise Business
account online 🚀

FAQ: Setting up a PayPal Business Account in Ireland

Got questions about opening a PayPal account for your Irish business? Take a look at these FAQs to see if it gives you the answers.

Why do I need a PayPal Business account?

Not all businesses need a PayPal account, but it could be useful if you want customers to be able to pay you using PayPal’s merchant system.

How to verify a PayPal Business account?

After successfully opening your PayPal Business account you’ll be able to start transacting with it. But, to be able to complete a transaction you’ll need to verify your account, proving that the bank or card details attached to PayPal do actually belong to you.

Verification is done through your PayPal login, with prompts appearing when you go to add or confirm your card or bank account.⁴

Can I have a Paypal Personal and Business account?

The quick answer to this is yes, you can open a PayPal Personal account and a PayPal Business account.⁵

What you can’t do is have multiple Personal accounts and multiple Business accounts.

Can I have multiple PayPal Business accounts?

If you need multiple PayPal accounts for your business there are two options⁶:

1. The first option is that you can have secondary users managing each account.
2. The second option is to link and manage the accounts using the PayPal enterprise feature.

The enterprise feature enables users to link different PayPal Business accounts under a primary account and manage them centrally. It’s controlled by secondary users called enterprise admins, who can be given access to the accounts by you and have their responsibilities managed though the enterprise admin permissions.

If you want to start an enterprise using PayPal, here’s what you need to do.

1. Log in to any of the PayPal business accounts you want to link
2. Click on the “Link Account” option
3. Choose a name for your enterprise
4. Select which of the secondary users listed on the account you want to be your enterprise admins
5. Input the email address attached to the account you want to link and use it to share a joining code with the people being invited to become admins.

Can I change a PayPal Business account to a Personal account?

PayPal doesn’t appear to allow you to convert your Business account to a Personal account.⁷ Instead, their recommendation is that you open a completely new Personal account.

If you want to use the same email that’s registered to the Business account, you’ll have to close your Business account down before you can open the Personal account.

Going the other way is much simpler. To upgrade a Personal account to a Business account you just need to go to your PayPal account settings, select the option to “Upgrade to a Business account” then follow the prompts to enter the information required to make the change.

What is the difference between a PayPal personal vs PayPal business account?

Here are some of the key differences:

Can I use PayPal as a business bank account?

PayPal doesn’t necessarily offer the same features as you’d get from the typical high street bank.

For example, with an Irish PayPal account you can send and receive payments using their system, but you don’t get Irish account details with an IBAN and BIC that are used by the SEPA payment system.

As a result it may not be able to meet what you need for your business banking.

Sources: