PayPal needs no introduction as the world’s most popular payment system with statistics proving beyond reason that the payment system is used in many countries of the world. While PayPal guarantees a handful of countries unlimited access to its beneficial features, it’s quite unfortunate that Nigeria is exempted from this, making lots of Nigerians nurse misgivings against the payment system.

Requirements for Opening a PayPal Account in Nigeria

1. Firstly, you will need a valid email address
2. Secondly, you would also need a Visa or MasterCard linked to a Nigerian bank account. This could be a credit or debit card. This is necessary for verifying your PayPal account. The service would debit a tiny amount from the card and once you confirm the transaction, the account would be fully Verified.
3. Finally, please note that as of December 2018, Interswitch’s Verve card does not work with the service.

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PayPal Website

PayPal Registration Interface

1. First thing you do is to go to www.paypal.com/ng
2. Then click on signup
3. Fill in your email address (doesn’t have to be Gmail or Yahoo. It could be anything@yourcompanyname.com)
4. Afterwards, type in your password and make sure it is one you can remember
5. Go to the next page and type other details such as names, date of birth, address and phone number.
6. Also when filling in your address make sure that it matches the same address details you filled when you opened a bank account
7. It takes you to a page where you fill in your debit card details
8. Punch in your card nos, expiry date and the last 3 digits behind your debit card.
9. Then go to your email account and click on verify
10. Voila!! Your account is setup
11. Finally, test it by sending $10 to anyone or to your PayPal account abroad (if you have one)
12. You get debited in Naira and you should get an alert from your local bank

Using a Wallet

First Bank offers this option through their exclusive deal with PayPal. How does this work?

1. Firstly, log in to your internet banking account using your password and token
2. Then choose the “PayPal wallet” in the main tab and click “Create PayPal Wallet” on the drop-down menu
3. Afterwards, select which cards you wish to link to your PayPal account and which card will be the default card. Try using one card for easy reconciliation
4. Press the button on your online token and confirm accordingly
5. Create a password in the pop-up window that appears
6. Click on “Agree and create account”.
7. Finally, go to your registered email account with the bank which confirms that you have created a PayPal account

It is important to note that at the moment, you cannot receive payment from a Nigerian PayPal account, but there is a quick method I can show you

How to Recieve PayPal payment from Nigeria

Firstly, Visit the most feasible country PayPal you want yours to be domiciled.

For South Africa, it’s www.paypal.co.za,
For US, it’s www.paypal.com/us,
For Lesotho, it’s www.paypal.com/ls,

and more… depending on your choice.

Secondly, Sign up to the business option, and fill in your business and personal details. For the business details, please choose INDIVIDUAL BUSINESS. Then you will be required to put in your legal ID like NIN or Passport number.

You should use your personal details as they appear in your bank. Fill in your personal details, verify and move to the next page.

If you don’t know anyone in the country you want your account domiciled, you should go to yellow pages of that country to get pseudo credentials, while you use it alongside your real credentials in the personal details area.

Thirdly, Verify your email and lift your PayPal limit with a credit card.

You can get a working card at UBA or the Wema by Alat card, they work very well till date. Use it to verify your PayPal and lift the limit

Finally, Test your account by sending some funds to activate the account. You can get PayPal funds from freelancers and your account is set.

What Are the Benefits of Using PayPal in Nigeria?

PayPal has been labeled, by some Nigerians, as being unfair probably because there are stringent restrictions on Nigerian PayPal accounts. In spite of these restrictions, Nigerian PayPal account holders are able to enjoy some of the benefits characteristic of U.S. and Canadian PayPal accounts. Just as applicable to other countries’ PayPal, here are the benefits of Nigerian PayPal:

Account creation comes at no cost –you are not charged any service fee for creating a PayPal account in Nigeria. However, you’ll be charged a relatively trifling amount of money for linking a debit or credit card to your PayPal account.

Possibility of linking multiple cards to your account –this is another benefit which means that PayPal permits you to tie as many as available debit/credit cards to your PayPal account.

No restriction on payments to foreign destinations –although there are a number of stringent restrictions on Nigerian PayPal accounts, PayPal users in Nigeria are allowed to make payment to foreign merchants for services and goods purchased, rendered or shipped to Nigeria.

What Are the Disadvantages of Using PayPal in Nigeria?

Nigerians, unlike the PayPal users in several other countries, encounter restrictions in their use of PayPal. In other words, using PayPal in Nigeria comes with limitations as PayPal denies Nigeria the unlimited access that many other countries enjoy. If you have a paramount need to use PayPal and would like to create a Nigerian PayPal account, you should be well informed about the associated limitations on your PayPal access.

Needless to say, people in the U.S., Canada and many other countries enjoy full access to all of PayPal’s functions but same cannot be said for Nigerians. Some Nigerians have lodged complaints about this, urging PayPal to allow them full access but it doesn’t seem PayPal will accede to their demand anytime soon. Therefore, below are the limitations you should bear in mind before creating a PayPal account in Nigeria:

Zero assurance of account retrieval –this happens to be the chief limitation on a typical Nigerian PayPal account. If you’re using a Nigerian PayPal account, you have to be extremely cautious as it is practically impossible to recover the account in the event of suspension.

You cannot hold more than one account –if you’re opening a PayPal account in Nigeria, you have to be aware of the fact that no one person (in Nigeria) is allowed to hold two or more accounts.

Unavailable to people below 18 –if you’re below 18 years of age, it will be difficult for you to create a PayPal account in Nigeria.

No chance for receiving funds –this is a critical limitation you should bear in mind as PayPal prohibits Nigerians from using its payment platform to receive funds (from other people). Holders of Nigerian PayPal accounts are only allowed to link their credit/debit cards to the accounts in order to pay for goods/services.

Conclusion

Using PayPal in Nigeria does come with both pros and cons but to some people, the cons far outweigh the pros. Before you finally opt for a Nigerian PayPal