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Opening a UK Bank account


NickJan

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Hi, I'm sorry if I'm duplicating previous questions.

We have lived in WA for 13 years and retained our UK HSBC account to make it easier for return visits to the UK.

The HSBC have become increasing difficult to work with to the point that they do not allow my Father-in-law to put cash in our account for the children's birthdays.

So my question is, can we open a new bank account in the UK even though we're resident in Australia?

My apologies if this has already been covered.

Cheers

Nick

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No you can’t open an account in the UK unless you  are resident.  I don’t understand why they will not allow  anyone to pay into the account though. Have you checked with them why this is?  I know my FIL confused the bank in UK by talking about sending money to Australia when he was just putting money in our UK account. 

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4 hours ago, mt9754 said:

Take a look at the Transferwise Borderless account.  It allows you to open a UK bank account without being a resident.  You'll also probably save money and hassle on the conversion too.

https://transferwise.com/au/borderless/

It’s not actually a UK bank account though. It’s an account that is held in pounds sterling but it’s not in the UK

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The rules in the UK have recently changed. My in laws have regularly put uk pounds into our UK account for birthdays etc rather than posting the cash to us. When in the UK bank last week to deposit into our account she was told that was the last time she would be able to do it as they had changed their rules.. Bit of a PITA to be honest and not sure what they will do now.

 

 Cal x

 

 

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The rules in the UK have recently changed. My in laws have regularly put uk pounds into our UK account for birthdays etc rather than posting the cash to us. When in the UK bank last week to deposit into our account she was told that was the last time she would be able to do it as they had changed their rules.. Bit of a PITA to be honest and not sure what they will do now.
 
 Cal x
 
 
It will still be possible online. That's assuming you're in-laws are using online banking.
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1 hour ago, calNgary said:

The rules in the UK have recently changed. My in laws have regularly put uk pounds into our UK account for birthdays etc rather than posting the cash to us. When in the UK bank last week to deposit into our account she was told that was the last time she would be able to do it as they had changed their rules.. Bit of a PITA to be honest and not sure what they will do now.

 

 Cal x

 

 

What are the new rules?  Do they prevent people putting cash into other peoples accounts?  Seems odd. 

Aah just googled. Some banks will still accept it with a certain paying in slip and other will accept cheques.  All are fine with electronic transfers. 

I guess they need to ask the bank how best to make the transfers. 

I know my FIL deposits cash into our account and doesn’t do on line banking as he gets confused, and knows he could make mistakes. I did notice my SIL made deposits on his behalf recently, I guess that is why, as she will have done them on line and he will have bunged her the cash!

The rules are tightening up to prevent fraud etc but are catching us ordinary mortals out just trying to do day to day stuff!

i asked my bank why moving my money, which they had had for years into a better account with them was not possible.  Money laundering rules were quoted, but they couldn’t explain how that could possibly apply in my case....just that the computer said no......

Edited by rammygirl
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1 hour ago, calNgary said:

The rules in the UK have recently changed. My in laws have regularly put uk pounds into our UK account for birthdays etc rather than posting the cash to us. When in the UK bank last week to deposit into our account she was told that was the last time she would be able to do it as they had changed their rules.. Bit of a PITA to be honest and not sure what they will do now.

 

 Cal x

 

 

How strange. How do businesses manage I wonder? How can they pay salaries?

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3 hours ago, rammygirl said:

What are the new rules?  Do they prevent people putting cash into other peoples accounts?  Seems odd. 

Aah just googled. Some banks will still accept it with a certain paying in slip and other will accept cheques.  All are fine with electronic transfers. 

I guess they need to ask the bank how best to make the transfers. 

I know my FIL deposits cash into our account and doesn’t do on line banking as he gets confused, and knows he could make mistakes. I did notice my SIL made deposits on his behalf recently, I guess that is why, as she will have done them on line and he will have bunged her the cash!

The rules are tightening up to prevent fraud etc but are catching us ordinary mortals out just trying to do day to day stuff!

i asked my bank why moving my money, which they had had for years into a better account with them was not possible.  Money laundering rules were quoted, but they couldn’t explain how that could possibly apply in my case....just that the computer said no......

Thanks for this, I am sure she said it was cash and cheques being stopped and unfortunately they not very internet savvy and can just about send an email every now and again, bless them.

 Cal x

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19 hours ago, Marisawright said:

It’s not actually a UK bank account though. It’s an account that is held in pounds sterling but it’s not in the UK

You are given a UK sort code and bank account number.  People in the UK can send money to your bank account details for free, and you can send money to bank accounts in the UK for a fixed 65p fee.  What do you mean by "it's not a UK bank account"?  Is there some sort of technicality / does this have any implications for the account holder?  I only ask as it's making me nervous as i'd hoped to use this when i arrive.

Edited by mt9754
added additional info as I didn't mean to be rude
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5 hours ago, mt9754 said:

You are given a UK sort code and bank account number.  People in the UK can send money to your bank account details for free, and you can send money to bank accounts in the UK for a fixed 65p fee.  What do you mean by "it's not a UK bank account"?  Is there some sort of technicality / does this have any implications for the account holder?  I only ask as it's making me nervous as i'd hoped to use this when i arrive.

Looks like Rammygirl found the answer.

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16 hours ago, Marisawright said:

I was thinking, does it have a card so you can use ATM's etc, or how do you withdraw cash for your own use?

Yes, it comes with a Mastercard which you can use worldwide, first £200 (on equivalent) of cash withdrawals per month is free (2% fees above that).  Overview here: 

 

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11 minutes ago, mt9754 said:

Yes, it comes with a Mastercard which you can use worldwide, first £200 (on equivalent) of cash withdrawals per month is free (2% fees above that).  

 

In that case, it sounds as though you could use it as a basic account for most things.  It just means you can't get a credit card, overdraft or loan.

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