Banking

[keithgdg]

Let me start by saying "ruddy banks" and perhaps you'll get the tone of my problem. I've been told by my bank that because I don't have a uk property that they are closing my account. Now I'm sure that I'm not the only person in the world that lives on a yacht without a uk home that needs their pensions paid in to live. Anyone any suggestions on how I can get a bank account with a Visa card?

HELP!

 

[sailaboutvic]

A big problem with U.K. Banks if you don't have an address also untitled bills .
Someone not long ago gave. Name of a online bank that would open account , someone on the forum ,
but I can't find it now .
Although I think you find once you get to the end of filling in the form they will ask .
you may be able to get a account with just a debit card ,
I suggest try and do into a bank and talk to them .

 

[guernseyman]

Have you tried Barclays, Lloyds, TSB, Monese?

 

[Old Bumbulum]

Banks in the Channel Islands don't seem to suffer the address problem. I know someone who has a Barclay's account in Jersey on an Australian address, but as to getting direct debits paid into it by a UK financial institution, despite it being Barclays with a UK sort code and fully accredited as part of the UK banking sytem, that's quite another matter. I will shortly be able to report if it is possible to pay a cheque into this account via a UK high-street Barclays. Seems an utterly incredible situation but the hight st bank in question dodn't know if it was possible when asked and seemed powerless to find out, despite the account being one of their own Banks'! In fact they look quite perturbed at the suggestion. "Offshore" banks, even UK high st. ones on UK terrirory high Sts are regarded as little more than nests of smugglers, criminals and thieves by the UK mainland financial system.

UK banking seems an utter disaster when it comes to doing anything involving expats.

This is all the result of the gumment's (FSA's) hysterically OTT response to "money laundering" that merely seems to punish the ordinary man on the street with his trivial sums as I'm quite certain anyone with substantial money to move on/offshore can find a way easily enough.
A Visa card without a UK address may well be impossible.

Happy to second the

 

[Fatbeard]

Tried it. Failed. Lost the T shirt.

UK Banks want an address. Period. So give them one. No adult offspring? No Relatives? No friends? Living in your cabin for the last 20 yrs and met nobody who might allow you a correspondence address? Tried your club or mooring association?

Fail?

Ok. Then try this ...
https://www.scanmypost.co.uk

and this ...
https://www.pockit.com

; )

 

[Old Bumbulum]

Sadly it isn't a good idea to tell them you no longer have a UK address. The trick here is merely to inform them of a "change of address" to a relative's or friend's address, though that too may require "proof" now.
Getting a new account requires proof of the address in the form of utility bills etc, nigh on impossible if you don't actually live there.

Having said that there must be dozens on this forum who are in this situltion and have found ways to manage - perhaps best communicated by PM rather than spreading it around in a public forum?

 

[RAI]

I lost my Barclay Visa card, as I no longer have a UK address for which I can provide utility bills and council tax evidence.
The Jersey branch of NatWest helped me out.

 

[macd]

This is all the result of the gumment's (FSA's) hysterically OTT response to "money laundering" that merely seems to punish the ordinary man on the street with his trivial sums as I'm quite certain anyone with substantial money to move on/offshore can find a way easily enough.

In fact it's not. FSA regulations specifically permit even homeless people to open and maintain bank accounts. The banks themselves impose many of the barriers but for reasons not hard to imagine are prone to pass them off as due to "money laundering regulations".

 

[greeny]

In fact it's not. FSA regulations specifically permit even homeless people to open and maintain bank accounts. The banks themselves impose many of the barriers but for reasons not hard to imagine are prone to pass them off as due to "money laundering regulations".

Fully agree.
slight thread drift but on a similar theme,
6 months ago my wife and myself were made to re validate our bank accounts in Portugal by producing proof of address and utility bills etc. etc. even though we'd both had accounts here for almost 20yrs. They used the excuse of the European law demanding this due to money laundering regulations. I told the bank manager it was bollocks and that it was an exercise in customer profiling. However we still had to complete it under threat of possible accounts being frozen by Lisbon office. As part of the validation they wanted British tax and national insurance numbers which we supplied along with a lot of personal information about the UK that we refused to give. Information like did we own property in UK, did we rent it out, how much did we receive each month? Where did my UK income come from, how much was it etc etc.
Last week my wife received notification from the bank that there is now a requirement that all her account details, balances and interest were to be reported to the portuguese tax department who were then duty bound to pass this information on to the UK tax authorities. No problem because all our affairs are legal and above board and reported both in UK and Portugal already.
This week we receive a letter saying that all our details have been forwarded to the relevant authorities and that the bank suggest we make an appointment with their financial tax advisor who can help us with the reporting of tax in Portugal and the best ways of investing to minimise our tax liability.
Do they think we are are stupid!
After 18 yrs I will be closing the accounts and moving. I know it'll probably all happen again with the new bank but It'll make me feel better.
The bank? Santander before someone asks.

 

[Graham376]

We've not had that problem with Caixa Directa so far.

 

[Sybarite]

In France if banks refuse to open an account for you you can apply to the Banque de France which will then nominate a bank which will be obliged to cater for you. This said, I'm not sure what their position would be if you lived on a boat.

 

[Tony Cross]

This page from the EU Europa website might be of interest. It says...

The law says that anyone residing legally in the European Union has the right to open a payment account with basic features in any EU country. However, a person wishing to open such a bank account should always comply with EU anti-money laundering rules.

A basic bank account includes various services such as cash withdrawals at a bank counter or cash machines and the execution of payment transactions such as direct debits or credit transfers within the EU.

You need however to establish your residence somewhere in the EU.

 

[Mikedefieslife]

Try a digital bank. Yes you will need a UK address to register and get your card, but after that you're sorted. Much easier to deal with than the old traditional banks that will eventually be forced to adapt or die.

For travel Starling Bank would be my recommendation.

Otherwise you go with a pre-pay card like Revolut, which tries to act as a bank and is in fact in the process of applying for its banking licence.

 

[Yngmar]

Otherwise you go with a pre-pay card like Revolut, which tries to act as a bank and is in fact in the process of applying for its banking licence.

Revolut now does the exact same AML checks as any other bank (proof of ID and proof of residence). They also impose a limit of £4k throughput annually on your account until you provide a source of funds document showing where your money comes from.

It's all very annoying and forcing you to be very careful with the truth when asked about your address/residence. Definitely a very, very bad idea to say you have no UK address. Scan services recommended above can work, but you won't have a council tax bill.

This seems to be only a UK bank thing. German bank only wrote me a letter saying they have to comply with legislation of sharing some data with tax authorities and that's it.

 

[RAI]

You need however to establish your residence somewhere in the EU.

I suspect your residence and bank need to be in the same EU nation.
I have had a Barclaycard for forty years and residence changing between three EU nations.
Only this year a Barclaycard is not allowed with a Belgian home address.
Somethings going on.

 

[Tony Cross]

I suspect your residence and bank need to be in the same EU nation.

According to the Europa site I posted your bank doesn't have to be in the same country as your residence. The problem for liveaboards is that you have to be resident somewhere. Presumably so they know you're paying taxes somewhere...

 

[lindsay]

No help with Uk bank account or credit card, but for a partial or interim solution you can get the UK state pension paid into someone else's bank account in the UK after shuffling a few bits of paper, or even into a bank account abroad.

 

[macd]

According to the Europa site I posted your bank doesn't have to be in the same country as your residence.

It certainly doesn't. However, with some banks, at least, you'll need to possess either a passport from an EU28 country (shortly to become EU28-1), or formal residence in the country in which you're opening the account.

 

[Zing]

St Brendan’s isle in the US specialise in providing addresses should they be needed including mail holding. HSBC Expat in Jersey specialise in providing various currency accounts for offshore Brits.

 

[RAI]

According to the Europa site I posted your bank doesn't have to be in the same country as your residence. The problem for liveaboards is that you have to be resident somewhere. Presumably so they know you're paying taxes somewhere...

I have and do, but Barclaycard refused to accept those details anymore. So some banks operate different rules.