Identity verification for your FxPro account

Why to verify before the first deposit

Finish verification before you deposit because an unverified account can receive funds but cannot trade or withdraw them freely. The check establishes who you are and where you live, and until it clears the account is effectively read-only for the purposes that matter. Doing it first removes the window where your rand sits in the account and you cannot act on a gold setup you had planned.

The second reason is simpler: a failed or delayed check after funding turns a trading decision into an administrative one. If a document is rejected, you want that to happen while no money is committed, not while you are watching XAU/USD move and cannot place the order.

Verification is also where the entity question becomes concrete. For South Africa the onboarding entity is FxPro Markets Direct Costa Rica Latam SRL, and an FxPro entity holds an FSCA licence locally (FSP no. 45052). FxPro is licensed by the FCA (UK) and CySEC, and an FxPro entity holds an FSCA licence in South Africa; check which entity your own account is opened with, because local FSCA oversight and compensation may not apply to every account opened through offshore onboarding.

Which documents pass first time

Documents pass first time when the whole document is in frame, in colour, legible, and unedited. A photo of an identity document or passport page needs all four corners visible, no glare across the text, and no crop that removes the photo page or the machine-readable strip. A proof of address needs your name and your residential address visible together on the same document, and it needs to be recent enough for the check in force at the time.

The address document is where South African applicants most often stumble, usually because a bank statement shows a postal address or a care-of address rather than the residential one. Use a document that shows where you actually live, in your own name. If your name and address appear on separate pages of the same statement, submit the pages together rather than the one that looks tidier.

We are not going to quote you a document count or a turnaround time, because those depend on the check and on the entity handling your file. What we can say is that a complete, legible, unedited submission is the version that clears without a second attempt.

What sends a submission back

A submission goes back when the document is incomplete, edited, expired or does not match the details on the application. Common causes are a cropped identity page, a screenshot instead of a photograph, a black-and-white scan of a colour document, a name spelled differently from the application, and an address document that belongs to someone else at the same home. Each of these is fixable, but each costs a cycle.

The avoidable error is inconsistency. The name on your identity document, the name on your address document and the name you typed into the form must agree, including middle names and the order of names. If you use a shortened first name on the form and the full name on the document, expect a query.

Before you upload, open each file at full size and read it as a stranger would. If you cannot read the address or the document number, neither can the reviewer. Fixing it at that point is cheaper than fixing it after a rejection.

What to do once verification clears

Once verification clears, fund the account and then size your first gold position deliberately rather than at the platform default. Use the position size and margin calculators to translate your rand risk into a lot size on XAU/USD, where one standard lot is 100 oz and one pip is 0.01. At 1:200, a 0.10-lot position needs about $85.50 margin, which gives you a reference point for how much of your balance a given exposure ties up.

Keep the verified details unchanged afterwards. A later change of address or name is a fresh check, and it is easier to handle when the original file was clean. The account that trades smoothly is usually the one whose paperwork was boring and consistent from the start.

The legal basis for client verification under South Africa's FICA regime

The check exists because South African law requires it: the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA) obliges accountable institutions, including brokers serving South African clients, to identify and verify every client before opening an account or processing a deposit. FICA is the country's anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist-financing statute, and it places the duty on the broker, not on you. FxPro, through the entity that serves South Africa, must apply those obligations, and the FSCA supervises how the local entity meets them. Skipping verification is not a customer-service choice; it is a legal breach the broker cannot make.

FICA sits alongside the broader regulatory framework that governs your account. FxPro is licensed by the FCA (UK) and CySEC, and an FxPro entity holds an FSCA licence in South Africa — check which entity your own account is opened with. That matters because the entity named on your account determines which version of the rules applies to your file, including how long records are kept and what extra checks may be triggered. The verification you complete is therefore tied to a specific legal entity, not to the brand name alone.

The law also requires ongoing monitoring, not just a one-time check. Under FICA, the broker must keep your identification and verification records current and must be able to demonstrate to the FSCA that it knows who its clients are. That is why a document that was fine two years ago can be requested again, and why a change in your circumstances can reopen the file. The cost of this compliance is borne by the broker, but the practical effect is that your access to deposits, withdrawals and trading depends on a file that stays valid.

Document mistakes that cause rejection even when the file is genuine

The most common rejection is not a forged document but a photograph that fails the broker's image checks. A scan or photo that is cropped at the edges, taken at an angle, covered by a finger, or showing glare across the photo or text will be sent back even if the underlying document is valid. The same applies to a document photographed in low light or with a shadow across the machine-readable zone. The fix is a flat, well-lit colour image of the whole page, with all four corners visible and no reflection.

A second frequent mistake is a document that is expired or about to expire. Brokers apply a validity window, and an ID or passport that has passed its expiry date, or that expires within the short period the broker's policy allows, will be rejected. The exact window depends on the broker's policy and on the document type, so check the current requirement in your account before uploading. A document that is valid but whose expiry falls soon after submission can also trigger a request for a replacement.

The third mistake is a mismatch between the document and the account details. Your name, date of birth and address must match exactly, including middle names, hyphenation and the order of names. A document showing a maiden name, an abbreviated first name, or an address that differs from the one you entered will be flagged. The broker is legally required to resolve the discrepancy, not to accept the nearest match, so the cleanest path is to correct the account details first and then submit the document that matches them.

What happens to a deposit made before verification is approved

A deposit made before approval is typically received but held, not credited to your trading balance. The broker is required to identify you before it can give you access to the funds for trading, so the money sits in a pending or segregated state while the file is reviewed. You may see the deposit in your account history but be unable to trade with it or withdraw it. The exact treatment depends on the broker's policy and on the payment method used, so the practical answer is that the funds are not lost but are not usable until the check clears.

The hold is not a penalty and it does not mean the deposit failed. It reflects the legal sequencing: verification must precede the business relationship. In practice, a deposit made before approval can slow the whole process because the broker may need to reconcile the incoming funds with the identity it is still verifying. If the deposit came from a card or bank transfer in ZAR, the broker will also check that the account holder name on the payment matches the name on the trading account, which is one more reason to complete verification first.

If the verification is ultimately not approved, the deposit is returned to the source account rather than released to a third party. That return can take time and may involve the same funding channel, so a card or EFT deposit is refunded to that card or bank account. The broker will not send the money to a different name or a different account, because that would defeat the purpose of the check. The safe sequence is to submit and clear verification before making the first deposit, so the funds are usable immediately.

How the suitability questionnaire shapes the account you are given

The suitability questionnaire is a regulatory requirement that asks about your trading experience, financial situation and investment objectives. Its purpose is to establish whether the product is appropriate for you, not to test you. The answers change the outcome in two ways: they can determine whether you are placed in the retail category with its protections, or whether you are eligible for a different category, and they can trigger a warning if the product is not suitable for your stated circumstances. The exact questions depend on the broker and on the entity your account is opened with.

In South Africa, the answers also interact with the leverage cap. Maximum leverage is up to 1:200 for retail clients, and up to 1:500 for eligible or professional clients depending on the instrument. That is a cap, not a setting to aim at. A retail classification keeps you within the 1:200 ceiling, and the questionnaire is part of how the broker decides which category applies. Answering inaccurately to obtain a higher category is a compliance risk, because the broker is required to rely on the information you provide and can revisit it later.

The questionnaire does not change the instrument itself: gold (XAU/USD) is still 1 lot = 100 oz and one pip = 0.01, and the margin requirement is calculated from the leverage that applies to your account. At 1:200, a 0.10-lot gold position needs about $85.50 margin. What the answers change is the framework around that position: the warnings you receive, the category you are placed in, and the leverage ceiling available to you. If your circumstances change, you can ask to update the answers, and the broker may re-run the assessment.

Proof of address accepted in South Africa and the recency window

Proof of address must be a document that shows your name and your residential address, issued by an independent third party. In South Africa, commonly accepted documents include a bank statement, a municipal or utility bill, a rates account, a lease agreement, and a tax document from SARS. The document must be recent; the exact recency window depends on the broker's policy, but it is typically measured in months rather than years. A document older than the window will be rejected even if the address is correct.

The address on the document must match the address you entered on the account. If you live at a different address from the one on your bank statement, the broker may accept an alternative document that shows the actual residential address, such as a lease or a utility bill in your name. A PO box, a business address or an address that belongs to someone else will not pass. The document must also show your full name as it appears on your ID, not an initials-only version or a joint account holder's name alone.

The format matters as much as the content. A screenshot of an online statement can be rejected if it does not show the issuer's branding, the full statement period and your name and address clearly. A PDF downloaded directly from the bank or utility provider is usually safer than a photograph of a printed page. If the document is in a language other than English, the broker may require a translation. The safest approach is to submit the most recent original document you have, in colour, with all pages that show the address.

When the name on the document and the name on the card differ

A mismatch between the name on your identity document and the name on the card or bank account used for funding is treated as a discrepancy that must be resolved before the deposit is accepted. The broker is required to know the source of the funds and to ensure that the payment instrument belongs to the account holder. A card in a spouse's name, a joint card, or a card showing a maiden name will trigger a request for explanation and possibly additional documents, such as a marriage certificate or a card ownership declaration.

The resolution depends on the reason for the difference. If the card shows a maiden name, a marriage certificate linking the two names is usually sufficient. If the card belongs to a family member, the broker may refuse the deposit and ask you to fund from an account in your own name; third-party funding is generally not accepted because it obscures the audit trail. If the difference is a minor spelling variation, the broker may accept a corrected document or a signed statement, but the decision is the broker's and depends on its policy.

The cleanest approach is to fund only from an account or card that carries the same name as your verified identity document. That avoids the mismatch entirely and keeps the audit trail simple. If a mismatch already exists, do not make further deposits from the same source until the broker has resolved it; additional deposits can complicate the reconciliation. The broker will not release funds to a third party, so the resolution always runs back to proving that the payment instrument and the account holder are the same person.

checked 2026-07-09 · fxscouts.co.za/broker/fxpro; sashares.co.za/fxpro-review; fxpro.com/about/licences