Artemio

Unfortunately not as easy anymore as it used to be. The self-generated amazon document are being rejected lately. Anyone has another company ITIN letter to recommend?

ChocolateFactory

For Amex, it should even work without the ITIN.
If the ebook route doesn’t work anymore, I would look at something like dividends:
https://ibkr.info/article/46

Basically, what you’ll want is for federal taxes to be withheld, so that you’d have to file a tax return to get them back.
You can’t just apply for an ITIN, you must be in a situation where you need one. You can’t file a tax return without an SSN/ITIN, so having to file a tax return would be a valid reason for needing an ITIN. Nobody cares if you ever file the tax return once you have the ITIN.

LondonElite

Thanks for your PM. I'll be in touch!

chowinlondon

Hello! Maybe moving to Australia later this year, and currently have a NZ Amex.

I know previously, there has been reports of getting the New Member offers when transferring using the Global Transfer Program.

Does anybody have more recent experiences? I am really keen to be able to get the 120,000 Qantas points with the move, which is available to new Amex members.

Thanks!

ChocolateFactory

I can't speak for AU, but in the US and Germany, the signup bonuses are always awarded, unless you have had that specific card from that specific country before. So most likely, you should be fine.

dadig

Transferred to UK and got offered the bonus which I didn't care for, and even retained my membership date - but the overall service and experience was seamless as I expected from Amex. Time and again the team understood what my requirements and requests without having to repeat or clarify, second only to Amazon.

LondonElite

You always retain your membership date when you transfer to another country.

ChocolateFactory

I didn’t. Maybe I should ask them to fix it...

LondonElite

Definitely. It is part of the vanity!

GUWonder

They do try to check, but I have to assume they still don't always have an account-populated US credit file which to run the check against.

For little to no credit history on file, how much of a negative hit can an Amex credit check for a global transfer to the US do?

ChocolateFactory

Just a quick heads up to everyone who wants to do it: They can easily fix the "member since" date, I requested it via chat. HOWEVER, that will trigger all your cards to be reissued.
As I'm happy with my cards (easy to remember security codes etc.) and have the details saved at a dozen merchants, I decided to keep the incorrect "member since" date for the time being.

cfischer

I did not ... when I transferred from Switzerland to the US many years ago.

merlin90

I've recently moved to the US from the UK and have now got my social security number and opened a bank account. The next step is to take out an Amex card here via global transfer.

I've read on this thread that opting for the Platinum card is a bad move because in, say, a year's time it won't have had the beneficial effect on your credit score that using one of Amex's credit cards would have done. Can anyone explain technically why this is the case? What is it about a charge card that the credit agencies don't like?

My girlfriend (a US citizen) has several US credit cards; my understanding is that she can add me as an authorised user on those and then even if I never use them, her spending and paying off balances in full reflects well on my credit score. If this is the case—more research to be done, but any thoughts on the matter would be appreciated—then I may take the Platinum card anyway.

ChocolateFactory

I'm not an expert. The experts can be found here:

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/
https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance
https://www.reddit.com/r/churning/

But my own experience as someone who started with the Platinum card was that my credit score didn't improve as quickly as my friend's, who started with the SPG credit card. My explanation is that for true credit cards, a credit limit is reported, so that the credit bureaus can calculate your credit utilization. I've heard that they used to use your highest balance on a charge card as a ficticious credit limit, but they no longer do that.
As long as you stick to Amex cards, it probably doesn't matter, but as soon as you want to get Chase cards etc., it would probably be an advantage to start with a "true" credit card.
Being an authorized user should help as well, but I don't know if it's the same as having your "own" card. I've also heard that it helps to be added as an authorized user to an "old" credit card vs. one that was just opened.
But again, for more reliable information, I would recommend you to look at the three links I posted.

LondonElite

How strange, all of my country moves have maintained my initial joint date. Almost every call I make to Amex brings up a 'we appreciate yo being a member for over 30 years...'