garyschmitt

Is it possible to do a global transfer to a country where you don't reside?

Since I will move to a euro country that's not part of the program, I would like to get my card transfered to another eurozone country - doesn't matter which. Are any eurozone countries lenient on residency proof? I gather from Mia's post ( http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/9696634-post6.html ) that someone moving to Spain can transfer their card to Germany instead.

I don't want to apply for the UK euro-based international expat card, because there are annual fees involved. My current card has no annual fee.

mia

I am not sure what gave this impression. In that post there are two choices for a person moving to Germany, a card issued in Germany or a International Euro Currency Card issued in the UK. You should be able to obtain the Euro Currency Card without regard to residency.

garyschmitt

Sorry, I overlooked the quote and assumed you were talking to the OP.

So if someone takes up residence in Greece, are you saying they can transfer their amex to spain, france, germany, etc, and supply their address in Greece, for example?

I've read a couple posts that detailed the difficulty of transferring a card to spain - lots of back and forth paperwork with some repetition, and in the end the card holder didn't even get a real credit card. I've read that the French and Italian consumer banking systems rank very poorly with consumers due to a lot of nickel and diming and excessive fees in general (including wire fees). And the dutch tend to be very tight with credit, keeping consumers on very short leashes.

So I'm thinking Germany may be the better option.

ahrz

mia is right.

The solution for you is the IEC (International Euro Currency card), which is an American Express card in Euro issued and managed by Amex UK for customers residing in Europe, irrespective of the country.

It exists as Green, Gold, Platinum and Centurion (by invitation only).

Have a look at : Amex IEC/IDC cards

The account balance must be paid in full each month (it's a charge card, not a credit card) by sending a cheque in Euro drawn on any european bank, or by a bank transfer to Standard Chartered Bank (Frankfurt, Germany). Please note that SEPA bank transfers within Europe are fast and inexpensive.

You will not be able to get a local Amex card in Germany, since you need to have a german address, a german bank account and a positive SCHUFA record.

---

You wrote also in your post : << the card holder didn't even get a real credit card >> .
Don't expect to become any "real credit card" in Europe unless you are resident in the issuing country and have a "good" credit history there ...
only charge cards will be issued to you ... with an annual fee !

garyschmitt

Thanks for clearing that up.. I didn't realize when she said the "euro currency card" was available to non-residents, that that's only the UK issued one (the one that costs at least 100€/yr).

Can I use global transfer to get the IEC card w/out annual fee (given that my current card has no annual fee)? I read this on the amex site: "Corporate Cards, International Dollar Cards and Global Network Cards are not eligible for Card transfers".

So I'm not sure if that also excludes the euro-denominated IEC. One would think the dollar IEC would be treated the same as the euro IEC.
Thanks for mentioning that. I was not even considering a card in the UK because they're outside SEPA (and I've been burned on wires to/from UK). But if Amex will accept payments to a german bank for a UK card, that makes it worth considering. I still need to get around the annual fee though. Credit card companies make enough money by charging merchants a whopping 5% per transaction (as I understand it), so I don't see the value in supplementing that with an annual fee.

I would rather stick to cash than pay an annual fee that exceeds what I would normally earn in usable rebates (and in the case of the IEC, there seems to be no rebates).
I thought the whole point to the global card transfer program was to bypass the need for a credit history at the destination. It would seem to make the program useless if they need credit history at the destination. Once someone builds a credit history at their destination, then they might as well take a new local card.

mia

No, Perhaps you are attaching unwarranted significance to the term "transfer". The program allows you to transfer your American Express history, it does not change local banking laws or entitle you to a type of card that does not otherwise exist in the other country. Global Transfers does not waive the requirements for a new card, it allows you to use your American Express history to help satisfy those requirements.

The International Dollar/Euro Cards are not "UK cards". They happen to be administered from an office physically located in the UK, but they are not the same as the Sterling cards issued to UK residents, and much of the work (e.g. transaction and payment processing, statement preparation and mailing) is performed by American Express in other countries.

To which country are you moving?

trueblu

As mia stated, global transfer allows you to get a locally issued card without all of the credit history requirements. In my experience (coming to US), they much, much prefer you to get a charge card (all of which have a fee) than a credit card, since that decreases their liability to you. Having said that, after a few months, I was able to persuade them to issue me with a credit card (SPG) since I did not want to relinquish my UK plat charge card, and didn't want to pay for two lots of charge cards.

In this instance, as others have said, the IEC seems the best bet for you, and will involve you paying a fee. Of course, you can choose to do all transactions by cash, but that has limitations, e.g. for purchasing expensive items, and importantly, buying over the web (e.g. flights).

tb

garyschmitt

I don't recall where I read that the annual fee was grandfathered, but apparently it wasn't a reliable source.
Belgium.. where a 5 yr residency permit is needed to get a real credit card (which takes 5 years to acquire), where charge cards have small credit lines, and also have annual fees, and where no bank issues a debit card with a visa logo. I also hear that charge cards offer very little consumer protection. I'll probably just stick to cash. I can always use a US card if credit card is the only payment type for something mailorder.

mia

I understood you were moving to a country where American Express does not issue cards, but now I think you only meant that Belgium is not listed on the Global Transfers website, is that correct?

For reference, a few years back American Express did offer Green IDC/ICC cards with the annual fee waived "for life". (The fee for Membership Rewards is separate, and would still apply if one wanted to enroll.) You might be able to negotiate a fee waiver even though that offer is gone.

Likewise, IDC/ICC cards are offered by some banks. HSBC Bank International waives the annual fee for qualifying customers:

http://www.offshore.hsbc.com/1/2/int...ess-green-card

garyschmitt

That's right.. Belgium doesn't participate, which is why I was originally looking to xfer the card to another country.
Sorry I missed it! I might have to try negotiating. I'll have to practice a british accent.. might be hard for an american to ask for favors in credit these days.
Thanks for the tip.. I'll check into it. I recall HSBC has some $100k min balance requirement for some accounts. If that's the requirement, it won't be possible for me.

mia

Recent discussion of Global Transfers has been moved to this thread:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...xperience.html

I will also look at consolidating some of the previous Global Transfers discussions into a reference thread.