#161 ·
@mokry
Do you have anyone living over in Germany? A cousin, a buddy, or even just an old friend who wouldn't mind letting you use their address just long enough to receive a debit card? Honestly, that’s probably your smoothest and most straightforward path to getting an N26 account set up.
If that's not an option, you could try using a service like tiptrans.com. You can use a German address through them, though you'll end up shelling out about $20-$30 to have them forward the card back here to the States.
A third quick fix would be going through Canada, but keep in mind you'd only be opening a Canadian account, which tends to be a bit more limited than the German version—they don't always roll out every single feature to every market. Personally, I wouldn't bother with that route because they'll almost certainly prioritize the German market over everything else, but hey, it works. You basically just enter your US details and then select Canada as the country.
For any of these methods, you still use your actual American info—your real US phone number and everything. N26 is perfectly fine with American ID documents, and they don't demand proof that you actually reside in the country where you're opening the account. For a long time, they marketed themselves specifically to "digital nomads"—people who aren't tied down to one spot but just need valid documentation from a supported country (which includes the US) and a local address to ship the card to. When you sign up, that's listed as your "shipping address," not your permanent residence, so you aren't really being deceptive during registration at all.
Do you have anyone living over in Germany? A cousin, a buddy, or even just an old friend who wouldn't mind letting you use their address just long enough to receive a debit card? Honestly, that’s probably your smoothest and most straightforward path to getting an N26 account set up.
If that's not an option, you could try using a service like tiptrans.com. You can use a German address through them, though you'll end up shelling out about $20-$30 to have them forward the card back here to the States.
A third quick fix would be going through Canada, but keep in mind you'd only be opening a Canadian account, which tends to be a bit more limited than the German version—they don't always roll out every single feature to every market. Personally, I wouldn't bother with that route because they'll almost certainly prioritize the German market over everything else, but hey, it works. You basically just enter your US details and then select Canada as the country.
For any of these methods, you still use your actual American info—your real US phone number and everything. N26 is perfectly fine with American ID documents, and they don't demand proof that you actually reside in the country where you're opening the account. For a long time, they marketed themselves specifically to "digital nomads"—people who aren't tied down to one spot but just need valid documentation from a supported country (which includes the US) and a local address to ship the card to. When you sign up, that's listed as your "shipping address," not your permanent residence, so you aren't really being deceptive during registration at all.
