So which UK banks allow non resident British citizens to have accounts in the UK, i'm thinking those of us who are permanently in Thailand.

[NextG]

14 hours ago, SussexExpat said:

I'm with Santander. They know I'm here and it doesn't seem to be a problem.

However, since the New Year I've had problems providing info for their 'know your customer' team. Yesterday I was on the phone to them for 45 minutes answering their questions. I still have to provide proof of address despite previously sending my P60 with my Thai address on it.

Apparently the Government has told all banks to update their customers info. Apparently Santander are the only bank doing this at the moment but all UK banks will be implementing it in the future.

Useful info. They did the same with me, so I’ve dumped them and opened a new account with another bank. Though I still have U.K credentials as I’m just on an extended holiday. 

[NanLaew]

18 hours ago, Purdey said:

While I have had a Halifax account for about 35 years, they have not tried to close it and send statements to Thailand. 

When I tried to open an account with other banks while on holiday there all of them said they wouldn't open a new account for an expat. Better to open offshore in Jersey. 

To qualify for a new Isle of Man or Channel Island bank account, you need to be resident there. I recall their residency criteria is the standard 180 days in a calendar year.

[In Full Agreement]

15 hours ago, driver52 said:

bit of a catch 22 that cos to settle in the first place you need a bank account ie to get a non-O retirement visa.......and folks keep telling me I can't easily open one anymore as a 'dodgy foreigner' ????

 

It's a mistake to believe everything "folks" keep telling you.

 

Opening a bank account in Thailand is not difficult.

[bradiston]

26 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

WISE is a UK based foreign exchange and financial technology company - and very good they are too. They are not a bank. I use them for currency transfers but I don't leave deposits with them. Interest rates don't really interest me.

 

Be warned 'retaining' a UK bank account is becoming very similar to 'opening one' with some banks. The perceived additional regulatory requirements are cited as the reason for not opening accounts for non-residents........it is only a small step to take that approach to existing accounts where the account holder is non-resident.

I have a Nationwide account still. But nothing else. If they want to close it, fine.

[driver52]

37 minutes ago, In Full Agreement said:

 

It's a mistake to believe everything "folks" keep telling you.

 

Opening a bank account in Thailand is not difficult.

sure I agree with the first sentence, that's why I'm a skinny bloke, on a bike, doing keto ????

2nd bit I haven't succeeded at yet so I'll have to see......do I need a TM30? the agoda place I'm staying in at the moment didn't even want to see my passport ????

[hotandsticky]

51 minutes ago, bradiston said:

I have a Nationwide account still. But nothing else. If they want to close it, fine.

I like the Nationwide gold card  -  no overseas transaction charges.

[NextG]

3 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

I like the Nationwide gold card  -  no overseas transaction charges.

Not quite true unless they have amended it since. There used to be a 1% deduction from the VISA rate outside Europe. 

[Sigma6]

1 hour ago, NanLaew said:

To qualify for a new Isle of Man or Channel Island bank account, you need to be resident there. I recall their residency criteria is the standard 180 days in a calendar year.

Not for their offshore / expat / international accounts 

 

that wouldnt make sense

Edited April 28, 2023 by Sigma6
typo

[hotandsticky]

22 minutes ago, NextG said:

Not quite true unless they have amended it since. There used to be a 1% deduction from the VISA rate outside Europe. 

 

I have always found the exchange rate to be acceptable.......with no other transaction charges added.

[NextG]

15 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

I have always found the exchange rate to be acceptable.......with no other transaction charges added.

I didn’t say that it was not acceptable, only posted for informational purpose. 

[hotandsticky]

26 minutes ago, NextG said:

I didn’t say that it was not acceptable, only posted for informational purpose. 

Likewise

[The Fugitive]

18 hours ago, SussexExpat said:

I'm with Santander. They know I'm here and it doesn't seem to be a problem.

However, since the New Year I've had problems providing info for their 'know your customer' team. Yesterday I was on the phone to them for 45 minutes answering their questions. I still have to provide proof of address despite previously sending my P60 with my Thai address on it.

Apparently the Government has told all banks to update their customers info. Apparently Santander are the only bank doing this at the moment but all UK banks will be implementing it in the future.

I too have a Santander current account, savings account and their Zero credit card. Strange, but my 'know your customer' telephone call was all over in less than five minutes, just asking if my telephone numbers were up-to-date and whether I was still employed or now retired? No proof of anything required. Inconsistency everywhere it seems! 

[NanLaew]

12 hours ago, In Full Agreement said:

 

It's a mistake to believe everything "folks" keep telling you.

 

Opening a bank account in Thailand is not difficult.

It's a mistake to assume that your experience is the norm.

 

Opening a bank account in Thailand isn't always easy.

[NanLaew]

11 hours ago, Sigma6 said:

12 hours ago, NanLaew said:

To qualify for a new Isle of Man or Channel Island bank account, you need to be resident there. I recall their residency criteria is the standard 180 days in a calendar year.

Not for their offshore / expat / international accounts 

 

that wouldnt make sense

An example from NatWest International account information page (my emphasis).

 

"To apply for one of our bank accounts you must meet the minimum age, residency, balance and/or deposit requirements. View the relevant product page to find out more."

 

and

 

"To apply you must be; aged 18+, resident in one of our listed countries and meet our minimum balance, salary or deposit requirements.

Please note: all accounts opened through our online, digital application will be based in Jersey and therefore bound by Jersey Law."

"Residential requirements

Our International Banking service can help customers who are resident in the following countries:

Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Bermuda, Canada, China (Expats only), Denmark, Finland, France, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Norway, Oman, Qatar, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom (Non-domiciled only) or the United States of America.      

Please note that not all of our products and services are available in all jurisdictions and some are available on a limited basis only due to local regulatory and legal requirements."

 

Furthermore:

 

"You can apply for an International Select account if you are:

aged 18+, and resident in one of our listed countries, and open the account with a minimum deposit of £25,000 or pay in a mandated salary of £40,000."

 

Since Thailand isn't on their pre-approved list, it will be up to the applicant to ascertain what proof of being non-domiciled in the UK will be accepted by this bank. Also, most pensions will fall well short of the monetary minimums required to open and maintain the account.

 

Good luck!

Edited April 28, 2023 by NanLaew

[SussexExpat]

18 hours ago, The Fugitive said:

I too have a Santander current account, savings account and their Zero credit card. Strange, but my 'know your customer' telephone call was all over in less than five minutes, just asking if my telephone numbers were up-to-date and whether I was still employed or now retired? No proof of anything required. Inconsistency everywhere it seems! 

Lucky you. My experience has been a nightmare. Account was blocked twice because they weren't happy with the photos I provided. I reckon at least 10 hours of phone calls, at my expense. Still ongoing after 4 months.  

[JackGats]

Santander have an account called "Cuenta Mundo" directed at people who are not resident in Spain. 

 

https://www.bancosantander.es/en/particulares/cuentas-tarjetas/cuentas-corrientes/cuenta-no-residentes

 

I could find no list of countries where you can reside and apply for such an account though. I fear it will be "one of the EU countries" as always, excluding we wretched souls who most need such an account.

[Andrew65]

An old friend has a London-based HSBC account that he has had since he lived in the UK, and has lived in Thailand for 18 years, without maintaining an address ouside Thailand.

I would think it nigh impossible to open a new regular UK high street bank account if you can't use a UK residential address, even if it's that of a relative. As I mentioned, my old firend had his account since long before he moved to Thailand.

[transam]

I have been in LOS many years, I still have a Nationwide account in the UK that I haven't used for about 12+ years, they know I live here, they still send me monthly emails...........????

[The Fugitive]

45 minutes ago, transam said:

I have been in LOS many years, I still have a Nationwide account in the UK that I haven't used for about 12+ years, they know I live here, they still send me monthly emails...........????

Interesting. Zero transactions for over 12 years. I suppose if there isn't a credit card involved fraud prevention may not come into it. They must remain hopeful that you may resume using their services?

[GroveHillWanderer]

On 4/27/2023 at 3:04 PM, Satcommlee said:

Not strictly UK but HSBC EXPAT will open a GBP account for you in Jersey with regular UK sort code etc.. and faster payments system access, direct debits etc.. and even a proper UK Credit card.

 

I opened mine completely remotely from Thailand (Just needed Kasikornbank statement signed and stamped by bank for address ID)

 

There are certain financial eligibility requirements.

 

You can have EUR/USD/GBP accounts and a global money account with debit card that can hold many currencies inc THB.

 

How recently did you open the account?

[transam]

18 minutes ago, The Fugitive said:

Interesting. Zero transactions for over 12 years. I suppose if there isn't a credit card involved fraud prevention may not come into it. They must remain hopeful that you may resume using their services?

They cancelled the credit card about 10 years back because I didn't use it....????

[Sigma6]

11 hours ago, NanLaew said:

An example from NatWest International account information page (my emphasis).

 

"To apply for one of our bank accounts you must meet the minimum age, residency, balance and/or deposit requirements. View the relevant product page to find out more."

 

and

 

"To apply you must be; aged 18+, resident in one of our listed countries and meet our minimum balance, salary or deposit requirements.

Please note: all accounts opened through our online, digital application will be based in Jersey and therefore bound by Jersey Law."

"Residential requirements

Our International Banking service can help customers who are resident in the following countries:

Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Bermuda, Canada, China (Expats only), Denmark, Finland, France, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Norway, Oman, Qatar, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom (Non-domiciled only) or the United States of America.      

Please note that not all of our products and services are available in all jurisdictions and some are available on a limited basis only due to local regulatory and legal requirements."

 

Furthermore:

 

"You can apply for an International Select account if you are:

aged 18+, and resident in one of our listed countries, and open the account with a minimum deposit of £25,000 or pay in a mandated salary of £40,000."

 

Since Thailand isn't on their pre-approved list, it will be up to the applicant to ascertain what proof of being non-domiciled in the UK will be accepted by this bank. Also, most pensions will fall well short of the monetary minimums required to open and maintain the account.

 

Good luck!

Right.  So you don't need to be resident in Jersey for 180 days.

[Freddy42OZ]

On 4/27/2023 at 3:08 PM, driver52 said:

sure...'banks' are interesting nowadays, I try not to use a 'physical card', I use 'virtual cards' online nowadays and cash when I'm out.....mind you 'out' is mainly on a push bike so I don't have to run a lardy vehicle ie less plastic needed ????

I've not had any credit cards for over 23 years, I have a number of bank accounts in different countries (having lived in a few places and opened accounts whilst living there).  I also use virtual debit cards, scan transfers and physical cash.  

What I really need is a way to convert my crypto earnings back into fiat and get the fiat back to Thailand to pay my bills.

[NanLaew]

9 hours ago, transam said:

I have been in LOS many years, I still have a Nationwide account in the UK that I haven't used for about 12+ years, they know I live here, they still send me monthly emails...........????

I perceive a time when a dormant but working UK bank account may have some value to the erstwhile international gypsy and Thailand squatter. Maybe flog it on eBay?

[bradiston]

9 hours ago, Freddy42OZ said:

I've not had any credit cards for over 23 years, I have a number of bank accounts in different countries (having lived in a few places and opened accounts whilst living there).  I also use virtual debit cards, scan transfers and physical cash.  

What I really need is a way to convert my crypto earnings back into fiat and get the fiat back to Thailand to pay my bills.

Bitkub deals in THB.

[nglodnig]

I told Barclays I was moving to mainland Europe more than twenty years ago - and the account is still open.

 

hey DID close my Barclaycard accounts (when I stupidly paid off the balance) but so far no problem.

 

I briefly moved to Singapore for a year and think I may have have told them but I don't think that is the point - Asia or Europe it shouldn't make a difference - either way it is non-UK.

 

The account is active monthly which may have something to do with it. For a couple  of months it was inactive and they tried to close it down but I had a hissy fit and they re-opened it again.

 

A friend of mine kept his UK postal re-direct open for YEARS (even though it is only supposed to be for twelve months).

 

BUT if you try and open a UK bank account without some proof of residence in th UK you will get NOWHERE. They don't that - period. (In My Humble Opinion). 

[Mike Teavee]

2 hours ago, nglodnig said:

I told Barclays I was moving to mainland Europe more than twenty years ago - and the account is still open.

 

hey DID close my Barclaycard accounts (when I stupidly paid off the balance) but so far no problem.

 

I briefly moved to Singapore for a year and think I may have have told them but I don't think that is the point - Asia or Europe it shouldn't make a difference - either way it is non-UK.

 

The account is active monthly which may have something to do with it. For a couple  of months it was inactive and they tried to close it down but I had a hissy fit and they re-opened it again.

 

A friend of mine kept his UK postal re-direct open for YEARS (even though it is only supposed to be for twelve months).

 

BUT if you try and open a UK bank account without some proof of residence in th UK you will get NOWHERE. They don't that - period. (In My Humble Opinion). 

Barclays moved me to Singapore (was working for them at the time) so knew that I was no longer UK resident... No problems keeping my Bank, Credit Card, Investment, ISA accounts open though I do use my parents UK Address for any correspondence / new cards.  

 

Up until a couple of weeks back, the only time I have used my Barclaycard since 2019 is for annual House Insurance renewal,  & as it had expired last August I did have some problems getting the new one to work (not least the fact that it's not in my possession so I couldn't use it in the PinSentry reader), but managed to get it working using the Barclays Mobile Banking app (for which I had to have a UK Mobile number (GiffGaff) to get working though as far as I can tell they've never sent me any messages to it). 

 

My Mortgage is with Natwest (Was Virgin then RBS now Natwest I believe) and they are fully aware that I'm not living in the UK (& chasing me for my Thailand Tax Identification Number for the £2 pa they pay me in interest) again, I use my parents house for any correspondence. 

 

 

I think the OPs real question is which UK Bank will allow you to open a UK account if you're not UK resident & excluding Offshore / Channel Island type accounts, I don't believe any of the larger banks will.

Edited April 30, 2023 by Mike Teavee

[bradiston]

3 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

Barclays moved me to Singapore (was working for them at the time) so knew that I was no longer UK resident... No problems keeping my Bank, Credit Card, Investment, ISA accounts open though I do use my parents UK Address for any correspondence / new cards.  

 

Up until a couple of weeks back, the only time I have used my Barclaycard since 2019 is for annual House Insurance renewal,  & as it had expired last August I did have some problems getting the new one to work (not least the fact that it's not in my possession so I couldn't use it in the PinSentry reader), but managed to get it working using the Barclays Mobile Banking app (for which I had to have a UK Mobile number (GiffGaff) to get working though as far as I can tell they've never sent me any messages to it). 

 

My Mortgage is with Natwest (Was Virgin then RBS now Natwest I believe) and they are fully aware that I'm not living in the UK (& chasing me for my Thailand Tax Identification Number for the £2 pa they pay me in interest) again, I use my parents house for any correspondence. 

 

 

I think the OPs real question is which UK Bank will allow you to open a UK account if you're not UK resident & excluding Offshore / Channel Island type accounts, I don't believe any of the larger banks will.

I also had a One account with Virgin (RBS, NatWest). One of Branson's better brain children. Helped me pay off my mortgage really quickly. Kept it going for quite a few years in credit, for which they paid .35%, but it seems even that was too much for them, and they wrote to me earlier this year saying they would be closing it.

[Mike Teavee]

5 hours ago, bradiston said:

I also had a One account with Virgin (RBS, NatWest). One of Branson's better brain children. Helped me pay off my mortgage really quickly. Kept it going for quite a few years in credit, for which they paid .35%, but it seems even that was too much for them, and they wrote to me earlier this year saying they would be closing it.

Interesting, I was one of the early takers of the Virgin one mortgage (got mine in Jan 2000) & as you mentioned, the “current account” mortgage approach really helps to pay it off quickly.

 

I’ve kept an approx £500 credit balance for the past 18 years as it means they’re paying me a tiny bit of interest but more importantly keeping my mortgage deeds safe for me + technically I have access to a 6 figure credit line any time I need it (though have no cards or cheques that I can use it with).

 

Was a bit annoyed that I had to pay then £100 for a letter to confirm they were happy for me to rent my house out (had been in credit for 4 years at the time) but that is the only thing I’ve ever paid them since getting my account in credit.

 

As an aside, my mate sold the house that he had a mortgage on with Virgin/RBS/NatWest approx 8 years ago & still uses that account for his banking needs in the UK. 
 

Edited May 1, 2023 by Mike Teavee

[bradiston]

17 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

Interesting, I was one of the early takers of the Virgin one mortgage (got mine in Jan 2000) & as you mentioned, the “current account” mortgage approach really helps to pay it off quickly.

 

I’ve kept an approx £500 credit balance for the past 18 years as it means they’re paying me a tiny bit of interest but more importantly keeping my mortgage deeds safe for me + technically I have access to a 6 figure credit line any time I need it (though have no cards or cheques that I can use it with).

 

Was a bit annoyed that I had to pay then £100 for a letter to confirm they were happy for me to rent my house out (had been in credit for 4 years at the time) but that is the only thing I’ve ever paid them since getting my account in credit.

 

As an aside, my mate sold the house that he had a mortgage on with Virgin/RBS/NatWest approx 8 years ago & still uses that account for his banking needs in the UK. 
 

I liked them as much for answering the phone after just a few rings, in the early days, before RBS took over. The whole concept of the current account mortgage was a stroke of genius. I think it originated in Oz and Branson brought it over to the UK. No other bank will touch it. It's just too good a deal for the customer.