Debit/Credit Cards for EU nationals?

Also

Dear all,
Got a really irritating query I'd consider referring to Martin as an e-mail newsletter issue...

My girlfriend moved to the UK in April and works for an NGO in the City. Income 19k odd pre-Tax.
She is on the electoral register as of May 07 election and her name is on the Council Tax Bill.
She has a driving license, passport, and Credit and Debit cards from her home country, she is an EU national.

She opened an account at Nationwide (Best for taking out money overseas!) and they will ONLY issue her with a Cashcard (ATM only) for the first 6 months-1 year.

She tried RBS who gave her an account, promising a Debit and Credit card, only to write later to say she would get neither.

The problem is that in the UK she has no Credit History.

Now my cousin back in the 90's got a FirstDirect Credit Card as his father had a Platinum Citibank or something and he was on the account. We tried that and had no joy.
Anyone else got suggestions?

She doesn't need an Overdraft but when I called egg they seemed to think they couldn't issue her one

Thoughts/Help people?

Regards
Also

vikingaero

I think she'll be in a stronger position to get a better account when she's been in the UK for 6 months.

digerati

Also wrote: »

My girlfriend moved to the UK in April and works for an NGO in the City. Income 19k odd pre-Tax.
She is on the electoral register as of May 07 election and her name is on the Council Tax Bill.
She has a driving license, passport, and Credit and Debit cards from her home country, she is an EU national.

She doesn't need an Overdraft but when I called egg they seemed to think they couldn't issue her one

Most UK banks will provide a basic bank account as a starter for those without a UK credit history. You can sometimes get UK credit facilities without a UK credit history if you provide collateral, or a introductory letter from your main bank in your homeland (provided you or your parents have a long credit history with that bank). The reason banks are reluctant to provide credit facilities is that without a UK utility bill or UK employment contract an applicant has few ties to the UK and could run up a considerable debt then leave the UK.

What exactly does she want from a UK bank that she doesn't already have from her home EU state?

gt94sss2

Also wrote: »

My girlfriend moved to the UK in April and works for an NGO in the City. Income 19k odd pre-Tax.
She is on the electoral register as of May 07 election and her name is on the Council Tax Bill.
She has a driving license, passport, and Credit and Debit cards from her home country, she is an EU national.

The problem is that in the UK she has no Credit History.

Now my cousin back in the 90's got a FirstDirect Credit Card as his father had a Platinum Citibank or something and he was on the account. We tried that and had no joy.
Anyone else got suggestions?

Thoughts/Help people?

You don't say what country your girlfriend is from/who her overseas bank is - its possible that they may have an arrangement with a particular UK bank which may make opening an account here easier (another alternative is to try a UK [mainly London] 'overseas' branch of a bank from her home country)

Alternatively you could try HSBC (First Direct is part of HSBC not Citibank) - if she is not successful in getting a 'normal' account there, she could always apply for a HSBC Passport which is supposed to be designed for people who have just moved to the UK - though it does carry a fee for the 1st year.

It all depends on exactly what banking facilities your girlfriend wants?

Regards
Sunil

ScarletBea

digerati wrote: »

What exactly does she want from a UK bank that she doesn't already have from her home EU state?

I'm sorry, but this is such a silly question!!!
She doesn't need credit, she needs an english card to pay in shops, or to buy things on the internet (credit card could always be made to be paid in full at the end of the free period).

You do realise that england has pounds, and most of the rest of the EU has euros, and that when you use a debit/credit card from your homeland in england you get charged bank fees, and financial taxes, on top of an exchange rate that is not very favourable, do you?

I've been going to the UK regularly for the last 4 years and I don't even want to count how much money has gone into these fees...

I'm in the same situation as Also's girlfriend, as I'm moving to the UK in 3 days, and I don't want to have my salary in pounds, that need to be transferred to my account in euros or francs (fees!), that I then use with my card in euros/francs in england (more fees!).
I'm lucky to have got a good-paying job at a company with a great HR department that is providing references for me and taking care of opening a bank account for me in the UK.

Also, you can try the suggestion that gt did, about trying to go to the uk branch of a bank from her home country.

Also

She has a job contract (permanent) which she has shown and she is from the EU so theoretically it makes no difference where in the EU.

How much can you do with a Cashcard only?

Scarletbea- which bank are you with (PM me if you don't want to say here.)

gt94sss2

Also wrote: »

She has a job contract (permanent) which she has shown and she is from the EU so theoretically it makes no difference where in the EU.

While it may not make a difference in terms of staying here etc, for banking it an make life a lot easier if we knew which country it was, we could suggest overseas banks from that country which have UK branches.

Otherwise, as I have said, some banks have 'arrangements' with other banks. For instance, you would probably find it easier to open an account with:

- Abbey National if you had an account with Santander in Spain
- HSBC if you banked with [SIZE=-1]Crédit Commercial de France [/SIZE](CCF)
- Natwest/RBS if you had a Citizens bank account in the USA

etc, etc..

Regards
Sunil

Also

I'm not convinced by the argument, however the answer is Latvia.

It is amazing that she was studying 6 months in Germany and was able to get an account without difficulty and without an income other than grants!

Is this a perverse way to make life difficult for migrants coming to work in the UK and do the jobs we don't want to or can't?

gt94sss2

As far as I know, Lativa only has a handful of large banks - and the foreign ones there are mainly Nordic owned. The only bank I am aware of there that also operates in the UK, doesn't offer retail banking here at all.

Depending on what banking services she needs, I suggest that our girlfriend opens a basic bank account or a HSBC Passport account

Regards
Sunil

auslaender

Ah the problem of opening a bank account is still alive and kicking.

She will definitely get a basic account with Yorkshire bank - Maestro card, no checkbook.

If there's no Yorkshire bank branch in your area, HSBC passport account seems to be the only viable option ( 1-year 50 pound contract). Have a shot at citibank as well.

gt94sss2

auslaender wrote: »

HSBC passport account seems to be the only viable option ( 1-year 50 pound contract).

It seems that the HSBC Passport account has "far exceeded our[HSBC] expectations" with over 35,000 accounts opened that they have raised the annual fee to £60, though they do say "This is really a 12-month account, and after 10 months we will write to the customer saying that they can soon transfer to a regular current account if they want."

It also looks as if LloydsTSB and Natwest have both launched copycat accounts but unlike HSBC Passport account these seem mainly targeted to people coming from Poland and/or are more expensive than HSBC Passport.

This recent article in the Daily Telegraph has some more information.

Regards
Sunil