First of all, I want to say that I planed almost all my trips within Estonia using Google Maps, it’s very easy and reliable. Open the app in your smartphone, search for the destination and follow the steps.

Then, before to travel to Estonia, visit the website about tourism in Tallinn

https://visittallinn.ee/

Check if Tallinn Card fits to your plans and time:

https://visittallinn.ee/eng/visitor/tallinn-card/tallinn-card/what-is-tallinn-card

Check out the public transport tickets as well:

https://visittallinn.ee/eng/visitor/plan/transport/public-transport

Once you are in Estonia, visit the Tallinn Tourist Information Center. There you can buy the Tallinn Card and get more detailed information, very useful in COVID times:

https://goo.gl/maps/wNVs3pvU1VkMcbM38

Recommended visits

By foot: Tallinn Old Town

• Raekoja plats: Town Hall Square.
  • Enjoy a meal in III Draakon Restauran
• Katariina käik: medieval street.
• Nunnatorn ja linnamüüri platvorm: city defensive walls.
• St Olaf’s church.
• Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.

By bus or long walk

• Walk tour in Sadama: walk near the Baltic Sea.
• Kadriorg Park and Art Museum.
• Seaplane Harbour + Fat Margaret: maritime Museums.
• Kumu Art Musuem.
• Patarei Prison.
• Telliskivi Creative City.
• Walk tour in Kalamaja.

By bus

• Estonian Open Air Museum: traditional Estonian houses, windmills and farms.
  • Enjoy a meal in Kolu kõrts.
• Tallinn TV Tower.
  • Teletorni Restauran: Nice place to have lunch
• Pirita Convent Ruins.

Of course, don’t forget to visit the LHV branch to open your bank account.

The post Visiting Estonia in COVID times (II) appeared first on e-Residency Journey.

https://marketplace.e-resident.gov.ee/company/lhv

At first I was very pessimistic because I though that I didn’t manage to open it but while I was collecting all the information that I needed I realized that it was possible.

To apply for this account you must visit its website:

https://www.lhv.ee/en

At the top right there is the link to open an account, click it. Then you have to identify yourself but if you are not Estonian you must send them some information about your company filling this form:

https://www.lhv.ee/assets/files/applications/Application_to_open_an_account_in_LHV_Pank_legal_person-EN.pdf

Read it CAREFULLY and collect all information about your company and yourself before to fill and to send it.

You must be able to show that your company is not a ‘chiringuito’

Chiringuito means beach bar in Spanish, but also means shady company. Because it is quite easy to dismantling a ‘chiriguinto’ and disappear.

These are my tips:

• Write or update your CV and / or your Linkedin account.
• Have a good business plan.
• Show that you and your company are trustworthy.
• Try to get as many connections to Estonia as possible, read my post about that.
• Ask them all the details about when can you travel to Estonia to complete the process.
• UPDATED: If you cannot travel to Estonia because of the coronavirus, ask them how to fix it, they may offer you a solution.
• Visit this webpage about restriction on freedom of movement requirements for passengers.

I don’t know the process to open a bank account in other Estonian banks, but I suppose that it should be quite similar.

The post Applying for a LHV bank account appeared first on e-Residency Journey.

At first I found a workaround, I had a private Pocopay bank account – Pocopay is an Estonian fintech. Google sent my money to my private account and then I sent it to my company account. As I was a shareholder this procedure was legal. But unfortunately Pocopay closed all the accounts of people outside Estonia this summer. They wanted to change their product and nowadays they are still changing. What a shame! I loved it!

So, I had to search for a new solution. Although I spent a lot of time searching on Internet, I didn’t find any other Estonian fintech that used Estonian IBANs.

Finally I realized that only traditional banks can give me an Estonian IBAN. I found this list of Estonian banks:

https://www.pangaliit.ee/welcome-to-estonian-banking-association/members

I visited their websites, searched for fees and sent an email to some of them. Although only one of them is in e-Residency Marketplace some of them accept e-Residents but no one will open you an account without a face to face meeting and the year 2020 is not the best one to travel.

Finally I chose LHV. I think that it is the most e-Resident friendly, you can apply before to travel to Estonia, then once you are accepted you have 6 months to travel there to open the bank account. Nowadays, maybe because the corona you have more time. At the same time you visit their branch to sign the documents you can pickup a debit card.

The post Looking for an EE (Estonian) IBAN (December 2020) appeared first on e-Residency Journey.