Can a Pakistani open a Chase or Bank of America account online?

Not as a non-resident sitting in Pakistan. Chase's guide for non-residents asks for proof of a US address, and Bank of America asks for a US mailing address and points non-residents to a financial center appointment.

Is a USD account the same as a US bank account?

No. A USD account gives you US account details for receiving payments by ACH or wire, held in your name. A US bank account is a full account at a US bank, with branches, checks and the rest. For getting paid from abroad, the details are what clients need.

Do I need a US LLC to get paid in dollars?

No. An LLC is for running a US business. To get paid as an individual, US account details in your own name are enough, and you avoid the yearly Form 5472 filing that comes with a foreign-owned LLC.

Can I open a Roshan Digital Account if I live in Pakistan?

Only the foreign currency version, and only if you've declared assets held abroad in your wealth statement. The State Bank says digital onboarding isn't available for residents yet, so you'd need to visit a branch.

Can You Open a US Bank Account From Pakistan? (2026)

Not in the way most people mean it. You can't open a normal personal US bank account from Pakistan, online, without a US address. Bank of America and Chase both list a US address for non-residents, and Bank of America points you to a branch appointment. What you can get from Pakistan is US account details in your own name, which is usually what a client or platform is really asking for.

This guide covers why the US bank route is closed for most Pakistanis, the four routes that do work in 2026, and what you need for each. Everything below was checked on 22 October 2026.

Key takeaways

US law doesn't ban non-residents from US bank accounts, but banks must collect a street address and ID, and big banks ask for a US address too.
Bank of America and Chase list a US address for non-resident customers. Bank of America routes non-residents to a financial center appointment.
The US LLC route gives you a business account, not a personal one, and it comes with yearly IRS filings.
Wise still doesn't give USD account details to Pakistan addresses.
For getting paid, US account details in your own name do the job: a routing number and account number your client can send ACH or a wire to.

Can I open a US bank account from Pakistan?

Not a normal personal one, from home. US banks must record your name, date of birth, street address and an ID number before opening an account. Bank of America and Chase both list a US address for non-residents, and Bank of America sends them to a financial center. From Pakistan, the practical option is US account details in your name.

Nothing in US law says a Pakistani can't hold a US bank account. The rule that governs account opening, the Customer Identification Program in 31 CFR 1020.220, only says what a bank must collect. For a non-US person, a passport number and country of issue counts as the ID number.

The barrier is each bank's own policy. Bank of America's page for international customers says non-resident aliens must give "both a physical foreign address and U.S. mailing address," two unexpired IDs, and it points you to an appointment with an associate at a financial center. Chase's guide for non-residents lists proof of a US address, such as a utility bill dated within 60 days.

If you don't have a US address and a reason to be at a US branch, that's the end of the road for a personal US bank account.

Can I open a US bank account if I'm not a resident?

Yes, usually in person and with a US address. Bank of America doesn't need a Social Security number and accepts a passport plus a second ID. Other banks may ask for an SSN or an ITIN, which the IRS issues only for federal tax purposes and can take 9 to 11 weeks from overseas.

So the non-resident route exists. It's built for people who are in the US, or travel there often: students, people on work visas, people who own US property.

For someone in Lahore or Karachi it means a US visa, a flight, a US mailing address you can actually receive post at, and a bank willing to keep a non-resident customer. You also can't get an ITIN just to open an account. The IRS says you need a federal tax purpose, such as being required to file a US tax return.

Which US bank has branches in Pakistan?

Citibank is the US bank with branches in Pakistan, in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. It doesn't serve the public the way it used to. Citi agreed to sell its Pakistan card and consumer lending portfolio to HBL in 2012, and today it focuses on corporate and investment banking for large companies and the government.

People search this hoping a Citi branch in Pakistan can open a US account for them. It can't. Citi Pakistan's clients are multinationals, large financial institutions, state-owned companies and the government.

The four routes that actually work in 2026

Here is every realistic route for someone living in Pakistan, side by side.

Route	What you get	Travel and main catch
Non-resident account at a US bank	A full US bank account. Personal.	Travel: usually yes, to a US branch. Needs a US address you can receive post at.
US LLC plus a business account	A US business account. Business only.	No travel. State fees, yearly IRS filings, and some providers don't take Pakistan-based owners.
Bank freelancer account in Pakistan	Dollars held in a Pakistani bank. Personal.	No travel. No US account details; clients send an international wire.
USD account with US account details	A US routing and account number in your name. Personal.	No travel. Receiving account only; no US checks or US branch.

Checked 22 Oct 2026 against Bank of America, Chase, the IRS, the State Bank of Pakistan and Wise.

Four ways to get US banking from Pakistan in 2026 compared: US bank in person, US LLC, Pakistani bank freelancer account, and a USD account with US account details — Four routes to US banking from Pakistan, and what each one gives you.

The LLC route deserves a warning, because many of the top results for this search sell company formation. A US LLC is a business. You'd be opening a business account for a company, not a personal account for yourself. A foreign-owned single-member LLC must file Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 every year, and the IRS penalty for missing it is $25,000. Mercury, a popular choice for these LLCs, stopped onboarding Pakistan-based owners in July 2024, ProPakistani reported, after its co-founder said more than 10% of Pakistani signups were fraud.

If you run a real company with US customers, an LLC can make sense. If you're a freelancer who wants to get paid, it's a lot of paperwork for something you can get more simply.

What is a USD account, and how is it different from a US bank account?

A USD account gives you US account details, a routing number and an account number in your own name, so clients and platforms can pay you by ACH or wire. You hold the money in dollars and convert to rupees when you choose. Unlike a US bank account, it doesn't come with US checks or a US branch.

For getting paid, those details are the part that matters. When a US client asks for "your US bank details," their payroll or accounts team needs a routing number and an account number to send an ordinary domestic payment. They don't need you to have a branch in New York.

The difference shows up when the money lands. Give a US client your Pakistani account number and they usually have to send an international wire, which costs them more and takes longer. Give them US account details and it's a normal transfer on their side. We compared every way to get paid from abroad in our guide on how to receive USD in Pakistan.

Holding the money in dollars also changes what you get in rupees. If a payment converts the moment it arrives, you take whatever rate is offered that day. We broke down that gap in why you get fewer rupees than the Google rate.

Can I open a USD account online in Pakistan?

Yes, two ways. Pakistani banks can open freelancer accounts remotely under the State Bank of Pakistan's October 2023 framework, holding your export earnings in dollars. Or you can get a USD account with US account details through an app, after a one-time identity check. Neither needs a trip to the US.

They solve different problems. A bank freelancer account keeps your money in a Pakistani bank, in dollars, and your clients pay it by SWIFT wire. It doesn't give you US account details, so a US client still has to send an international payment.

Roshan Digital Accounts come up a lot in these searches too. They're for non-resident Pakistanis. A resident can open the foreign currency version only if they've declared assets held abroad in their wealth statement, and the State Bank says residents have to visit a branch.

Wise is the other name people ask about. As of 22 October 2026, Wise lists Pakistan among the countries where it can't give USD account details.

What do you need to get US account details?

In HandlePay you need the app, a HandlePay account and a one-time identity check. Once you're verified, you request your USD account in the app and get US account details in your own name, which you can copy or share with a client. You don't need a US address, an SSN or a trip abroad.

The steps in HandlePay:

Download the app

Create your account with your username and a passkey.

Verify your identity

This happens when you open your USD account, so your details are in your own name.

Request your USD account

Wait for it to be set up.

Copy or share your US account details with your client or platform

They can pay by ACH or wire.

Cash out to any Pakistani bank whenever you need rupees

Until then, your balance stays in dollars.

Because the account is in your name, the name your client sees matches the name on your invoice.

For a comparison of fees and timings across Upwork, Fiverr, Payoneer and bank freelancer accounts, see our freelancer payment methods in Pakistan breakdown.

Get US account details in your own name

Share them with your client, get paid by ACH or wire, keep it in dollars, and cash out to PKR when you choose.

Get the app

Sources

FAQs

That rule is the FBAR, and it applies to US persons: US citizens, residents and US companies. They must report foreign accounts when the combined value goes over $10,000 at any point in the year. A Pakistani resident with no US tax status doesn't file an FBAR. If you own a US LLC, the LLC has its own IRS filings.

HandlePay Team

Our mission is to make international money work for everyday people, freelancers, and businesses in Pakistan.