HSBC Advance overseas account opening?

LeDe_2

I'm opening a HSBC Advance account (upgrading from Student) and I regularly go to Hong Kong and the UAE which leads me to my question of whether it's possible to open accounts in either (or both) of these countries?

Does anyone have any experience of HSBC's international account opening without an address in the country of potential account opening, also is it possible to secure a credit card as I'd prefer a local credit card for peace of mind when I'm there.

Anyone able to offer their view?

henm2

HSBC have stopped selling the Advance account so if you have not finished an application for it you will not be able to get it.
Although HSBC can help you open an account with HSBC in another country it will cost you £100 per account. (Free for Premier)
Also to open a current account with HSBC in another country there usually needs to be a real need such as for the credit of regular salaries and wages otherwise the account will not be opened.
If your need for an account in Dubai and Hong Kong is just related to travelling you are best keeping your banking arrangements as they are except perhaps for applying for a credit card. Credit cards obtained in the UK are accepted worldwide.

LeDe_2

henm2 wrote: »

HSBC have stopped selling the Advance account so if you have not finished an application for it you will not be able to get it.
Although HSBC can help you open an account with HSBC in another country it will cost you £100 per account. (Free for Premier)
Also to open a current account with HSBC in another country there usually needs to be a real need such as for the credit of regular salaries and wages otherwise the account will not be opened.
If your need for an account in Dubai and Hong Kong is just related to travelling you are best keeping your banking arrangements as they are except perhaps for applying for a credit card. Credit cards obtained in the UK are accepted worldwide.

Have they? Damn, I didn't realise they were stopping it, are there plans for another similar account?

So you're saying that I shouldn't go for a Dubai or HK account or that I should but maybe when I'm over there rather than via HSBC?

Yes, I just want to avoid the fees that are associated with UK cards overseas, I'd rather pay the FX fee once when I transfer the required amount and not keep paying £x per transaction.

Thank you for your reply

greenorange

henm2 wrote: »

HSBC have stopped selling the Advance account so if you have not finished an application for it you will not be able to get it.
Although HSBC can help you open an account with HSBC in another country it will cost you £100 per account. (Free for Premier)
Also to open a current account with HSBC in another country there usually needs to be a real need such as for the credit of regular salaries and wages otherwise the account will not be opened.
If your need for an account in Dubai and Hong Kong is just related to travelling you are best keeping your banking arrangements as they are except perhaps for applying for a credit card. Credit cards obtained in the UK are accepted worldwide.

I didn't know they'd stopped taking application for the Advance account either. They've removed it from the list of accounts on their site. Seems an odd move considering it probably brings in a lot of money, and is in line with the accounts offered all around the world.

camperdown9

Hi

You might want to check with HSBC if there are monthly banking fees for holding a current account in HKG and or the UAE. Many countries don't offer free banking.

Alex

grumbler

LeDe wrote: »

...I regularly go to Hong Kong and the UAE which leads me to my question of whether it's possible to open accounts in either (or both) of these countries?...

Are you sure that you really need these accounts? What's wrong with simply using some proper UK cards there?

LeDe_2

camperdown9 wrote: »

Hi

You might want to check with HSBC if there are monthly banking fees for holding a current account in HKG and or the UAE. Many countries don't offer free banking.

Alex

In both there are fees should you not keep the minimum balance, I can fortunately keep the minimum balance of 100,000Dhs/HK$200,000 that HSBC asks for.

As HSBC are no longer offering Advance, I took it upon myself to call ADCB and Standard Chartered in Dubai today and they said I could open account with either when I'm next out there, ADCB require 200,000Dhs for their Privilege Club and Standard Chartered didn't mention a minimum.

grumbler wrote: »

Are you sure that you really need these accounts? What's wrong with simply using some proper UK cards there?

I personally think I need an account in the UAE due to the amount of trips that are coming up, an account Hong Kong I could most likely not open as it isn't really needed, it's more for convenience, both are really.

What do you mean by a proper UK card? I do have both credit and debit cards in the UK, are they not proper?

grumbler

LeDe wrote: »

I personally think I need an account in the UAE due to the amount of trips that are coming up,

I don't see how this *need* is justified by the number of trips unless you have some income abroad in the local currency.

What do you mean by a proper UK card? I do have both credit and debit cards in the UK, are they not proper?

Most likely they aren't - for using abroad. MSE class some UK cards as cards from hell for this purpose.

Full MSE article: Cheap Travel Cards

Some UK cards are not more expensive to use abroad than in UK. And, I think, they are much easier to get than a current account abroad.

LeDe wrote: »

In both there are fees should you not keep the minimum balance, I can fortunately keep the minimum balance of 100,000Dhs/HK$200,000 that HSBC asks for.

So, do you really think that keeping ~£15K in an account that pays next to zero interest makes it 'free'? In fact this means paying ~£300 annual fee in form of the lost interest.

LeDe_2

grumbler wrote: »

I don't see how this *need* is justified by the number of trips unless you have some income abroad in the local currency.

Most likely they aren't - for using abroad. MSE class some UK cards as cards from hell for this purpose.

Some UK cards are not more expensive to use abroad than in UK. And, I think, they are much easier to get than a current account abroad.

So, do you really think that keeping ~£15K in an account that pays next to zero interest makes it 'free'? In fact this means paying ~£300 annual fee in form of the lost interest.

Personally I believe that it's justified, a local account is what I feel I need at this moment in time.

I see, yes none of the cards I hold are good for international usage.

I should clarify that it's a total relationship balance, it can be spread across current, savings, and investment accounts, I wouldn't say that lost interest is an issue... for me anyway.

grumbler

'Believe', 'feel' - these words speak for themselves.

LeDe_2

grumbler wrote: »

'Believe', 'feel' - these words speak for themselves.

What's that supposed to mean? I came asking as to whether anyone had used the HSBC account opening service for overseas accounts and you seem to have taken issue and you're taking it out on myself, for what reason, I don't know