Moving to Uk, Advice Appreciated

movingtoengland

Hi Everyone,

I am new to this, so a big hello! and thank you in advance for any advice you can give,

I am moving to the UK in a few weeks and I was wondering if....

It is better to lodge my savings with a UK bank then apply for a current account (Savings aroung £10k)- I was thinking Natwest

Or should i just try and do it all at once,

Finally, does having a few grand savings help me get a decent current account, or will I have to start basic eitherway,

Thanks Again

Scousebird_2

Try HSBC Passport account-and depending on your home language-you may be able to speak to an adviser in your own language on the language assistance line. Have a look at this account;

http://www.hsbc.co.uk/1/2/personal/current-accounts/passport;jsessionid=0000PIGC3b3jFngahz7OwjsHtk2:11j71fovq

Good luck!

Superheavy

Hello mate,

To be honest with you, I don't think that having that much savings would actually impact on what you can have, though it will also depend on what you will be doing here.

If you're a student, they may be able to offer you some form of student a/c with proof of where you're studying. If you're in employment, they should be able to offer you some sort of 'Passport' a/c, usually designed for people recently moved to the country. If neither of these is available, then the basic bank a/c is probably the last port of call.

The other two can have benefits like debit cards, overdrafts, but I'm sure the basic bank a/c will suffice, if a little inconvenient.

leviathan

movingtoengland wrote: »

any advice you can give,

I am moving to the UK in a few weeks

Maybe think twice ?


Depends where you are moving from.
Look at your rate of return on your savings in your current country verses the UK.
How long are you staying for? How much of a gamble is it depending on which way our economy is going an how the excahnge rates might affect you if you move back again.

Ben1982

I wouldn't bother with paying for the passport account unless the features are of benefit to you.

My OH had trouble trying to open the passport account due to them wanting some proof of address at my flat. (She lived in Sweden BTW)

In the end she now has a Halifax Easycash account (opened online), and you just send them copies of ID, and they'll post a letter to you to sign, to declare that you live at that address.

You get statements through the post from it too, so should put you in a good position to open a better bank account later on.

BrandNewDay

When I moved here from the US, I was prepared to have a hard time getting an account. But, I had no problem getting a current account and a credit card from Barclay's. I had been in the country for less than a week. I knew other people who had a hard time with Barclay's. I think it just comes down to what the person who talks to you at the bank happens to say when you go in there.

My advice is to go down the high street and try different banks. Someone will probably give you an account. You may be given an application by someone, but when I got my account, I actually sat down at a desk and opened it. If they don't sit down with you and give you an account, then I'd move on and try another bank.

Different branches of the exact same bank may give different results.

briona

Superheavy wrote: »

Hello mate,

To be honest with you, I don't think that having that much savings would actually impact on what you can have, though it will also depend on what you will be doing here.

Actually savings might make a difference!

I moved from Ireland to Edinburgh in 2002 and the ONLY way I could open a bank account there was by assuring the bank that I would be transferring a couple of thousand pounds from my Irish account immediately. That was with Bank of Scotland.

Of course when I went to work in London, and later Cardiff, finding BOS branches wasn't easy, and despite having a job, I couldn't open another account. I was turned down by everyone... NatWest, Lloyds, Barclays, Abbey, Halifax, HSBC and God knows who else.

The bottom line is if you're NOT on the electoral roll you will more than likely have problems (I WAS on it – signed up in October 2002 but by November when I was looking for a new account, the list hadn't updated!), and also if you don't have a bill in your name you'll struggle (I moved into a house where the bills were included in the rent, and unfortunately my mobile was PAYG!). Trying to persuade a bank that you really DON'T have any bills? Let's not even go there!

nzseries1

Halifax Easycash is a good choice. You get a debit card and they don't require proof of address (the biggest hurdle), but when you go into the branch you MUST MUST MUST MUST MUST specify Easycash, and specify it several times. Make sure it says "Easycash" on the form you fill out.

They don't want to sell you Easycash as it makes them no money. So if you don't specify it several times and clearly, then you will be filling in a form for a regular current account, and you will get declined.

leviathan

Going back 5yrs ago my OH at the time was from Norway. She couldn't get an account here before we'd met. So I took her to my bank at the time and their used me as a character reference of some kind.
I forget the exact details, but it wouldn't have affected me badly had she tried anything dodgy.
However, we were students at the time and they wouldn't give her an overdraft facilities. Perhaps understandably.

Scousebird_2

Ben1982 wrote: »

I wouldn't bother with paying for the passport account unless the features are of benefit to you.

My OH had trouble trying to open the passport account due to them wanting some proof of address at my flat. (She lived in Sweden BTW)

In the end she now has a Halifax Easycash account (opened online), and you just send them copies of ID, and they'll post a letter to you to sign, to declare that you live at that address.

You get statements through the post from it too, so should put you in a good position to open a better bank account later on.

Strange?? You see a Passport account can't be opened with a UK address-thus the name, it can be opened with a Swedish Passport and proof of address from Sweden. This is how it is opened and then a UK address change is manually added. Strange that it was problematic. Glad you got sorted in the end though.

WallyMan

Get on the electoral roll ASAP!