DanEmWill

Sorry folks if I have put this in the worng place! I would just like some advice on setting up a bank account when we get to the States in May time. Is it possible to set up an account immediately or do you need to wait for a Social Security Number. If so, how quickly does you SSN come through?

Thanks Guys

paul32x

I seem to remember that my SSN took about two weeks to come through when we arrived here about ten years ago. Once we'd got that, we went into HSBC and opened a bank account then.

Speedwell

Some banks will allow you to open an account with your passport, though I have only tried this while setting up a joint account with me as the primary accountholder and my UKC husband as the joint accountholder. They didn't have a problem with him having no tax number as the account is not interest-bearing. If you have ever filed taxes as a resident (say as joint with your USC spouse) then you may have a tax number (ITIN) and could use that, too.

civilservant

I was told by my bank (which is a state-wide one rather than a national) that I needed an SSN. It really does vary.

Bob

Have a look at the hundreds of threads on this, probably on the first page too.

No, you don't need a SSN to open a checking account by no, just for a savings account.

There are hundreds of banks, so if one says you do, either speak to a supervisor or go next door.

SSN card can take a couple weeks to get, but if you go apply after 10 days of entering the country, you'll be in SAVE, can then go back a day or so later and ask for the actual number. If you apply within 10 days, you might need to be manually verified and that can delay getting a number up to 6 weeks.

ChocolateBabz

Chase let us open ours without one and hubby's work used a temporary SSN for his wages until we got ours. We waited the 10 days before going to get them and then gave them all the numbers.

GeoffM

I arrived on a Thursday, the SSN was issued on Friday and the card arrived the following Friday. That was with an immigrant visa; I don't know if L1 is the same.

As for bank accounts, any half decent bank will open an account without an SSN. Wells Fargo did for me with just the passport/visa before I got the SSN.

markwm

You can also open an HSBC account from the UK ready to use when you get to the US. Although they don't have that many branches here I've only once needed to use one. They also gave me a debit card/check book immediately and a Mastercard after a few months (don't forget to give them your US address when you get here and SSN.

If you have an American Express card they may also give you a US based card (there are conditions). Look on the website for Global Transfer.

GeoffM

Haha, maybe I just got incompetent staff, but it took them three months to fail miserably to open the account from the UK. Even when I got to the US, it was like starting again as if I'd never filled in any forms to open the account in the first place. A real PITA, no local branches, and last month I dumped them because they couldn't even get my address right after 7 months of visiting the branch, talking to my "account manager", and talking with their customer misservice.

Some people like the "Global View" thing but that is the least of my worries.

markwm

Odd: have had no trouble with them. They can be slow to react but ok.

dlake02

HSBC are truly awful. They took me overdrawn for three months rent and then proceeded to charge me for it.

They couldn't do something as simple as change the monthly payment to my landlord from the electronic payment that took them 6 months to set up.

Their phone style is awful. Their payment system is slow. Their customer service is non-existent. Even the on-line system doesn't update in real-time. Sometimes you can wait 4 days for a card payment to appear on the US site. Even in the UK, they were one of the last banks to move to FastPay - whereas NatWest electronic transfers DD/SO etc were taking seconds about 4 years ago, HSBC was still taking 3 days up until July of last year.