International External Accounts represent bank accounts owned by the customer but held outside the system in another country. These accounts are linked to enable cross-border movement of funds between a customer’s system Account and the customer’s own bank account in another country.

A customer can configure one or more International External Accounts depending on their business needs. Every International External Account undergoes OFAC screening on the account holder name before it can be used for transaction processing.

When to Use International External Accounts

• Move funds between the system account and the customer’s own bank account in another country
• Support cross-border treasury or payout use cases
• Store reusable international banking details for future transfers
• Manage customer-owned international bank destinations outside the system

International External Accounts should not be used for collecting funds from or sending funds to third parties. Use Contacts (Payees) for those flows.

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How it Works

• Add an International External Account
  Provide the international bank account details required for the destination country and currency, such as account number, SWIFT code, holder information, and holder address.
• Validate the SWIFT Code
  A valid SWIFT code is required before the account can be created. You can validate the SWIFT code before submitting the account details.
• Fetch Country- and Currency-Specific Requirements
  For non-USD International External Accounts, use the metadata API first to retrieve the required dynamic fields and validations based on the destination country, accepted currency, and holder type.
• OFAC Screening
  The account holder name is screened against regulatory and compliance watchlists.
• Account Activation
  Once OFAC verification is successfully completed, the International External Account becomes ACTIVE and is ready for transaction processing.

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Add an International External Account

Use the International External Account create API to add an international bank account within the system. This account represents a customer-owned bank account outside the Passport system that can later be used for cross-border transfers.

Key Details Required

Account Holder Address

The account holder address is required as part of the International External Account details.

You cannot save or update an International External Account for a Contact if the holder address is a PO Box address.

Additional Details for Non-USD Accounts

For non-USD International External Accounts, additional information may be required in the additionalDetail object.

Use the metadata API before creating a non-USD International External Account to retrieve the required dynamic fields and validations for the selected country, currency, and holder type.

After submitting the request, the system checks that all required information is present. If any validation fails, the request is rejected immediately, and an error response is returned. You must correct the issue and resubmit the request. For a complete list of validation errors and how to resolve them, refer to the HTTP Response Codes.

Key Capabilities:

• Link multiple International External Accounts per customer
• Store customer-owned cross-border bank destinations
• Support country- and currency-specific account requirements
• Validate SWIFT codes before account creation
• Perform OFAC screening on the account holder
• Store dynamic metadata and compliance-related details for international processing

Validation Requirements

1. SWIFT Code Validation
   1. A valid SWIFT code is required before account creation.
   2. The system blocks creation if the SWIFT code is invalid.
2. Metadata Lookup for Non-USD Accounts
   1. Required before the first creation of a non-USD International External Account for a given country and currency combination.
   2. Returns the dynamic fields and validation rules based on country, currency, and holder type.
3. OFAC Screening
   1. Performed on the account holder name.
   2. Required before the account becomes ACTIVE.

The metadata response is fetched from a third party outside the Passport system. Customers must provide all required values returned for the selected country and currency.

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Retrieve International External Account details

Use the International External Account retrieve API to view the following important information:

• International External Account Status & Status Reason: Current lifecycle state of the account and the reason assigned to that state
• OFAC Status Details: Compliance verification result for the account holder, including status, reason, and timestamp
• Account Holder and Address Information: Stored account holder details and holder address
• Accepted Currency and Country-Specific Details: Currency configuration and any routing or dynamic field requirements
• Audit Metadata: Creation details, last updated details, comments, tags, and custom metadata

Only the last 4 digits of the account number are returned in API responses through accountNumberLast4.

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International External Account Lifecycle

International External Accounts follow a simpler lifecycle than domestic External Accounts because they rely primarily on SWIFT validation, metadata requirements, and OFAC screening rather than domestic account validation methods such as EWS, prenote, or micro-deposits.

OFAC Statuses

If OFAC verification is rejected, the International External Account is marked as BLOCKED.

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Blocked Accounts & Resolution

An International External Account may be marked as BLOCKED due to:

• Rejected OFAC verification
• Invalid or incomplete account details
• Country- or currency-specific validation failures
• Invalid SWIFT code or unsupported routing information

Resolution Path

• Review status, statusReason, and OFAC verification details from the retrieve response
• Correct account details if the account is still in INACTIVE status
• Re-run prerequisite checks such as SWIFT validation or metadata lookup before resubmitting
• Contact the Passport team for accounts in UNDER_REVIEW or compliance-related blocked states

Transactions are not allowed on blocked accounts.

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Compliance & Security

• Every International External Account undergoes OFAC verification on the account holder name.
• A valid SWIFT code is required before account creation.
• Running the metadata API is mandatory before the first creation of a non-USD International External Account for a given country and currency combination.
• externalId must be unique across all International External Accounts.
• Once assigned, externalId cannot be updated.
• An International External Account in INACTIVE status can be updated.
• A Program Manager can delete an International External Account if no transaction has been created using it.

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Best Practices