American Express Membership Rewards - changing countries with amex

ok so this really dosent have anything to do with miles or points....but me and my best friend are looking at study abroad for next year and are thinking of doing a full year in London......would my US amex work there? or do i have to call amex and have them change it to a UK card? how would any of that work? ive never left the country so never had to deal with any foreign money issues before =/

Your US AMEX should work just as normal but you may have some FOREX fees as high as 3% I believe. So IT may be benificial for you to switch it to a UK card. UK card has some diffeent benies so weigh out the pros and cons.

hmm, yea if im there for a whole year i dont wanna spend extra on fees for using my US card. anyone know of a site that compares the US vs UK Plat cards? or anyone have any personal experience with traveling and using their US card?

PS what are FOREX fees?

hmm, yea if im there for a whole year i dont wanna spend extra on fees for using my US card. anyone know of a site that compares the US vs UK Plat cards? or anyone have any personal experience with traveling and using their US card?

PS what are FOREX fees?

Forex fees are those fees which are related to the fact that you are changing
money from one currency to another.

There are two different types of them:
a.) The better forex rates (and lower for the customer) are calculated whenever there is a transaction by bank transfer, credit card , cheque and similar means of payment.
Due to the fact that the money is changed by calculation only and not deliverred physically to a cashier's desk they are much better than:

b.) Exchange fees for changing the money. This exhange fee is a bit more expensive for the customers due to the fact that coins and bank notes are deliverred to a cashier's desk, are stored there and "wait" to be changed.

So for nearly every (larger) amount of money it is better to use any type of electronic or cheque transacation. There the "difference" between the sale and purchase of a foreign currency is in the third or fourth digit "after" the point.

And in case of credit cards the fees are calculated on the "better" rate for cheques / bank transfers / payments but the credit card company (Amex) charges about 2 % for use of the credit card in the foreign country.

So this is not so expensive as you think first.

If you study in UK and have your income from any source in US, you have to change this money also from US DOllar to UK pounds. So it may make sense to get a UK based Amex card or to hold the "old" one.

More advice could be given from your card issuer when they now the estimated amount and can calculate that for you.

Hope this helps. Greetings GUM

lots of info there :) ty gum. based on all that i think its prob safer for me to get a UK amex...less hassle? how does one go about applying for a card for another country if they dont live there? (again never left the country so im clueless!) or could i simply call Amex and tell them the situation and they can issue an additional card on my acct but have it be a UK one?

lots of info there :) ty gum. based on all that i think its prob safer for me to get a UK amex...less hassle? how does one go about applying for a card for another country if they dont live there? (again never left the country so im clueless!) or could i simply call Amex and tell them the situation and they can issue an additional card on my acct but have it be a UK one?

That's the beauty of AMEX. All you need to do is call UK AMEX, tell them you have a US AMEX and they will issues you a UK card when you live there. You don't have to worry about whatever credit bureaus UK uses!

Yea, but it's expensive. To the tune of £400.

Yea, but it's expensive. To the tune of £400.

Only if you get a platinum card. There are other cards available, too.

Please see the posts in this thread (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=820561&highlight=international+transfer) for lots more useful information about the international transfer program that you're getting involved in.

That's the beauty of AMEX. All you need to do is call UK AMEX, tell them you have a US AMEX and they will issues you a UK card when you live there. You don't have to worry about whatever credit bureaus UK uses!

This is exactly how it worked for me when I moved from UK to US - I just called them up and they gave me a shiny new US Amex with no questions asked. It was a couple of years before any other credit card would give me a credit limit >$1k, but I could spend $5-10k/mo on my Amex from day 1 with no problems.

I closed my UK account, but I could have kept it open. For the sake of 1 years fee it probably makes sense to keep both accounts open for the year you are away in your situation.

has Amex ever waived the fee when changing countries? if i keep my current US card for when i come back im already paying the fee for that one, not sure id wanna fling another $400 at a 2nd one if im only using it for one year...

has Amex ever waived the fee when changing countries? if i keep my current US card for when i come back im already paying the fee for that one, not sure id wanna fling another $400 at a 2nd one if im only using it for one year...

Just a short suggestion: There is no obligation for you to get a "high" and "expensive" coulour of the Amex Card in UK.

I think it would be much better to keep you US Amex Card active and to open up a new UK based Amex Card. This could also be a green or blue card due to the fact that if you want to use any special services of gold or higher coulour card, you can use your "old" card. @:-)

So the second card is much lower than $400. And if you keep your US card active you can also keep your accumulated Amex rewards points.

More info can be seen at: American Express Global Transfers
reachable by: their website, Change country, in the lower part of the screen you see the link

(I don't type direct links for financial services here in for security reasons.)

So the best strategy may be: Keep the old card and coulour in US, choose a "low" and cheap colour (green, blue) for UK or a combined Amex/BA Card.

Hope this info helps.

ok thats what i meant to say, il keep my US plat and get a UK card also....if i can get them to waive the fee il get a plat (though not likely im sure) so most liekly a green (unless i can sweet talk them into giving me a cent card! lol i wish)

are there any fees associated with paying a UK amex bill from a US bank acct?

My experience is that Amex will _not_ waive fees in the global transfer programme.

Second, they will initially only offer you a charge card, since that does not involve credit. I was able to wrangle an Amex CC after some major to-ing and fro-ing.

Third: if you are thinking of paying for your charges from a US bank account, this is a BAD idea. As gum outlined above, you can perfectly well use your US Amex in the UK (except for a few machines that are only chip and pin, see UK forum for details), and pay a 2-3% foreign exchange charge (not sure of exact figure). This is actually a pretty favourable rate, since the underlying rate will be the bank rate, rather something you could get at a bureau de change.

If you are going to be transferring large sums of money to a UK-based account anyway (e.g. to pay for tuition fees, pay for rent etc.), then it might be more worthwhile to get a UK card, and use this UK account to pay off your card. Otherwise, you will be facing international bank transfer charges, on a monthly basis: not a good idea.

Either way, you can wait until you get to the UK: if you are a student, you should be able to open a student bank account with most major banks upon provision of an official university enrollment document (and unlike US banks, there are no charges for using cheques, opening and operating a basic account etc.).

good luck,

tb

Great point. My first step was to open a UK bank account and setup a direct debit. VERY annoying to do, especially if you're there temporarily, and you either a) have no income, or, b), as was my case, your income in being paid into your US-based, US-dollar account.

I don't know what your finances are like, but since you have a Platinum Card, unless you just like really shiny things, you should be able to come up with GBP5,000 to stick in an HSBC Offshore account. You can setup a direct debit on a UK Amex from a Jersey-based account, and none of the silly mainland GB banking restrictions on opening an account.

Great point. My first step was to open a UK bank account and setup a direct debit. VERY annoying to do, especially if you're there temporarily, and you either a) have no income, or, b), as was my case, your income in being paid into your US-based, US-dollar account.

I don't know what your finances are like, but since you have a Platinum Card, unless you just like really shiny things, you should be able to come up with GBP5,000 to stick in an HSBC Offshore account. You can setup a direct debit on a UK Amex from a Jersey-based account, and none of the silly mainland GB banking restrictions on opening an account.

sorry for sounding stupid here....but whats "GBP" and a "HSBC offshore account" ive done very little with banking, ive used the same checking account that my parents opened for me when i was like...10....opening this amex was the only financial thing ive really done myself.....and all that took was 45 sec filling out an app....

and i believe the tuition will be paid in US $ here before i go, so wont have to worry about paying the school and such there....il just need a card to use on daily basis for whatever i need to buy....

My experience is that Amex will _not_ waive fees in the global transfer programme.

Second, they will initially only offer you a charge card, since that does not involve credit. I was able to wrangle an Amex CC after some major to-ing and fro-ing.

Third: if you are thinking of paying for your charges from a US bank account, this is a BAD idea. As gum outlined above, you can perfectly well use your US Amex in the UK (except for a few machines that are only chip and pin, see UK forum for details), and pay a 2-3% foreign exchange charge (not sure of exact figure). This is actually a pretty favourable rate, since the underlying rate will be the bank rate, rather something you could get at a bureau de change.

If you are going to be transferring large sums of money to a UK-based account anyway (e.g. to pay for tuition fees, pay for rent etc.), then it might be more worthwhile to get a UK card, and use this UK account to pay off your card. Otherwise, you will be facing international bank transfer charges, on a monthly basis: not a good idea.

Either way, you can wait until you get to the UK: if you are a student, you should be able to open a student bank account with most major banks upon provision of an official university enrollment document (and unlike US banks, there are no charges for using cheques, opening and operating a basic account etc.).

good luck,

tb

im meeting with the study abroad department in the next couple days so i gotta make sure to ask them what they recommend for money. i dont mind opening an account in the UK, just not sure what bank to use (dunno any of them over there!) and i dont want/need a credit card just a charge card :) i prefer having to pay everything off every month and not be able to let the bill run, it always ends in the several thousands before i notice (IE my Neiman Marcus card lol)

HSBC is the name of the bank. GBP is an abbreviation for British Pounds (hopefully you know what those are).

HSBC has something called an offshore account. The difference between this type of account and a student account that you'd set up when you got to England is that a) it's much easier to setup, with a lot fewer requirements (the only real requirement is a minimum deposit of 5,000 pounds, or about 9,000 dollars). When you're done with the account, you can always withdraw them back to your US account.

When you open the Amex card, you can set it up so that when you get your bill, you don't have to write a check, but it automatically subtracts whatever you owe from this bank account.

Trust me, for what you want to do, this is definitely the way to do it.

When you open the Amex card, you can set it up so that when you get your bill, you don't have to write a check, but it automatically subtracts whatever you owe from this bank account.

Trust me, for what you want to do, this is definitely the way to do it.

Great show ^

and have a great start in UK :)

Let's get some more information here to help your situation.

1. What expenses do you foresee having in the UK? Rent, food, entertainment, other?

2. I assume that you are having no income in the UK. Please correct me if I am wrong

3. How "high on the hog" do you expect to live? You say you are a student. Is your housing arranged through the university or are you finding your own? etc.


When I was a student abroad, I opened a student account with a single bank transfer from the US. I did a single transfer to minimise fees. Depending on your budgeting, if you can't fund the entire year up-front, consider semi annual or quarterly transfers from the US. Avoid monthly to minimise fees.

From this student account you can get a debit card. Yes, I generally do not like debit cards as much as credit but as a student your options will be limited.

Call AMEX and ask about the UK option but I would open it AFTER you get to the UK, have an address, and a UK current account (aka checking account) that you can use to pay the bill locally. Go to the AMEX UK website (https://home.americanexpress.com/home/uk/home_p.shtml?page=pr) to find out more about the cards availble. You can then discuss your options with the UK AMEX rep.

I highly recommend against cancelling your US card for a couple of reasons:
1. You can use it in the UK until you get your UK card
2. It is a back-up card in case you lose your UK card or something else happends
3. Most importantly, it let's you continue to build your credit history in the US. You are just staring to build your credit history so you want to maintain long-term accounts that you pay regularly.

Glossary:
FOREX = Foreign Exchange - the process of changing from one currency to another
GBP = Great Britain Pounds - UK Sterling, local currency in the UK
HSBC Offshore Account = A bank account that is based off the main UK territory in one of the Channel Islands for favourable tax treatment. Unless you are talking larger amounts here, probably not worth it for a 1 year student

Let's get some more information here to help your situation.

1. What expenses do you foresee having in the UK? Rent, food, entertainment, other?

2. I assume that you are having no income in the UK. Please correct me if I am wrong

3. How "high on the hog" do you expect to live? You say you are a student. Is your housing arranged through the university or are you finding your own? etc.


1) mostly just random expences, food, movie rentals, shopping, needs for dorm, etc stuff like that, nothing huge.

2) i dont plan on having an income while there thats correct, will most likely be funding everything through money i have in the US/scholarships that i get

3)im not a upper class rich person by any means, i like nicer things (IE buy nicer clothes, nicer restaurants, etc etc) but not gonna be spending thousands of dollars on stuff while im there, my housing will be dorms arranged by the school. its all a kinda package they offer: tuition, housing, meal plan, trips to various cultural things with a guide. only thing il be getting separate is airfare (me and a friend both going so 2 for 1 international airfare via amex)

This seemed like the most appropriate thread to bump so apologies if it's not the right one.

Has anyone had any experience with Amex Global Transfers of transferring US co-branded Amex credit cards to other countries?

Reason I ask, I am moving to Singapore soon and would love to retain my Delta Platinum Amex (to keep earning miles and MQM boosts) if Global Transfers works for this card and the billing currency can be changed to SGD.

Thanks in advance.

I recently moved from the US to the UK--permanent relocation.

Let me first say that I have been an Amex customer for around a decade, and was very satisfied. That all went away with my move to the UK.

The process is much, much more difficult than Amex portrays it. And for the OP, if you will be in the UK for less than a year or so it might not be worth the effort.

First off, "Global Transfer" is a misnonmer, because you are not transferring cards at all, but rather just linking your credit history. Coming from the US I thought the Patriot Act was about as intrusive as it can get--not so. In the UK you must verify your identity for any cards, even if you have multiple cards from the same issuer.

So here was my process. I had a place to live in London and a checking account set up about 1 month before I actually left the US. I waited until the day I arrived in London to call Amex--that was a mistake on my part, because the "Global Transfer" process takes 2 weeks minimum. That said, the entire process ended up lasting longer than that.

Since I had no UK credit history, the "Global Transfer" process would allow me to get a card because it would utilize my US credit history. In contrast to someone who comes to the UK fresh--from what I've heard these people tend to need to wait at least 6 months to build a credit history before getting a UK card. The Amex process lets you bypass this.

That said, it is not a transfer, as your US card stays the same and a brand new UK card is opened. I have a US-based SPG Amex, Platinum Charge Card, and Green Corporate Card. I was applying for a UK-based Platinum Charge Card. It took Amex 2 weeks to approve the transfer, i.e. recognize my US-based credit history with Amex. Then you have to prove your identity--submit bank statements, utility bills, passport copies, etc. That is a challenge because you need original paper bills and statements, so you typically have to wait up to a month after arriving in the UK before you will actually have had your bank and any utility company mail you a paper bill.

So 2 weeks to approve the transfer on Amex's side, then another 2 weeks on my side to recieve the proper bills and statements from my bank, Sky, etc. So we're at 4 weeks total by the time I could submit the necessary final paperwork to Amex. Then it took another 2 weeks for them to approve. Then another week for them to mail me the card. So 7 weeks start to finish before I could actually use my UK-based Platinum charge card.

Now, other posters have said to keep your US-based card open--I agree 100%. Because if you don't then you have to go through the process of transferring your membership rewards to the UK. That will take about 2 weeks, and they'll try to convert your points based on the GBP/USD exchange rate. Which is bollocks because many rewards (e.g. Virgin Atlantic miles) are a 1:1 ration regardless of whether you are in the US or UK.


In case anyone is curious, in the end I downgraded my US-based Platinum to Green to save on the fees and kept my membership rewards in the US. Also kept my SPG Amex (which has to have a US billing address, by the way). Ended up cancelling the UK-based Platinum after all this mess and took the BA Premium Plus card instead because it's more useful IMO. That took another month, by the way....And don't even get me started on transferring the Corporate Card--that process took about 6 weeks as well. Wasn't as painful because my company did it, but still--6 weeks for a corporate card? Let's just say I'm no longer a satisfied customer, and I only stick with Amex because they really do offer the best rewards. But the customer service is poor.....

I don't know what your finances are like, but since you have a Platinum Card, unless you just like really shiny things, you should be able to come up with GBP5,000 to stick in an HSBC Offshore account.

I typically do not give advice on things (I'm usually the one asking questions), but when I was reading this thread I felt the need to lay this factor out there and provide one simple piece of advice...do NOT open a foreign bank account (offshore) for your semester abroad. There are too many reasons to list, but I'll give you just one:

1. The US Internal Revenue Service.

My father is a tax attorney and he has people breaking down his door for him to help them negotiate their deals with the IRS regarding this very recent crack-down on foreign accounts:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=arcHWfbfzcis

The bottom line is this: If you have or had a foreign bank account, and file a US tax form and forget to "check the box" (or the person doing your taxes for you forgets to check the box), you filed a felony level false IRS document.

The current penalty people are facing are min 5 yrs in jail, and a fine of up to 125% of the highest value of the account in the last (I think) 10 years.

Now - I know people will say, "if you file your taxes correctly, you have nothing to worry about." True - but why chance it for a semester abroad.

Others may read the article and say, this can't happen to me... True, not everyone may get prosecuted to the same extent but the grace period to "come forward" and declare all foreign accounts ended on 9/30. Either way, that is a list I would not want to be on, and you would be on it before you graduate.

Do yourself a favor and do what the rest of us who went "abroad" did...

Ask our parents for money when they came to visit us each month, and don't be afraid to use your credit card (after all - you're not buying cars and luxury goods during those 3 mo., and if you are, you can afford the fee anyway.)

I would file this under "not worth the hassle" (or potential hassles)...

I typically do not give advice on things (I'm usually the one asking questions), but when I was reading this thread I felt the need to lay this factor out there and provide one simple piece of advice...do NOT open a foreign bank account (offshore) for your semester abroad. There are too many reasons to list, but I'll give you just one:

1. The US Internal Revenue Service.

My father is a tax attorney and he has people breaking down his door for him to help them negotiate their deals with the IRS regarding this very recent crack-down on foreign accounts:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=arcHWfbfzcis

The bottom line is this: If you have or had a foreign bank account, and file a US tax form and forget to "check the box" (or the person doing your taxes for you forgets to check the box), you filed a felony level false IRS document.

The current penalty people are facing are min 5 yrs in jail, and a fine of up to 125% of the highest value of the account in the last (I think) 10 years.

Now - I know people will say, "if you file your taxes correctly, you have nothing to worry about." True - but why chance it for a semester abroad.

Others may read the article and say, this can't happen to me... True, not everyone may get prosecuted to the same extent but the grace period to "come forward" and declare all foreign accounts ended on 9/30. Either way, that is a list I would not want to be on, and you would be on it before you graduate.

Do yourself a favor and do what the rest of us who went "abroad" did...

Ask our parents for money when they came to visit us each month, and don't be afraid to use your credit card (after all - you're not buying cars and luxury goods during those 3 mo., and if you are, you can afford the fee anyway.)

I would file this under "not worth the hassle" (or potential hassles)...

I agree for large amounts, but opening up a small non interest bearing account for convenience purposes at an non off shore bank is not risky.

My understanding is that you can check no to the foreign account question on a 1040, even if you have foreign accounts overseas, as long as the aggregate value of the foreign accounts does not exceed $10K at any time during the year.

...kept my SPG Amex (which has to have a US billing address...

Welcome to Flyertalk.

Evidently this has changed because this text appears on a current SPG PDF statement:

Annual Fee: The annual Basic Card fee is $45.00. The annual fee is increased by $5 if the billing address of the account is outside the US

Overall, I do not understand why you are dissatisfied with American Express' Global Transfer service. You waited until you arrived in the UK to contact them, and you still had a UK card within seven weeks versus six months. Much of the complexity is mandated by British government regulations. Did you expect American Express to be exempt?

There is no requirement to transfer Membership Rewards points, but if you elect to do so it is based on the currency exchange rate because that affects the basis on which the points are earned, not the basis on which they are redeemed. American Express cannot know your redemption plans.

Hi xolinlevh,

It’s Beth from American Express.

Flyertalk members have provided you with a lot of great information to consider.

Please keep in mind American Express charges a 2.7% fee to convert foreign charges on a U.S. account.

To convert a U.S. Card to an international Card, please visit:

americanexpress.com/globaltransfers

Additional information about our U.K Card can be found at:

https://home.americanexpress.com/home/uk/home

Supersonic Swinger – additional information about our Singapore Card can be found at:
https://home.americanexpress.com/home/sg/home_c.shtml?location=globalsplash

If anyone has any additional questions, please feel free to contact me. It is my pleasure to assist you.

Welcome to Flyertalk.

Evidently this has changed because this text appears on a current SPG PDF statement:

Annual Fee: The annual Basic Card fee is $45.00. The annual fee is increased by $5 if the billing address of the account is outside the US

Overall, I do not understand why you are dissatisfied with American Express' Global Transfer service. You waited until you arrived in the UK to contact them, and you still had a UK card within seven weeks versus six months. Much of the complexity is mandated by British government regulations. Did you expect American Express to be exempt?

There is no requirement to transfer Membership Rewards points, but if you elect to do so it is based on the currency exchange rate because that affects the basis on which the points are earned, not the basis on which they are redeemed. American Express cannot know your redemption plans.


I see your point, but I left some items out of my first post, which would have better explained my discontent. It's not so much that it took 7 weeks, but that US-based Amex and UK-based Amex appear to be totally separated, and unable to share information with each other. Throughout my process I routinely yield calls from both sides of the Pond with contradictory information and complete lack of knowledge of my account. It was literally as if they were dealing with 2 totally different people, instead of one customer with accounts in two countries.

Every time I sorted an issue with, for example, UK-based Amex, I had to then re-fight the entire battle with US-based Amex. And this had to done across time zones (business hours only in each), which was highly inconvenient.

My first big issue was during the initial move. I worked with Amex in both the UK and US to ensure that my US cards reflected my new UK address, while I waited for my UK cards to come. Even though I had informed Amex in both countries, when I tried actually using my cards the new address set off security alerts.

So I was busy trying to buy key items needed in a new house after a move, but was entirely unable to because every time I used any of my US-based cards during my first 7-10 days in London they were rejected. Unfortunately, Amex in the UK can't work security issues on US cards, so when I had issues in the morning, UK time, I had to wait until the afternoon to speak with US Amex to unblock my cards.

Then after clearing the issue the first time it happened, the very next time I used the card they put another security block on the card. This happened to 2 different cards, 3 times each. The kicker is that all 6 purchases were attempted on the exact same item, from the exact same vendor.

My point is this--I moved from New York to London, which in my opinion, is not a big deal. It's not like I moved to a 3rd world country, after all. Yet Amex seemed completely incapable of coordinating between my two accounts and ensuring a basic change of address went through. In addition, to have to call their security center on 6 different occasions to unblock my card for the same exact purchase is unacceptable.

I was effectively unable to use my Amex cards for the first 7-10 days after I moved to the UK. Essentially, my transition into a new country was flawless on all other counts (finding a place to live, bank accounts, etc.), but I was unable to rely on Amex to purchase basic goods and services.


On to membership rewards points. Contrary to your statement, exchange rates DO affect how you redeem points. So for Virgin, 1 point = 1 mile, so in that case the redemption is the same. That is not the case for other vendors, however (I believe Starwood is an example, but I'd have to confirm). Some vendors have different redemption rates in the UK versus in the US.

So with different earnings rates, and different redemptions rates, I actually don't view this as a negative, but instead an arbitrage opportunity!

This post in long enough (sorry!), but my other major issue was that coordinating the membership rewards transfer was another situation where the customer service departments in the US and the UK appeared to be completely out of touch with one another. At one point they actually doubled my available points because neither had any clue what the other was doing. And I ended up being the one to catch that because they had no clue.

I have been very happy with Amex in the past, but this time it just seemed like every step along the way they had to make it as difficult as possible. My impression was that I was dealing with a global organization, when in fact it appears that units in different countries are run wholly separately from each other. This is inconvenient for the customer, and not very reassuring from a security point of view....

Thank you for the additional details.

...ensure that my US cards reflected my new UK address, while I waited for my UK cards to come. Even though I had informed Amex in both countries, when I tried actually using my cards the new address set off security alerts....

Were you trying to make the purchase online, by telephone or in person? I have experienced something similar with my International Dollar Card, which is linked to our UK address. I cannot use it with vendors (such as Transport for London's website) which implement rigorous address verification. My guess is that the IDC address database is more "freeform" than a single country database where all addresses share certain characteristics. I imagine the same problem arises when they force a UK address into a database designed for USA addresses.