Right, let's talk about the bit that creators ALWAYS have questions about: identity verification.
Yes, we make every creator verify. Yes, we're strict about it. Here's why, and exactly what to expect. 🔒
The 30-Second Version ⏱️
✅ You connect a verified social account first (Instagram, X, or TikTok — 6+ months old, public, photo must match your passport)
✅ Our team manually reviews it (a real human checking, not just an algorithm)
✅ Once approved, KYC unlocks — you upload your passport (not a driving licence)
✅ You take a selfie that gets matched to your passport
✅ Approved? You can earn. Without verification, no payouts move. 💸
Strict? Yes. Necessary? Absolutely. Let's break it down. 👇
Why we verify (and why it's stricter than most) 🛡️
We're a regulated platform handling real money for real people. Identity verification is what stops:
🚫 Impersonators — people pretending to be your favourite creator
🚫 Fraudsters — stolen-card scammers who want to launder money through creator platforms
🚫 Underage account holders — you must be 18+ to earn on Spenny Piggy
🚫 Sanctioned individuals — people who legally can't receive payments globally
Without KYC, none of the above gets stopped. Which means:
Your real account could be impersonated tomorrow 🚨
Stripe pulls our platform license 💀
Supporters lose trust and stop spending
So yeah — strict verification = clean platform = everyone earns more. 🐷✨
Step 1: Connect a verified social media account 📱
This is the gatekeeper step. Before KYC unlocks, you need to connect a public social media account that we can manually verify against your ID.
What we accept
✅ X (Twitter)
✅ TikTok
One of these three. Nothing else. Not Facebook. Not Snapchat. Not YouTube. Not LinkedIn. Just IG, X, or TikTok. 🎯
The requirements
Requirement | Detail |
Account age | Minimum 6 months active |
Privacy | Must be public (we can't verify private accounts) |
Profile photo | Must show the same person as your passport |
Activity | Should be a real account with real posts, not a freshly-made shell |
What "active" means
We're not looking for 100k followers. We just need to see:
✅ Real posts spread over at least 6 months
✅ A consistent profile photo of you (not a logo, pet, or celebrity)
✅ Some level of genuine activity (occasional posts, stories, replies)
Bot accounts, empty profiles, and freshly-created accounts will be rejected. This isn't about gatekeeping based on follower count — it's about verifying you're a real person who's been online for a while. 🐷
Step 2: We manually review it 👀
This is where we differ from automated platforms.
When you connect your social, a real human on our team checks it. They compare:
🖼️ The profile photo of your social → to the photo on your passport
🆔 The face of the person posting → to your passport face
📅 The account history → to make sure it's a real, active account
🔍 General signals → does this look like a real creator profile?
Average review time: a few hours to 1 business day. ⏱️
Sometimes faster, sometimes slower (especially on weekends). We don't have an "instant" automated path because automation can be tricked — a manual human review by our team catches what algorithms miss.
If approved → KYC unlocks. If rejected → we'll tell you why and what to do. 💬
Step 3: KYC with your passport 📕
Once social verification is approved, you can complete KYC.
What you'll need
📕 A valid, in-date passport (driving licences and other ID types are NOT accepted — see below 👇) 🤳 A device with a camera (phone or laptop) 🏠 Your current address (sometimes a proof-of-address doc is needed)
The process
From your dashboard, click Verify Identity
You'll be guided through our identity verification partner
Upload a photo of your passport (info page)
Take a selfie (this gets matched to your passport photo)
Confirm your address details
Submit
Typically approved within minutes for clean submissions. Occasionally takes longer if our partner needs additional checks.
🔒 Your passport data is handled by our regulated identity verification partner — not stored on Spenny Piggy's servers. We just receive the "yes, this person is real and matches" confirmation.
Why we only accept passports 📕
This is a question we get a lot. Short answer: passports are the hardest to fake.
What's wrong with driving licences?
❌ Easily forged (templates available online)
❌ Wildly inconsistent format across countries (some are paper, some are plastic) ❌ Less anti-fraud features baked in
❌ Often don't include current address
❌ Fraudsters specifically use them because they're cheap to fake
Why passports?
✅ Strong international standards (ICAO standards make them very consistent)
✅ Anti-fraud features (biometric chip, holograms, hidden security marks)
✅ Backed by national governments (harder to fake without serious resources)
✅ Lifetime documentation history (changes are tracked)
✅ Easier for our verification partner to validate authenticity
It's a stricter bar, we know. But cleaner verification = fewer fraudsters = better experience for real creators. 🛡️
If you don't have a passport, you'll need to get one before you can verify. Many countries process applications in 3-6 weeks. There's no workaround on this rule. ⏳
What we DON'T need 🚫
Some quick reassurances about what we don't ask for:
❌ Your social security number / national insurance number (Stripe handles that separately)
❌ Your bank statements
❌ Tax documents
❌ Holding the passport up to your face (some platforms do this — we don't need it) ❌ Video calls with our team
❌ Multiple ID documents
Just one passport + one selfie + one verified social account = done. ✨
What happens after verification ✅
Once approved:
✅ Your account moves to verified status
✅ You unlock the ability to connect Stripe Connect
✅ You can start earning
✅ Payouts begin running weekly
You'll see a green "Verified" badge in your dashboard. Welcome to the platform properly. 🐷✨
Common rejection reasons (and how to fix) 🔄
If you get rejected, don't panic. Most rejections are easy fixes. Here are the common ones:
Social media rejections
Reason | Fix |
Account is less than 6 months old | Wait or use an older account |
Account is private | Make it public during verification (you can make it private again after) |
Profile photo doesn't match passport | Update to a clear photo of yourself |
Account appears inactive/bot-like | Use a real, active account |
Profile photo is a logo, pet, celebrity, or AI image | Use a real photo of you |
Passport rejections
Reason | Fix |
Photo blurry or poorly lit | Retake in good light, clear focus |
Passport expired | Get a new passport |
Photo cropped (info missing) | Retake including all 4 corners of the info page |
Selfie doesn't match passport photo | Retake selfie with similar lighting and angle |
Document isn't a passport | Use your passport (no other ID accepted) |
Stuck after a rejection? Hit the chat bubble — we'll walk you through it. 💬
Common questions 🤔
"How long does the whole process take?"
🕒 Social media verification: a few hours to 1 business day 🕒 KYC (after social approved): typically minutes 🕒 Stripe Connect (after KYC approved): typically minutes
Total realistic time: same day or next day for most creators. ⏱️
"Can I start setting up my profile before verification?"
Yes — you can fully set up your profile, choose your income models, and prep everything. You just can't go live or receive payouts until verification is complete. ✨
"What if my passport is expired?"
You need a valid, in-date passport. Expired ones aren't accepted. 📅
"Can my partner / friend / business use my social and ID?"
No. The face in the social photo must match the face on YOUR passport — not anyone else's. This is the whole point of the verification. 🚫
"What if I'm under 18?"
You can't create a Spenny Piggy account if you're under 18. The platform requires you to be a legal adult to earn money and accept the Terms of Service. ✋
"What about anonymous / pseudonymous creators?"
You can absolutely use a stage name or alias publicly. Many of our creators do. The verification is just internal — what supporters see is your chosen display name. Your real legal identity stays private. 🎭
But internally, we need to know you're a real adult who matches your social profile. The two don't have to be the same name — they just have to be the same face.
"What about if my social media account gets banned/deleted after verification?"
Let us know via the chat bubble — we'll need to re-verify with another active social account. If you can't provide one, we may need to pause your account. ⚠️
"Why is your verification stricter than other platforms?"
Most platforms use automated-only checks. We add a manual human review step on top of that.
This adds 1-2 days to onboarding. But it also keeps the platform clean of impersonators, fraudsters, and bad actors who can pass automated checks but fail human ones. Worth the extra day. 🛡️
"Will my passport details be sold or shared?"
No. Your passport data is handled by our regulated identity verification partner under strict GDPR / data protection rules. We never sell, share, or store passport data ourselves. We just receive the "verified" status. 🔒
"What countries can verify?"
Our verification supports passports from 200+ countries. If you have a valid passport, you can almost certainly verify. ✨
TL;DR 🎯
Connect Instagram, X, or TikTok — public, 6+ months old, photo matches your passport
Wait for our manual review (few hours to 1 business day)
Once approved, upload your passport (driving licences not accepted)
Take a selfie to match against your passport
Wait for approval (usually minutes)
Connect Stripe Connect
You're verified — go earn. 💰
Yes it's strict. Yes it's worth it. Cleaner platform = better experience = more earnings for real creators. 🐷✨
Need help with verification? 💬
Hit the chat bubble in the bottom right — we help with verification daily. Real humans, no scripts, we'll walk you through it.
For specific issues (rejections, document problems, social verification queries), email support@spennypiggy.co.
Verified once. Earn forever. 🆔🐷
Oink oink — your passport is the key to the bag. 💖