Frozen 401k/IRA
#31
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
If the 401k/IRA was paid as a lump sum, because this is a large part of my retirement funds, I believe I would get taxed at a large rate.
So spending a couple of months holiday in the States would more than pay for itself.
What would be the minimal rental period such that I could arrange to get a utility bill?
So spending a couple of months holiday in the States would more than pay for itself.
What would be the minimal rental period such that I could arrange to get a utility bill?
#32
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
The accounts holding my pension funds in the USA have been frozen as I don't have a US address.
I had opened a traditional IRA with the company holding the 401k (Fidelity), and had transferred the funds to this IRA. I converted a small portion of these funds to a Roth IRA that I had opened at the same time as the traditional IRA.
Now Fidelity say that the accounts are frozen unless I make proof of a US address.
They will not even let me transfer between my own funds internal to them.
So to get any money from the funds it looks as though I would have to close the account. This would mean losing the benefit of the pension fund and also result in a unnecessary large tax bill.
Does anyone know of any other options open to me?
I am a UK citizen and resident.
I had opened a traditional IRA with the company holding the 401k (Fidelity), and had transferred the funds to this IRA. I converted a small portion of these funds to a Roth IRA that I had opened at the same time as the traditional IRA.
Now Fidelity say that the accounts are frozen unless I make proof of a US address.
They will not even let me transfer between my own funds internal to them.
So to get any money from the funds it looks as though I would have to close the account. This would mean losing the benefit of the pension fund and also result in a unnecessary large tax bill.
Does anyone know of any other options open to me?
I am a UK citizen and resident.
Have you contacted Fidelity and asked them to transfer the account to one of their UK Offices?
Jim.
#34
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Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 64
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
A month is generally the shortest period, that is if you do a month to month tenancy. Otherwise there would be a lease break fee, in Oregon the maximum in 95% of cases is 1.5 times monthly rent.
Is the minimum period different in different parts of the States?
A one month lease with the ability to get a utility bill would be a great outcome for me.
Have you contacted Fidelity and asked them to transfer the account to one of their UK Offices?
That depends entirely on the (private) landlord. Utilities just need "a lease."
#35
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
The accounts holding my pension funds in the USA have been frozen as I don't have a US address.
I had opened a traditional IRA with the company holding the 401k (Fidelity), and had transferred the funds to this IRA. I converted a small portion of these funds to a Roth IRA that I had opened at the same time as the traditional IRA.
Now Fidelity say that the accounts are frozen unless I make proof of a US address.
They will not even let me transfer between my own funds internal to them.
So to get any money from the funds it looks as though I would have to close the account. This would mean losing the benefit of the pension fund and also result in a unnecessary large tax bill.
Does anyone know of any other options open to me?
I am a UK citizen and resident.
I had opened a traditional IRA with the company holding the 401k (Fidelity), and had transferred the funds to this IRA. I converted a small portion of these funds to a Roth IRA that I had opened at the same time as the traditional IRA.
Now Fidelity say that the accounts are frozen unless I make proof of a US address.
They will not even let me transfer between my own funds internal to them.
So to get any money from the funds it looks as though I would have to close the account. This would mean losing the benefit of the pension fund and also result in a unnecessary large tax bill.
Does anyone know of any other options open to me?
I am a UK citizen and resident.
#36
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
I can't see why not, though you'd have to find a landlord who had a property for which such a short-term deal was an attractive proposition for the landlord
#38
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Joined: Mar 2017
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Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
A month is generally the shortest period, that is if you do a month to month tenancy. Otherwise there would be a lease break fee, in Oregon the maximum in 95% of cases is 1.5 times monthly rent.
#39
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Posts: 4,131
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
Threads like these are always a good reminder of the difficulties of moving overseas these days. In 2015 we moved my wife's IRA and Roth from Fidelity to Vanguard in readiness for our move back to England. I've been converting the IRAs to Roths for several years and will continue to do so in case Vanguard take a similar route and start closing accounts for non-residents.
Our son is moving back to England end of September and is in a similar position of having a 401k to roll over to another brokerage. He has an IRA set up at Vanguard to receive it and I've told him to be sure to give his company his sister's address in California as his forwarding address. I'm still nervous for him as he will be leaving for England 10 days after his last day at work which isn't much time to get it all sorted.
#40
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Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 64
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
We use an UPS store for US mail...they forward it to our Canadian address twice a month. The UPS address we give is...
We always used apartments.com but always were prepared to stay for a minimum of 3 months. It might be worth registering though, pick a city and make some online inquiries. You could even rent a studio apartment for 3 months even if you don't plan to stay more than a month.
Threads like these are always a good reminder of the difficulties of moving overseas these days. In 2015 we moved my wife's IRA and Roth from Fidelity to Vanguard in readiness for our move back to England. I've been converting the IRAs to Roths for several years and will continue to do so in case Vanguard take a similar route and start closing accounts for non-residents.
Our son is moving back to England end of September and is in a similar position of having a 401k to roll over to another brokerage. He has an IRA set up at Vanguard to receive it and I've told him to be sure to give his company his sister's address in California as his forwarding address. I'm still nervous for him as he will be leaving for England 10 days after his last day at work which isn't much time to get it all sorted.
Threads like these are always a good reminder of the difficulties of moving overseas these days. In 2015 we moved my wife's IRA and Roth from Fidelity to Vanguard in readiness for our move back to England. I've been converting the IRAs to Roths for several years and will continue to do so in case Vanguard take a similar route and start closing accounts for non-residents.
Our son is moving back to England end of September and is in a similar position of having a 401k to roll over to another brokerage. He has an IRA set up at Vanguard to receive it and I've told him to be sure to give his company his sister's address in California as his forwarding address. I'm still nervous for him as he will be leaving for England 10 days after his last day at work which isn't much time to get it all sorted.
Has your son opened both a Traditional and a Roth IRA to maintain flexibility?
#41
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
..... Thanks for the info about the apartments - I'll take a look at this. ....
#42
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Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
He has had a Roth with Vanguard ever since he started work after college.
From my experience and inquiries with Vanguard prior to leaving the USA last year I know that Vanguard overseas customers can continue to trade and use their accounts but they cannot open new accounts. (You can buy shares in new investments within an existing account, which I have done since living in England but I cannot create a new account). So I told him to open an IRA this year, which he did in March, and he put $500 into it. I'm expecting that he should now be able to roll his 401k into that existing IRA account when he leaves his company on the 18th September.
Once the 401k is rolled over I have advised him that he should be able to convert that rollover a little at a time to his Roth over the next 20+ years paying little or no taxes. He had initially wanted to make a clean break and move everything over to England but I explained that as a dual US/UK citizen he was going to have to file US taxes anyway, and that investing in overseas funds was expensive and complicated. Also, he is named as a beneficiary along with his sister on both mine and my wife's US IRA and Roth accounts (in Vanguard) so having his own existing accounts will make things easier. If we can live another 6 or 7 years then our IRAs will have been moved to our Roths so that will not affect his US or UK taxes either when he comes to make withdrawals.
#43
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Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 64
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
The UPS address would be useful for receiving mail, however it looks like it couldn't be used to send a utility bill to Fidelity.
How did you come to that conclusion?
How did you come to that conclusion?
Thanks for the info about the apartments - I'll take a look at this. ....
You're willing to pay three months rent?
You're willing to pay three months rent?
Has your son opened both a Traditional and a Roth IRA to maintain flexibility?
Yes.
He has had a Roth with Vanguard ever since he started work after college
Yes.
He has had a Roth with Vanguard ever since he started work after college
#44
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
.... I didn't say anything about staying for three months. .....
Last edited by Pulaski; Aug 29th 2017 at 3:50 pm.
#45
Re: Frozen 401k/IRA
Yes.
He has had a Roth with Vanguard ever since he started work after college.
From my experience and inquiries with Vanguard prior to leaving the USA last year I know that Vanguard overseas customers can continue to trade and use their accounts but they cannot open new accounts. (You can buy shares in new investments within an existing account, which I have done since living in England but I cannot create a new account). So I told him to open an IRA this year, which he did in March, and he put $500 into it. I'm expecting that he should now be able to roll his 401k into that existing IRA account when he leaves his company on the 18th September.
Once the 401k is rolled over I have advised him that he should be able to convert that rollover a little at a time to his Roth over the next 20+ years paying little or no taxes. He had initially wanted to make a clean break and move everything over to England but I explained that as a dual US/UK citizen he was going to have to file US taxes anyway, and that investing in overseas funds was expensive and complicated. Also, he is named as a beneficiary along with his sister on both mine and my wife's US IRA and Roth accounts (in Vanguard) so having his own existing accounts will make things easier. If we can live another 6 or 7 years then our IRAs will have been moved to our Roths so that will not affect his US or UK taxes either when he comes to make withdrawals.
He has had a Roth with Vanguard ever since he started work after college.
From my experience and inquiries with Vanguard prior to leaving the USA last year I know that Vanguard overseas customers can continue to trade and use their accounts but they cannot open new accounts. (You can buy shares in new investments within an existing account, which I have done since living in England but I cannot create a new account). So I told him to open an IRA this year, which he did in March, and he put $500 into it. I'm expecting that he should now be able to roll his 401k into that existing IRA account when he leaves his company on the 18th September.
Once the 401k is rolled over I have advised him that he should be able to convert that rollover a little at a time to his Roth over the next 20+ years paying little or no taxes. He had initially wanted to make a clean break and move everything over to England but I explained that as a dual US/UK citizen he was going to have to file US taxes anyway, and that investing in overseas funds was expensive and complicated. Also, he is named as a beneficiary along with his sister on both mine and my wife's US IRA and Roth accounts (in Vanguard) so having his own existing accounts will make things easier. If we can live another 6 or 7 years then our IRAs will have been moved to our Roths so that will not affect his US or UK taxes either when he comes to make withdrawals.
Here is a list of some UK ETFs. This list does not include the Vanguard ones unfortunately
http://www.etf.com/channels/united-kingdom-etfs
Last edited by mrken30; Aug 30th 2017 at 3:34 am.