RPWoolf

Hi all,

Got here a couple of weeks ago and am now in the process of job hunting (on a working holiday visa).

They'll need a bank account to me with but I don't have one here yet!

I've had a look on a couple of NZ bank websites and unsurprisingly they all request the same stuff. My partner is from here and we're currently staying at her mum's.

My question is...does anybody know of a way to speed things up circumvent the proof of address requirement? Maybe a guarantor or joint account perhaps?

Cheers,

Rob

gazmac

We opened a bank account with no proof of address within a few days of arriving in NZ as a backpacker. Just a passport and some money was all the ANZ wanted from us. I imagine this is the same for the majority of backpackers who travel and work in NZ.

Id go along and speak to the bank tell them your situation and take it from there

TommyLuck

Sorry for my ignorance, when did you turn up gazmac?

To the OP;

The reason I ask this of gazmac, is that banking laws changed in NZ (and Australia) at the beginning of 2013 which means you need proof of address as well as ID.

In my case the easiest thing seemed to be to register a car in my name.

My wife came over in November 2012 and opened up an account with just her passport. Easy. By the time I got here in July just gone it was a bit of a carry on.

I say carry on, but of course what has been standard in NZ for just over a year has been standard in the UK for decades

To that end, I thnk you'll struggle to avoid the proof of address thing. Maybe they've relaxed a little, but it was a bit of a ballache when I arrived.

TheCockneyKiwi

Rob - Just take a UK Bank Statement with you. Even a screenshot with online banking will be fine. They just need to tick a box and verify that you lived at an address.

We set up our account with WestPac before we arrived. When we got here, we just popped into the branch and showed Passport, Bank Statement etc from UK. There must be something that had your UK address?

TommyLuck

This difference here is that you initiated the start up of the account in the UK - which is what I should have done.

If you're initiating the account in NZ from scratch I don't think they'll be so flexible. I don't know why, but I tried this with ASB they wouldn't have a bar of it as I was at that point a resident in NZ and no longer a resident in the UK so the UK proof was obselete.

I could be wrong for other banks however, but having applied for credit card through other banks the policies are seem pretty standard. After all there are laws to be adhered to.

Proceed with caution and patience. Before wasting time going to the branch, I'd give them a call to explain and see what they need and can or cannot do for you;

In the case of setting up from the UK, you would have been a UK resident at the time and would have provided address proof for your residence there. Therefore Westpac were ticking that particular box. There is no law stopping someone from outside NZ setting up an account in NZ. Once you moved over, they just wanted proof it was you who set up the account from the UK.

They (the banks) have certainly tightened things up since the vast majority of posters on here arrived in NZ.

gazmac

End of 2010. It was straightforward for us to do.

How would these new rules effect the numerous travellers who arrive here?

Makes a mockery of the rules if everyone knows that people are giving hostel addresses or campsites where they will be moving from in a short period.

I guess its all about ticking those boxes.

nzneville

ANZ Bank has details of what you need to provide in order to open an account. Basically, photo ID (passport) plus one document that shows your New Zealand address, such as a utilities bill, a rental agreement with your landlord etc. Try this URL as it tells you what you can use.

http://anz.co.nz/resources/4/a/4ac9c...df?MOD=AJPERES

Wellygirl

Hi there, we did this with BNZ with no permanent address. We were staying in the Travel lodge in Wellington and the bank manager at the BNZ asked us for proof of where we were staying and so we got in touch with the hotel manager manager at the Travel lodge. He wrote us a letter confirming that we were staying there and we took this as well as our passports into the BNZ and they opened up an account for us....and that was it! Quite simple really.

Good luck

Charismatic

It is mandatory to take proof of address when opening an account now (thank you "Anti-Money Laundering and counter financing of terrorism" bill ). However they can open an account with holds and send you a letter to return in the mail.

Alternatively you could just make a fake utility bill through one of many websites, freeware or photoshop.

Clappy

The rules were tightened up severely last year because before that they were so lax that NZ was a haven for money launderers.

I would expect that the bank will be happy to let you open an account to receive money, which is what you need immediately, but they will require proof of address before they will let you withdraw any.

nzneville

After all of these posts, why not simply pop into a branch of one of the banks and simply ask them what they need? You could do this tomorrow and save all the different and possibly conflicting pieces of advice. There are plenty of bank branches in both Otaki and Wellington, and unlike Auckland which is closed tomorrow, the Wellington regional branches shold be open.

nzneville

Just another thought too, if you head into the bank. Get your partner's Mum to write a letter "To whom it may concern", saying thgat you are living at her address. Also, maybe, go the bank that your partner's mum banks with, and don't forget to take your passport.

RPWoolf

Thanks to everyone for replying, you've clarified a lot and it confirmed what we were thinking. I'm popping into a branch either today or tomorrow with my partner's mother and, as nzneville suggested, she'll hopefully be able to write a letter. I'll post after we've done for future reference. Once again, thanks all!