US Banking
 

We (my wife and I, UK based) travel to the US fairly regularly and it occurs to me that we would benefit from having a US bank account to use as a cash tank we top up when FX rates are good. I wondered if anyone had any advice on who to go with or what accounts are best (we'd hit the ATMs rather than writing cheques)?

Just realised this is in the wrong part of the forums... sorry.

It is not easy for a non-citizen to open a bank account. At the very least you'd need a US address to start. A Social Security Number is also a requirement for any interest-bearing account (and in fact, banks will pressure you to provide one in all cases), and depending on how you would fund the account, you may need to be there in person. Partly this is because banking in the US is regulated by about sixty different government bodies, partly this is to combat fraud, partly this is because of various provisions of the Patriot Act regarding establishing identity, money laundering, etc.

Ask your bank in the UK if they have an affiliated bank in the US; if so, you may be able to open one through that partnership. Some banks, I've heard Citibank UK for one, offer dollar-denominated accounts. ING has a growing US presence, as does HSBC to a lesser extent.

Now, even with the massive consolidation that's occured in the last 20 years or so, the US banking system is still highly decentralized by world standards. As such, the part of country you're in will dictate which bank offers the most ATM options. Suntrust may have no rivals in Atlanta, but nobody in Los Angeles will have even heard of it; Wells Fargo may have an ATM every ten feet in San Francisco but not one within a hundred miles of Orlando.

Many Internet banks reimburse you ATM fees up to a certain amount per month. However, it may be hard to find a UK bank that has a partnership with someone like NetBank. The e-banks owned by brokerages (e.g. E*TRADE Bank, TD Waterhouse) offer similar schemes.

true
 

true, getting a bank here might be tough, but you can get a paypal account and fund it.

as well, you can get a paypal debit card, or credit / debit card linked to your paypal account.

Money can be transferred in and out, regardless, you will need to transfer dollars.

Interest is sweeet as well.

Paypal will only issue the debit card to US account holders too. I'd say your best option is to open a dollar based offshore account and get a card to go with it.

As sadi earlier, opening a regular bank account will prove to be pretty impossible. Also, call your own bank as many of them will let you open an account in the UK for dollars.

As for the thread, let me think of the best place to move it...

credit/debit
 

Isn't there a credit/debit card that is what they offer, I know the debit will not.

i'll ask the founder next time I see him :-)

A dollar denominated account in europe is trivial, I don't know how they would treat ATM deductions, since there would not be a currency exchange.

Peronally, I would rather use Euros or pounds these days, and I see that getting worse (for $$ denominated account holders) before it gets better.

What about getting a bunch of $$, and buying a debit card here in the states with that amount on it?

I believe you're required to provide a tax ID number, not a social security number. For US Citizens opening personal accounts, these are the same. Foreign citizens can apply for a tax ID number from the social security administration (there are forms online somewhere - or the bank can provide one). We have used foreign Au Pair's for child care, they have never had issues opening a US bank account using a Tax ID number.

Also note, the banks will usually open up an account with an "applied for" notation. I believe they give you about 4 weeks to supply the actual number.

Try searching for info in the finance forums in www.fatwallet.com, they talk about this kind of thing more so than here.

true
 

true, the bank secrecy act only requires SS, OR taxpayer ID number.

Some banks chose to require SS, some banks DON'T. So, finding one that doesn't of course is the key.

American Express have just launched a 'Travellers Check Card' for UK citizens - funded in either USD, GBP or EUR it's a prepaid card that's accepted at most places displaying the AMEX sign all over the world. Minimum initial load is £200 thereafter £50 a time.

Not the same as a bank account but seems convenient for the regular UK->US traveller.

Citibank do offer a US Dollar account in the UK.

See US Dollar Current Account

A SSN is NOT a legal requirement for opening a bank account in the US. A taxpayer ID number is required as stated above, however for a variety of reasons this may be different for even a US citizen, not just a foreign national. Obtaining one takes all of five minutes from a SS office and are not a problem. Many bank workers just do not want the hassle of dealing with foreigners as they just do not know how, on the other hand many will accept a new account being opened with 000-00-0000 in the SSN box.

one of the two
 

ONE of the two, IS a requirement. It is, however, up to the institution to decide WHICH they require.

No, legally they have to accept one or the other. It's not their choice it is yours (like the average bank employee could tell the difference anyway!)

technically
 

technically, I don't think this is correct. I think the bank CAN chose to require SS if they chose, and not TaxID. But I believe BOTH or EITHER are VALID to be in compliance with Bank Secrecy Act, Specifically, 31 CFR 103.24(a) of the Currency and Foreign Transactions regulation

Additionally, Treasury Regulation 1.6049-4(b) requires the bank to
report to the IRS when paying interest of $10 or more to a depositor. This interest would then be associated with whichever SS or TaxID.

Technically almost no one can ask for for a SSN, including banks, and theoretically the worst a bank can do is withold your interest if you do not issue them a Social Sceurity number.

Technically and legally hfly is correct in that they cannot demand to use your SSN. That is strictly for Social Security and cannot be legally demanded for other purposes. However in practical terms, many people demand it and unless you want to call a lawyer or congressman, there isn't much you can do about it. There was a lawsuit a while back against a state (Maryland I think) that demanded the SSN for a drivers license. The state lost.

Several years ago, I attempted to open a Bank of America account in Savannah and was refused -- even though I am an American citizen and have a Social Security number.

I did not have an American addresss and that was the reason for the refusal. I offered to give my girlfriend's address in Savannah and make it "c/o" but this, too, was rejected.

On the other hand, when I went to FLL, Bank of America allowed me to open the account there using my parents' address.

bank secrecy act
 

and we don't think the bank secrecy act has changed any of this?

Of course the bank can refuse someone who doesn't have SS, or TaxID. They can simply refuse service. DMV is probably a differant issue, since it is a state government organization, but the bank can do what they want.

The government only tells them, you MUST get one or the other. But the bank can do what they want. Either SS OR TAXId and they are fine with the fed.

Should I post the above two laws here, in their entirity?

A TIN (Taxpayer ID Number) is issued by the IRS (Infernal Revenue Service), not the SSA (Social Security Administration).

In addition to traditional banks, you may also want to check with your insurance company and brokerage firm. Some insurance companies (such as AIG? and State Farm) have banking branches/affiliates (but I don't know about there presence in your area). And your broker may offer an ATM option for a MM account.

US accounts for non resident people
 

As you can see from my profile, for my sins, I'm in three countries. Which is one PITA of a commute - although it's (sob sob) dropping down to two within a month

I ended up with a US account at HSBC (who actually have considerably more branches then ING's internet banking based ING Direct - which BTW operates similiarly to the ING Direct in the UK - even down to that vile shade of orange(!)) by getting an introduction from my UK bankers (First Direct/ HSBC) - but then again I had oddles of paperwork to prove who I was and who I'd worked for and an SSN by the time the account was opened :-)

I got a US Amex card by talking to those nice people at Amex in Brighton - I've heard mixed stories about how successful that is these days - but if you've got an Amex you might as well ask! Amex Europe to offer an International Dollar Amex card, but please ensure you have smelling salts at hand before you see the charges

As people have mentioned, the main issue is getting hold of an ITIN/ SSN. These days an ITIN is probably what you'll end up with, my wife has one. However try to ensure that you get a real US government issued one - some banks had a tendency to try and issue a number in SSN format but which was only valid on their systems(!!)).

As you can realise, SSN's are both a blessing and a curse! I won't even go into the identify theft issues

Realistically, with all the problems associated with the 'know your customer' requirements that the US banks appear to want to enforce, I'd suggest using a USD account through Citibank in the UK... they will do the (USD) check and debit card stuff for you. N.B. You could try (US) citi directly when you pop into the US - they'll generally help with the paperwork needed to apply for an ITIN - and will send statements overseas (which I've used over the years) - but the first option will almost definitly be easier

I doubt that the UK brokerage account approach will work - when TD Waterhouse operated in the UK, the only real relationship they had with the US and Canadian operations was the name - I suspect the same will be found of other brokerages. Obviously YMMV if you have a cruise ship full of money with a US based outfit such as Morgan Stanley or Merrills

The visa top-up debit cards are quite expensive to operate - there usually are monthly fees and high charges for topping up - search on http://www.cardweb.com for details on them and at http://www.bankrate.com for the rates

Good luck!

Tom

P.S. Just to make you cringe, opening a new account in the UK is considerably more difficult these days than doing the same in the US. For people in the US, imagine the identify points system that's being used by some DMV's (cough NJ cough) raised a few notches!
P.P.S. Whilst most of it won't apply to you, you might like to accidently look through the section on US banking system in the book 'Living and Working in America' by David Hampshire when you're at a bookshop. Highly recommended (especially for anyone either being moved by the job or otherwise - HR departments assume you know a lot more than you do(!))