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Payment institutions that want the standing of a Luxembourg authorisation, and a regulator used to institutional scale at the centre of the EU, choose the CSSF as their supervisor.
Selected engagements from more than 250 licences obtained since 2013, for payment, e-money and cryptoasset firms.
Volkswagen
Payment InstitutionObtained Nexpay’s FCA Authorised Payment Institution licence.
Electronic Money InstitutionObtained Dzing Finance’s FCA Authorised Electronic Money Institution licence.
Obtained Orbital’s FCA Authorised Payment Institution licence.
Our realistic timeline from submission to decision.
Safeguarding, operating and settlement accounts opened alongside the application, so you trade on authorisation.
We assemble your team: directors based in Luxembourg.
The licence, the requirements, the cost and the timing for your business.
You will need directors with the competence and experience to run a payment firm from Luxembourg, plus board and supervisory board members.
One programme, from scoping to launch. Speak to an expert about this licence.
Requirements, capital, timing, fees and common questions, drawn from the regulator’s own publications.
A business providing a payment service in Luxembourg or, through passporting, in the EU and EEA needs CSSF authorisation. A business that will also hold customer balances applies for an EMI licence instead.
| Requirement | Amount |
|---|---|
| Account, card and other services (1–5) | €125,000 |
| Payment initiation only | €50,000 |
| Money remittance only | €20,000 |
| Account information only | None; registration |
| Ongoing own funds | Method A, B or C as determined |
Own funds may never fall below the initial capital.
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory decision period | 3 months from the application or from missing information; 12 months at most | Law of 10 November 2009 |
| Application preparation | 6 to 8 weeks | From instruction to submission, including banking in parallel |
| Our realistic timeline | 6 to 8 months after submission | Our own figure, from the regulator’s published data and our applications |
Regulator figures are quoted as published and converted to months. Our realistic timeline assumes a complete, well-prepared application.
| Item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Examination fee | €30,000 | Single lump sum; €8,000 to extend the authorisation |
| Annual fee | €30,000 | €40,000 above €1 billion of volume; €25,000 for institutions authorised three years or less below that volume |
| Initial capital | €20,000 to €125,000 | By the highest service |
| Professional fees | Fixed | Quoted after scoping |
A Luxembourg payment institution passports throughout the EU and EEA on notification to the CSSF. A limited-network exclusion requires notification.
The CSSF publishes no list of causes of delay. In our experience the causes are the same as in every EU regime: incomplete files, insufficient substance in Luxembourg, and flows of funds that are not clearly mapped.
A payment institution needs a safeguarding account, an operating account and settlement accounts in the currencies it serves. We open each alongside the application, so you trade from authorisation. See banking and payment processing.
Three months from the application or from missing information; twelve months at most. We plan for six to eight months after submission.
€125,000 for account, card and most services; €50,000 for payment initiation only; €20,000 for money remittance only.
€30,000 on application and €30,000 a year, with adjustments by volume and for the first three years.
No. The law sets no volume tiers.
The central administration and registered office, with part of the business carried on there and management competent to direct it from Luxembourg.
A regulatory advisory firm to payment, e-money and cryptoasset companies since 2013, with more than 250 licences obtained in more than 60 countries. The firm builds licensed payment, e-money, crypto and stablecoin businesses: the licence, the team, the technology, the bank accounts and card issuing.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Requirements and fees change, and the regulator’s own publications take precedence.
The licence, your team, banking and technology, delivered as one programme.