Which countries does Apex Trader Funding block from registering?
Apex restricts approximately 80 or more countries due to OFAC sanctions, payment processor limitations, and fraud risk. The list changes without notice. Here is what is confirmed, what third-party lists often get wrong, and what options exist for traders born in restricted countries who have since relocated.
Why Apex restricts certain countries
Apex is a US-based firm operating under US financial compliance requirements. The restrictions are not arbitrary: they reflect three distinct and separately enforced categories of limitation.
1. OFAC sanctions compliance
The US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) maintains sanctions lists that prohibit US-based financial entities from transacting with specific countries, governments, and individuals. Apex is legally required to comply. Countries under comprehensive US sanctions include North Korea, Iran, Syria, Cuba, and the Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine (Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk). These are the most certain and most stable entries on the restricted list: they will remain blocked as long as the sanctions remain in force, regardless of any other factors.
2. Payment processor limitations
Apex's payout infrastructure relies on ACH (for US traders) and Plane (for international traders). Neither payment rail can process transactions in all jurisdictions. If a country's banking infrastructure or currency controls prevent Plane from completing a transfer, Apex cannot pay out to that trader regardless of their trading performance. This category of restriction is more fluid than sanctions compliance and can change if payment processor capabilities expand or contract.
3. Fraud risk and KYC compliance
Apex applies additional restrictions to countries with documented patterns of identity fraud, payment fraud, or KYC compliance failures. This category is the least transparent: Apex does not publish a breakdown of which specific countries fall under which restriction category. A country blocked due to fraud risk management rather than OFAC sanctions could theoretically be removed from the list if conditions change, but there is no formal review process or appeal mechanism that Apex makes public.
Multiple independent websites publish what they claim is the definitive Apex restricted countries list. These lists conflict significantly: one source lists 55 or more countries, another states 84, a third estimates 7-8 OFAC-sanctioned nations only. The discrepancy reflects the fact that none of these sources have confirmed access to Apex's internal compliance database. The only authoritative source is Apex's own help center page. Always verify there before purchasing, particularly if you are in a region that different sources treat inconsistently.
Confirmed restricted countries and regions
The table below covers countries confirmed under OFAC comprehensive sanctions (high certainty) or consistently listed across multiple independent sources with corroborating evidence. Countries listed only on a single third-party source without corroboration are excluded.
| Category | Countries / Regions | Certainty |
|---|---|---|
| OFAC comprehensive sanctions | North Korea, Iran, Syria, Cuba, Russia (including Crimea), Belarus | High: legally mandated |
| OFAC-adjacent / high confidence | Venezuela, Sudan, Myanmar (Burma), Zimbabwe, South Sudan, Somalia | High: US sanctions apply |
| Consistently reported across sources | Nigeria, Pakistan, China, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Afghanistan | Medium: verify at Apex help center |
| Frequently cited but inconsistent | Turkey, South Africa, India, Kenya, Bangladesh | Lower: sources conflict; check directly |
| Sanctioned regions within countries | Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk (Ukraine) | High: sanctioned regardless of country |
The table above reflects the best available independent evidence as of May 2026. It is not sourced from Apex's live compliance database. Countries marked as lower certainty may be eligible or ineligible depending on Apex's current policy. Before purchasing any evaluation, verify your specific country's status at apextraderfunding.com/help-center/getting-started/restricted-countries/. The list can change without notice.
The relocation exception: eligibility if you were born in a restricted country
Apex's own help center page explicitly describes a relocation exception. Being born in or holding citizenship of a restricted country does not automatically disqualify you if you have permanently relocated to an eligible country. The specific conditions Apex states must all be met simultaneously:
| Requirement | Details |
|---|---|
| Government-issued ID | Must be issued by an eligible (non-restricted) country. A passport or national ID from a restricted country does not qualify even if you now reside elsewhere. |
| Primary address | Must be located in an eligible country. Temporary stays, hotel addresses, or virtual mailboxes do not qualify. |
| Mailing address | Must also be in an eligible country and match the primary address requirement. |
| Bank account | Must be held at a bank in an eligible country. An account in a restricted country's banking system does not qualify even if you reside elsewhere. |
All four conditions must be met simultaneously. A trader with a Nigerian passport who now lives in the UK with a UK bank account would not qualify because the government-issued ID comes from a restricted country. The same trader holding a UK passport (via dual nationality or naturalisation), with a UK address and UK bank account, would qualify.
Accepted forms of identification
Apex's KYC process accepts the following documents for identity verification: a valid passport, driver's licence, state ID, or residency permit issued by an eligible country. For proof of address, a utility bill or bank statement showing your name and address in an eligible country is required. All documents must relate to an eligible country, not a restricted one. Expired documents are not accepted. The specific recency requirement for proof of address documents is not published by Apex: check the help center or contact support before submitting to confirm what is currently accepted.
Under 4.0, Apex has moved to automated KYC enforcement with no manual exceptions. If the system detects a mismatch between ID country, address, and bank account, registration will be declined automatically. Contact Apex support before attempting to register if you believe you may qualify under the relocation exception.
If you were born in a restricted country but now hold a permanent residency or citizenship document from an eligible country, have an established bank account in that country, and your address documentation matches: contact Apex support by submitting a helpdesk ticket before purchasing an evaluation. Explain your situation and provide documentation proactively. This avoids paying for an evaluation that the automated KYC system may reject before the relocation exception can be considered.
If you are eligible and ready to review current Apex evaluation options, use code ONKAGNVZ at checkout for the current discount.
Check current Apex evaluation pricing →VPN use and what happens when countries change status
VPN use: why it does not work
Using a VPN to bypass Apex's geographic restrictions is explicitly prohibited by their terms of service. The consequences are documented and severe: account termination and permanent forfeiture of all balances, including accumulated profits and evaluation fees paid.
Beyond the contractual risk, VPN use is practically ineffective. The KYC verification process requires government-issued ID and bank account documentation that must match an eligible country. A VPN changes your apparent IP address but does not change what country your ID was issued in or where your bank account is held. A trader from a restricted country using a VPN will still fail KYC at the document verification stage. Detection became automated under the March 2026 4.0 restructure and applies uniformly.
A trader who registers from an eligible country but uses a VPN during trading sessions or at the time of a payout request can have their account flagged. The detection system monitors IP consistency across the account's activity history. A pattern of trading sessions from one country followed by a payout request from an apparently different location can trigger an automatic review and account suspension. If you use a VPN for general privacy purposes, disable it when accessing your Apex account.
What happens if your country becomes restricted after you register
Apex has added countries to its restricted list without advance notice on multiple occasions since 2021. A trader who registered legitimately when their country was eligible but whose country subsequently becomes restricted faces an uncertain situation. Under the legacy model, existing accounts were sometimes grandfathered. Under the 4.0 automated enforcement model, the position is less clear.
If your country becomes restricted after you are funded, the safest action is to contact Apex support immediately to clarify your account status before trading or submitting a payout request. Continuing to trade or request payouts from an account flagged due to a newly restricted country, without first resolving the status with support, risks triggering automatic account termination. Monitor Apex's status updates page (apextraderfunding.com/help-center/helpful-items/status-updates/) and their official emails for any country restriction announcements.
What traders also ask.
The only authoritative source on Apex's restricted countries is Apex's own help center page. Third-party lists are frequently outdated or inaccurate. Verify there before purchasing. The list can change without advance notice.