On Shore Vs Off Shore Savings Uk

[chiang mai]

There's been some debate on this forum whether UK expats are allowed to open bank accounts in the UK whilst being resident abroad. I'm pleased to see that the issue was raised in Parliament recently and the position of the UK Treasury is that there is no law against UK expats opening UK based bank accounts, it's all perfectly legal.

In practice however, many, if not most UK financial institutions have a policy of not allowing non-residents to open new accounts but this would seem to be a policy that consumers could easily flout without breaking the law. Given that the offshore bases of Jersey and Guernsey do not have deposit protection schemes in place and the ones run by Ireland and the Isle of Man are unable to meet their obligations if even a small fraction of the banks located there fail, it seems to me that a UK deposit base for holders of Sterling is by far the most sensible approach. I accept that telling less than the whole truth to a UK bank may well offend some people's morals, but on balance and upon reflection I have to say it doesn't offend mine.

[briley]

I can not see why this point is raised.

It has never been illegal for anyone to open a bank account in the UK provided you are not doing it for some illegal purpose.

Whether a high street banks will accept your application when you walk in off the street is a totally different matter.

But contact the headquarters of the major banks, and have a reason why you want a UK based account and you'll get an account.

How else does Ta**sin have an account in the UK?

[chiang mai]

I can not see why this point is raised.

It has never been illegal for anyone to open a bank account in the UK provided you are not doing it for some illegal purpose.

Whether a high street banks will accept your application when you walk in off the street is a totally different matter.

But contact the headquarters of the major banks, and have a reason why you want a UK based account and you'll get an account.

How else does Ta**sin have an account in the UK?

The point was raised because it has been the subject of question and debate over time in this forum and whilst I needed clarification on it I am sure others do also. Now that the issue was raised in Parliament and the specific question was asked by MP's, can expats open onshore bank accounts, it seems there's quite a few people who didn't understand the correct answer.

Interestingly enough you say it's an easy matter for an expat to open an account in the UK. The reply that was given in the House when the question was answered was given in two parts, the first from The Treasury who said it is legal, the second by RBS who said we will not allow it!

[pontious]

I have not found one bank in the UK that will allow non residents to open accounts.

The opening line usually says ''only available to UK residents''

If you have an address in UK you can tell a 'white lie' etc but how do you open one if like me you have no UK address?

How will it be tax free - once your persnal allowance is used up surely you will pay tax on the rest.

You cant claim it back at the end of the tax year by claiming non residency? That would taking the 'white lie ' to extremes.

CM if you know of a way do let me know - the rates onshore are good.

P

Edited November 16, 2008 by pontious

[MJP]

Something I really need to know is whether you can, on a non-immigration 'O' visa open a bank account in Thailand which holds Sterling, i.e., bring the money over in Sterling by wire transfer and leave it in Sterling, not changed to THB.

[pontious]

MJP- Bangkok Bank has FCD (Foreign Deposit Accounts) in nine major currencies including GBP.

You will have to read the small print to see if you qualify.

[MJP]

MJP- Bangkok Bank has FCD (Foreign Deposit Accounts) in nine major currencies including GBP.

You will have to read the small print to see if you qualify.

Many thanks.

[chiang mai]

I have not found one bank in the UK that will allow non residents to open accounts.

The opening line usually says ''only available to UK residents''

If you have an address in UK you can tell a 'white lie' etc but how do you open one if like me you have no UK address?

How will it be tax free - once your persnal allowance is used up surely you will pay tax on the rest.

You cant claim it back at the end of the tax year by claiming non residency? That would taking the 'white lie ' to extremes.

CM if you know of a way do let me know - the rates onshore are good.

P

I don't understand why you can't claim the tax back at the end of the year, if you are non-resident. After all, you would be claiming it from the tax man and not from the bank.

[taxexile]

you can have taxfree onshore uk accounts.

if you are non resident or not liable for uk tax , then find the relevent form at the inland revenue (or whatever they call themselves these days) website and fill it in and present it to the bank when you open the account. no tax is deducted so there is no need to claim it back.

i recently tried to open some onshore accounts in the uk and as a non resident found it very difficult.

dealing with poorly trained staff who had little or no experience of non resident or tax free status accounts was a major problem. the high street banks seem to be overloaded with customers at the moment and the banks are like bus stations , expecially in town centre main branches.

however , with hsbc i opened an account within 5 minutes of entering the office , using a thai address for a residential address and a relatives address in the uk as a correspondence address ( i dont trust the mail here enough to have banking details etc. sent through the post) , proof of my thai address was a notarised translation of both my thai driving licence and my wifes thai id card ( they were joint accounts) and a notarised translation of an immigration letter confirming my address. they also linked it to the bangkok branch who contacted me on my return to thailand asking if i wanted an account here. they appear to be efficient , but time will tell. they offer sterling(and other currency) accounts in thailand too.

barclays wanted similar proof of addresses , but after one month the passwords , pin numbers etc. needed to operate the account have not yet been received at the uk address , ( overloaded with work , they said , incompetence , i replied)

to open an account with a residential uk address , you will need proof that you actually live there , and they say that this proof is randomly checked against the electoral register. proof being utility bills , bank statements , council tax bills etc. all with your name and address on.

halifax , abbey national , northern rock all refused to open an account seeing as we are non res. in the uk.

money laudering regs are making account opening a difficult procedure , and should you have a query or something , you never get to deal with the same person twice , either in the banks or on the awful phone services that they operate , this is turning banking in the uk into a frustrating experience. the staff , most of whom seem not to have reached puberty yet , just repeat the boring mantras that they have memorized from their training manuals , much like that tv character who says " computer says no".

having multiple accounts , which is a necessity these days to avoid the horror of being caught with your pants down if a bank goes under , is just another nuisance for the already much persecuted and put-upon asset rich person to have to deal with in these difficult times in order for us to hold on to the fruits of a lifetime of honest toil , as interest rates and exchange rates vapourize around us.

got a twenty for a cup of tea guv?

Edited November 16, 2008 by taxexile

[chiang mai]

you can have taxfree onshore uk accounts.

if you are non resident or not liable for uk tax , then find the relevent form at the inland revenue (or whatever they call themselves these days) website and fill it in and present it to the bank when you open the account. no tax is deducted so there is no need to claim it back.

i recently tried to open some onshore accounts in the uk and as a non resident found it very difficult.

dealing with poorly trained staff who had little or no experience of non resident or tax free status accounts was a major problem. the high street banks seem to be overloaded with customers at the moment and the banks are like bus stations , expecially in town centre main branches.

however , with hsbc i opened an account within 5 minutes of entering the office , using a thai address for a residential address and a relatives address in the uk as a correspondence address ( i dont trust the mail here enough to have banking details etc. sent through the post) , proof of my thai address was a notarised translation of both my thai driving licence and my wifes thai id card ( they were joint accounts) and a notarised translation of an immigration letter confirming my address. they also linked it to the bangkok branch who contacted me on my return to thailand asking if i wanted an account here. they appear to be efficient , but time will tell. they offer sterling(and other currency) accounts in thailand too.

barclays wanted similar proof of addresses , but after one month the passwords , pin numbers etc. needed to operate the account have not yet been received at the uk address , ( overloaded with work , they said , incompetence , i replied)

to open an account with a residential uk address , you will need proof that you actually live there , and they say that this proof is randomly checked against the electoral register. proof being utility bills , bank statements , council tax bills etc. all with your name and address on.

halifax , abbey national , northern rock all refused to open an account seeing as we are non res. in the uk.

money laudering regs are making account opening a difficult procedure , and should you have a query or something , you never get to deal with the same person twice , either in the banks or on the awful phone services that they operate , this is turning banking in the uk into a frustrating experience. the staff , most of whom seem not to have reached puberty yet , just repeat the boring mantras that they have memorized from their training manuals , much like that tv character who says " computer says no".

having multiple accounts , which is a necessity these days to avoid the horror of being caught with your pants down if a bank goes under , is just another nuisance for the already much persecuted and put-upon asset rich person to have to deal with in these difficult times in order for us to hold on to the fruits of a lifetime of honest toil , as interest rates and exchange rates vapourize around us.

got a twenty for a cup of tea guv?

You can get tax free accounts up to a certain limit using the Revenue form IR85. The form itself actually states that if your UK income is more than your tax free allowance then it must not be used. But at least that lets you deposit around £100k free of tax.

[ace]

On a related topic, does anyone have an offshore account recommendation? I'm really looking for an account that has good investment options - a wide choice of equity, bonds, funds, etfs even - available, I've been in touch with HSBC but their funds are horrible, and they're a bit fussy about trading account as my capital is quite low (mid 5 figs). And it needs to be in Euro. Thanks for any advice.

[chiang mai]

On a related topic, does anyone have an offshore account recommendation? I'm really looking for an account that has good investment options - a wide choice of equity, bonds, funds, etfs even - available, I've been in touch with HSBC but their funds are horrible, and they're a bit fussy about trading account as my capital is quite low (mid 5 figs). And it needs to be in Euro. Thanks for any advice.

Try HSBC Hong Kong, a different story entirely.

[alantheembalmer]

Something I really need to know is whether you can, on a non-immigration 'O' visa open a bank account in Thailand which holds Sterling, i.e., bring the money over in Sterling by wire transfer and leave it in Sterling, not changed to THB.

MJP: I opened a Bangkok Bank foreign currency account in sterling, and all I had was my passport and a 30 visa exempt stamp. You need to go to the head office in Silom, and go up the escalator to the first floor. Good luck.Alan.

[chiang mai]

I was thinking about taking a short trip back to the UK anyway but in light of the interest rate changes I think it more likely that I will make the trip. Onshore deposit rates seem much more attractive than offshore rates and given what we now know about the lack of liquidity in the IOM scheme it seems sensible to migrate funds onshore.

Now that I know it is is not illegal to open an onshore account and more importantly, that it doesn't contravene any Treasury regulations, it might just be fun to play the banks at their own game. I already have two onshore bank accounts and credit cards hence I have monthly statements in my name so who is to dispute the fact that I have now arrived back in my home country and am once again resident in the UK. I've never been on the electoral role despite owning property and living their permanently in the past so that cannot be an issue. Also, there must be loads of people who share accommodation thus have no utility bills in their own names. This doesn't sound like it is actually the problem it has been made out to be previously but we will see. If anyone thinks I have missed something here, please let me know. No, I don't have a UK residence but to all intents and purposes my sisters home is my UK address, albeit I don't actually live there.