New PayPal users in the UK will face fresh restrictions from next month, when the company launches its full European service.
At the moment, the firm"s non-US customer accounts are held with the main US operation. However, PayPal is due to launch its European subsidiary in mid-February and all UK accounts will automatically move over to it. Terms and conditions vary between the two, with more restrictions on the European service.
US users can generally send up to $2,000 (£1,081) at a time, after providing a valid email address and credit card. However, new European users will be restricted to just £500. If they want to send any more, they will be required to provide extra proof of identity or pay a small membership fee. At the moment non-US account holders are able to pay a small fee to join an "expanded use program" where there are no sending limits.