Legally opening a US bank account from Ireland ?

OU812

Anyone know if there's a way to open a current account & get a secured Credit Card while based in Ireland ?

The account would be to pay into & feed the CC.

Don't mind transfer charges etc as primary concern is building a credit history.

ProudDUB

There are online banks that non US residents can open accounts with. However, in the US, your credit history is tracked via your social security number. You'd need to get one of those first, before you can start building up your credit rating. You can't get a SSN unless you are legally entitled to live and/or work in the US. So it's a bit of a chicken and the egg situ unfortunately.

OU812

Thanks proudDub, can you point me in the direction of the online ones that non residents can use ?

I have a couple of friends over there who were able to open accounts without SS numbers, got credit cards etc, Told the bank their SSNs hadn't been issued yet & I guess it was late on a Friday or something, because they were all set up no problem, the only difference being they were able to provide an address, which I currently can not.

I wonder if with the ones you know about it's possible to sign up as a non res & transition the account later should residency occur?

ProudDUB

HBSC do non resident accounts. So do Bank of America I think. Since the Patriot Act was passed, high street banks are cracking down on people walking in and opening bank accounts unless they can provide all the necessary paperwork.....social security number, visa, green card etc etc to prove that they are in the US legally.

I too know of situations where slick talking Paddys were able to pull the wool over lazy/poorly trained front line bank staff & get accounts opened up without all or some of the above. However, until you/they have a social security number, the three credit bureaus will not be able to track your financial transactions, and start building you up a credit history.

You may have a bank account, and a debit card and a check book and all that, but you won't be able to build your credit rating until you get a social security number. As they are given out by the Federal Government, you won't have a hope in hell of getting one unless you are living/working in the US legally. Pulling the wool over their eyes is damm near impossible !

InTheTrees

OU812 wrote: »

primary concern is building a credit history.

As others have said; a Social security number is probably required.

Although... it is possible to get a "Tax Payer ID" number from the IRS and I wonder do you need a SS# to get that?

Of course I dont know whether the credit reporting agencies would use that either.

(Its an odd state of affairs isnt it when three private corporations have the entire population by the shorts?)

OU812

Checked with HSBC & BOA & while HSBC will open an account over the phone, they require documentation (visa etc) sent in. BOA won't do it at all.

Ponster

OU812 wrote: »

Checked with HSBC & BOA & while HSBC will open an account over the phone, they require documentation (visa etc) sent in. BOA won't do it at all.

Good to know. I believe that my company recommends to go with HSBC for ease of transferring funds.
I doubt though that you'll get a secured CC without being in the country and as the others have explained, without an SSN you son't have a credit history.

seanmacc

It is possible to set up an account in the US without a Social Security Number, very few banks will do it because they want you in the credit check system even if its only a savings account.

http://www.fairloanrate.com/how-to-open-a-bank-account-without-social-security-number-ssn/

When I was living in the US waiting for my Green Card (I'm married to a US citizen) a couple of local illegal Mexicans told me that the local credit union would give them an account if they had an IRS tax clearence number.