KYC Policy

Know Your Customer (KYC) is a regulatory and risk-management process through which consultPRO verifies the identity, professional credentials, and business legitimacy of users before they can access certain platform features. KYC is a standard requirement across financial services, real estate, and professional services sectors worldwide.

On consultPRO, KYC verification serves three core purposes: ensuring that every professional and business listed on the platform is who they claim to be; protecting clients from fraud, misrepresentation, and unqualified practitioners; and fulfilling our obligations under applicable anti-money laundering (AML), counter-terrorism financing (CTF), and data protection laws.

A successfully verified account receives a KYC Verified badge, which is displayed publicly on the user's profile and listing pages to signal trust to clients and other platform participants.

KYC verification is required for all provider-side account types on consultPRO, including:

• Real estate professionals — agents, surveyors, valuers, mortgage advisors, and real estate consultants;
• Legal and advisory professionals — lawyers, solicitors, tax consultants, and financial advisors;
• Technical professionals — architects, engineers, and project managers;
• Property service businesses — cleaning companies, security firms, and fumigation companies;
• Landlords and property owners listing residential or commercial properties for rent, sale, or short-let;
• Shop and marketplace vendors selling products through the consultPRO marketplace;
• Banking and financial institutions listing mortgage, loan, or financial products; and
• Insurance providers listing insurance plans on the platform.

Client accounts (users who book consultations, browse listings, or purchase products) are not required to complete full KYC but may be subject to identity checks when initiating high-value transactions or where required by law.

The specific documents required vary by account type. All documents must be valid, unexpired, and clearly legible. Documents submitted in languages other than English must be accompanied by a certified English translation.

a) All Provider Accounts

• A valid government-issued photo ID — National Identity Card, international passport, or driver's licence;
• A recent selfie or liveness verification image (completed through our KYC portal); and
• For users in Nigeria: National Identification Number (NIN) and Bank Verification Number (BVN).

b) Individual Professionals

• A valid professional body licence, membership certificate, or regulatory registration (e.g., ESVARBON for surveyors, NBA for lawyers, COREN for engineers, ARCON for architects, or equivalent bodies outside Nigeria);
• Tax Identification Number (TIN) or equivalent tax registration document; and
• Proof of professional indemnity insurance where required by the relevant regulatory body.

c) Registered Businesses and Companies

• Certificate of Incorporation issued by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Nigeria, or equivalent business registration authority in your country;
• CAC Form BN1 or equivalent business registration form;
• Tax Identification Number (TIN) and evidence of tax registration or compliance; and
• A valid ID and liveness check for the designated account administrator or beneficial owner.

d) Financial Institutions and Insurance Providers

• All documents listed under (c) above;
• A valid regulatory licence issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), or equivalent financial services regulator in your jurisdiction; and
• Evidence of current regulatory compliance status.

e) Landlords and Individual Property Owners

• Valid government-issued photo ID and liveness check; and
• Proof of ownership or authority to list the property — such as a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O), Deed of Assignment, or equivalent title document.

The KYC process on consultPRO follows these steps:

1. Account registration — create your account and select your role. Your account is provisionally created with limited access.
2. KYC submission — navigate to your KYC dashboard and upload the required documents for your account type. You will be guided through a liveness check (selfie or short video) to confirm your physical identity matches your ID.
3. Automated pre-screening — our KYC provider performs an initial automated check, including document authenticity validation, facial matching, and database screening.
4. Manual review — our compliance team reviews submissions that require human judgement, including professional licence verification and business document checks. This stage typically takes 1–3 business days.
5. Decision — you will be notified by email and in-app notification of the outcome: Approved, Pending Further Information, or Rejected.
6. Ongoing monitoring — approved accounts are subject to periodic re-verification, particularly when professional licences are due for renewal or when our compliance team flags a change in your account activity.

Until your KYC is fully approved, your listing will remain in Pending Review status and will not be visible to the public. You may still access your dashboard and prepare your profile during this period.

Identity and liveness verification on consultPRO is powered by Didit, a regulated identity verification service. When you submit KYC documents through our platform, your identity data is processed by Didit in accordance with their privacy policy and applicable data protection law.

Didit's automated systems perform document validity checks, biometric facial comparison, liveness detection, and screening against international sanctions and politically exposed persons (PEP) lists. The results of these checks are returned to consultPRO and form part of the basis for our verification decision.

consultPRO does not share your KYC data with any third party beyond Didit and applicable regulatory bodies, except as required by law. Professional licence verification may involve direct confirmation with the relevant regulatory body.

All KYC documents and personal data submitted during the verification process are handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable data protection law, including the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) 2019 and Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023.

• Storage: KYC documents are stored in encrypted cloud storage with access restricted to authorised compliance personnel only.
• Retention: KYC records are retained for a minimum of 5 years from the date of submission, as required under applicable anti-money laundering regulations. Records may be retained for longer where required by law or ongoing legal proceedings.
• Access: You may request to view the KYC data we hold about you by contacting our compliance team. Certain documents may be withheld where disclosure would prejudice a legal obligation.
• Deletion: Upon account closure, KYC documents are retained for the mandatory minimum period and then securely deleted or anonymised.

consultPRO does not use your KYC documents for any purpose other than identity verification, regulatory compliance, and fraud prevention.

a) Pending Further Information

If your submission is incomplete or a document cannot be validated, we will contact you by email specifying what additional information is required. You will have 14 days to provide the requested documents before the application is considered lapsed.

b) Rejection

If your KYC application is rejected, you will be notified by email with a general explanation of the reason. Common reasons for rejection include: expired or unreadable documents; documents that do not match the information provided during registration; invalid or unverifiable professional licences; and adverse results from sanctions or PEP screening.

c) Appeals

If you believe your application was rejected in error, you may submit an appeal within 30 days of the rejection notice by emailing admin@consultproinnovationsgloballimited.com with the subject line "KYC Appeal — [your registered email]". Include a clear explanation of your grounds for appeal and any supporting evidence.

Appeals are reviewed by a senior member of our compliance team and a decision is issued within 10 business days. The outcome of the appeal is final unless new material evidence is presented.

d) Reapplication

Where a rejection was due to document quality or missing information rather than a substantive compliance concern, you may reapply after correcting the relevant issue. There is no limit on the number of reapplications, but repeated submissions of the same invalid documents may result in a temporary suspension of your application rights.

Failure to complete KYC verification within a reasonable period, or the submission of fraudulent, forged, or misleading documents, will result in one or more of the following actions:

• Restriction of your account to read-only or no access;
• Removal of your listings from public search results;
• Permanent termination of your account;
• Reporting of the matter to relevant law enforcement or regulatory authorities; and
• Where applicable, initiation of civil or criminal proceedings.

Submitting false identity or professional credentials constitutes a serious breach of our Terms of Service and may constitute a criminal offence under Nigerian law.

In relation to your KYC data, you have the rights described in our Privacy Policy — Section 8, including the right to access, rectify, or request deletion of your data, subject to our mandatory retention obligations under anti-money laundering law.

If you believe our KYC process has been applied unfairly or in violation of your data rights, you may lodge a complaint with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) at ndpc.gov.ng, or with the relevant data protection authority in your country of residence.

For all KYC-related enquiries, document submissions, appeals, or re-verification requests, please contact our compliance team:

You may also review our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy for the full legal framework governing your use of consultPRO.