Moral of the story if you've got other existing UK accounts from the past never let them lapse from inactivity (or similar)

 

I use only 2 Chase and RBS but have a HSBC current account and a Co op current account (with cheque book) that I churn money through once a year to get them active....just in case

 

That cheque account was actually used for the first time in nearly 5 years (writing a physical cheque) only 10 days ago on the State Pension thread same sub forum

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by Chivas

4 minutes ago, Chivas said:

41 minutes ago, ElwoodP said:

Open an account with Wise online.

 

4 minutes ago, Chivas said:

 

You cant open accounts (or cetainly not a UK national) with any banking insituion (in whatever format) without them doing an automatic tracing check to "confirm" you exist and are UK resident in the instance that the OP describes...that can be from DL or financial records etc etc etc

One does not have to be a resident in the UK to open an account with Wise. The advice from @ElwoodP is quite sound, Wise is also my back up plan.

6 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

And what are the Monthly charges, and how do you get a UK pension paid into it ????

Depends what bank and what type of account but can be an issue. You need to look up all the relevant banks details to see if anything would work for you.

 

Pension payments - presume you just tell your provider the new bank details. Although offshore if based in IOM/Channel Islands then they have local (UK) sort codes. You can pay bills/transfer the same as if using an onshore UK account.

8 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

 

One does not have to be a resident in the UK to open an account with Wise. The advice from @ElwoodP is quite sound, Wise is also my back up plan.

 

Right go and try to open a Wise account (assuming you now have no other UK financial records) with the intention of using it as your "new" main account

 

Christ anti money laundering laws even in our backward UK have been in force for at least a decade  and then some !

 

To answer someone else Barclays apparently charge £40 a month for that overseas based account as friend was only checking out optionns a year ago

 

 

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by Chivas

36 minutes ago, Celsius said:

 

2 seconds later

 

 

 

Best if you give foruming the rest. You always pretend to be know it all regarding.....everything.

He does in this case; Thai tax law has nothing to do with UK bank rules.

25 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

If your British you are a resident, ID cards and Passports are not compulsory, Jersey now charge a monthly fee, and how to you open an offshore account i you are overseas.

That is not true, if you are British and living overseas then you are not resident, that is why you lose your right to access the NHS and your state pension is frozen (unless you are living in a country with a reciprocal agreement)

All the major banks will have an expat account  based in the channel islands or isle of man they can all be opened online(just look at all the big banks websites), be aware that the costs are much higher than a UK account, usually you need a high deposit and or income

6 minutes ago, topt said:

Depends what bank and what type of account but can be an issue. You need to look up all the relevant banks details to see if anything would work for you

Well I don't need to, but some might need to, Barclays on  Jersey started charging about 5 pounds a month and that was at least a decade ago. they had to change there tax rules/laws also.  

51 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

I opened an account with nationwide, with DL and a rent agreement which my friend just downloaded and filled out, I was not even paying rent to him. 

 

   That is fraud , you could both be jailed if you get found out .

   Tommy Robinson got jail for nine months for something similar 

1 minute ago, howerde said:

that is why you lose your right to access the NHS and your state pension is frozen (unless you are living in a country with a reciprocal agreement)

That's the whole point the unfair system of freezing pensions is the reason many don't tell them they are not living there. As for the NHS how do they know you have been living overseas ? I suppose you are going to shout Fraud now.

1 hour ago, SpaceKadet said:

Move your account to Santander International on Isle of Man. Haven't had any problems with them so far.

Monthly fee? minimum balance?

4 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

 

   That is fraud , you could both be jailed if you get found out .

   Tommy Robinson got jail for nine months for something similar 

Rubbish he rents many rooms out in his house, and I was living there for 3 months in an Old camper in his Garden, and I met him and his Thai wife here in Thailand. I have never claimed Housing benifit and That would have been fraud.

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by brianthainess

6 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

 

   That is fraud , you could both be jailed if you get found out .

   Tommy Robinson got jail for nine months for something similar 

What was fraudulent ? not paying rent is not a crime. 

1 minute ago, brianthainess said:

Rubbish he rents many rooms out in his house, and I was living there for 3 months in an Old camper in his Garden, and I met him and his Thai wife here in Thailand.

 

  He gave you a rental agreement when you weren't paying rent , that is fraud 

28 minutes ago, topt said:

Depends what bank and what type of account but can be an issue. You need to look up all the relevant banks details to see if anything would work for you.

 

Pension payments - presume you just tell your provider the new bank details. Although offshore if based in IOM/Channel Islands then they have local (UK) sort codes. You can pay bills/transfer the same as if using an onshore UK account.

I have no bills in the UK to pay, the provider 'would' be DOWP.

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by brianthainess

5 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

What was fraudulent ? not paying rent is not a crime. 

 

   Pretending that a motor vehicle is a room in a house is fraud , pretending that you stay in a house when you don't is fraud

Assuming you are British and have lived in the UK then surely you understand that access to the NHS is via your GP, ( no GP no NHS treatment A AND E free unless admitted, and treatment for STD is free.  currently there is no cross checking of databases  by the NHS to see if people are still resident in the UK

Deleted

 

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by Mike Teavee

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Nonsense.  This action by UK banks has been going on for years, the Thai tax rules have nothing to do with it.

The US same story but it started with FACTA and CRS banking exchanges/reporting about foreign bank accounts and for me, my account (40 years old) was cancelled since I lived in Thailand.  It is a legal requirement for me anyway to factually report my address at which I live and if I move I am required to provide the latest update on where I do reside.  This all came about long before the OECD 2023 agreement which is signed by 138 countries.  These US bank reporting started in 2014 and they closed out my account in 2016 I think it was because I no longer had any US address nor phone number.  Fortunately there are a few banks that recognize this and do allow foreign addresses.  This latest in other countries may be related to the OECD agreement but the FACTA and CRS are exchanges of international banking too.  Good luck to all.

13 minutes ago, Chivas said:

 

Right go and try to open a Wise account (assuming you now have no other UK financial records) with the intention of using it as your "new" main account

 

Christ anti money laundering laws even in our backward UK have been in force for at least a decade  and then some !

 

To answer someone else Barclays apparently charge £40 a month for that overseas based account as friend was only checking out optionns a year ago

 

 

I have held an account with Nationwide for well over 25 years who continue to support me despite them being aware that I have lived in 3 different countries. They've always known where I lived and have always renewed my bank cards to my overseas addresses on expiry, including Thailand They even still allow to me have an agreed overdraft facility.

 

I have had a Wise account for over 6 years which I opened whilst living here in Thailand and having no UK address at all.

 

Wise would be somewhat bereft of customers if they insisted that every applicant had a bank account and an address in their 'home country!'

 

Is there anything else you'd like to 'lecture' me on?

 

5 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

7 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

Rubbish he rents many rooms out in his house, and I was living there for 3 months in an Old camper in his Garden, and I met him and his Thai wife here in Thailand.

 

5 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

 

  He gave you a rental agreement when you weren't paying rent , that is fraud 

What is fraudulent is that the Ts and Cs of all banks insist that the customer can always contacted at the address that he/she has given. A campervan  in someone's back yard wouldn't count.

 

And that means, of course that anyone living in Thailand and using a false address in their 'home country' is technically in breach of their bank's Ts and Cs.

Quote

Banks are sometimes required to freeze or close accounts due to legal orders from authorities such as the HMRC (Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs) or the police. This can happen if there is an ongoing investigation into criminal activity or if the account holder is suspected of tax evasion or other financial crimes.

Has the OP been evading paying tax?

21 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

What was fraudulent ? not paying rent is not a crime. 

reporting fraudulent information on where one resides to avoid paying taxes or obtain and keep a bank account is by definition fraud.  After 2023 and the OECD agreement plus the FACTA and CRS agreements, more and more closer look at account holders and stricter laws regarding that will most likely come about.  

1 hour ago, SpaceKadet said:

Move your account to Santander International on Isle of Man. Haven't had any problems with them so far.

Just looked at the Santander International website and found problem #1 they say - 

 

International customers will need to deposit a minimum of £75,000 (or currency equivalent), which can be held across our account range, and must be maintained.

4 minutes ago, foreverlomsak said:

Just looked at the Santander International website and found problem #1 they say - 

 

International customers will need to deposit a minimum of £75,000 (or currency equivalent), which can be held across our account range, and must be maintained.

Could try the Lloyds International Instant Saver account, doesn't seem to have any minimum deposit 

 

https://www.lloydsbank.com/international/products-and-services/saving-accounts/international-instant-saver-account.html

2 hours ago, ElwoodP said:

Open an account with Wise online.

I've had one for a few years now, without a UK address (opened from Thailand) only issue I've had with Wise is that both my Private Pension provider and an Annuity provider have refused to send the funds to Wise "as they are a finance house and not a bank" under the UK Financial Regulations. I understand that the UK State Pension can be paid direct into Wise, but have no actual proof of this.

1 minute ago, Mike Teavee said:

Could try the Lloyds International Instant Saver account, doesn't seem to have any minimum deposit 

 

https://www.lloydsbank.com/international/products-and-services/saving-accounts/international-instant-saver-account.html

I have an account with Lloyds International, it requires a minimum balance of 2,500GBP to be maintained or they change a monthly maintenance fee and they do not pay interest on the balance. Will look at the specific account that you mention.

As an aside they have been requesting, for well over a year, that I provide them with a Tax Residency Certificate and Tax Identification Number.

12 minutes ago, foreverlomsak said:

UK State Pension can be paid direct into Wise, but have no actual proof of this.

Yes, DWP will deposit your state pension into your Wise account. 

 

Is sounds like your other pension providers are being a bit Ludditeish. Plenty of other providers will deposit into a Wise account. I have two.

2 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

2 hours ago, howerde said:

You might look at Wise / revolut  / starling bank. i do not know their criteria.

UK residency is required for Starling Bank.  Wise and Revolut, although they maybe useful, are not banks, they're deposit takers.

Edited 2 hours ago by Liverpool Lou

 

Wise most definitely doesn't require UK residency.  No problem opening an account with Thai residency/address.
 

Sorry, the link I provided doesn't work.  The text reads:
 

 

Quote

 

What you can do with Wise in Thailand

How you can use Wise depends on your country or region.

You can

• Send money abroad

  Make fast, low-cost international transfers and move large amounts

• Convert and hold money

  Hold 47 currencies in your account and convert between them in seconds

• Receive money

  Get account details in 22 currencies and get paid from abroad without fees

You can't

• Get the Wise card

• Invest your money

 

•  

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by Foxx

15 minutes ago, foreverlomsak said:

I have an account with Lloyds International, it requires a minimum balance of 2,500GBP to be maintained or they change a monthly maintenance fee and they do not pay interest on the balance. Will look at the specific account that you mention.

As an aside they have been requesting, for well over a year, that I provide them with a Tax Residency Certificate and Tax Identification Number.

It looks like the International Instant Saver account doesn't pay interest on balances < £10,000 but I can't see any fees mentioned.

 

Can I ask which account you have now & how much the monthly fee is? Like others I'm looking at alternatives should Barclays close my UK account & £2,500 is the lowest minimum balance I've seen (Barclays is £100,000 & HSBC Expat is £50,000) 

 

 

 

Does anybody have a Barclays International Account? I believe it's £40 pm if you don't have £100,000 with them but I was wondering whether Barclays Stockbroker Accounts could be used to cover this. 

 

Edited August 18, 20241 yr by Mike Teavee

I just curious how much are these fees? I currently pay $25 us a month for my account because I don't maintain a minimum balance, I don't find that to be so onerous as to be concerned about it 

2 hours ago, SpaceKadet said:

Move your account to Santander International on Isle of Man. Haven't had any problems with them so far.

 

In the past I had an account with Cooperative Bank (Guernsey or Jersey, I can't remember).  They closed in the 2010-something.

I then moved to Nationwide International (Isle of Man), and they closed in 2017.

I would have zero confidence in Santander International continuing to operate.