How easy to open US$ a/c in the states?

[lewitravel]

Hi,

Being a brit pounds are not really of use so like the locals I am saving in $. Since it looks like I will be staying here for awhile, I was curious as to how easy it is to open up an account in the States as a tourist. Can I just rock up to a local branch with my passport and give them an address?

The idea of hiding money around the house sounds great until there is a fire or the cleaner nabs it!

Appreciate any advice,
Thanks

 

[ghost]

Not likely anymore. Things have tightened up.

 

[citygirl]

Not as easy as it used to be but hardly impossible You do have to go in person and you do have to have a US mailing address (have any friends or family there? Or use one of those mail forwarding companies that give you an address).

I highly recommend you do it in "foreigner-friendly" parts. Tons of people i know in the horse world do it in Miami/Wellington/etc and the banks there are very used to having non-US citizens come in to open accounts.

 

[lewitravel]

Thanks for the quick response - My uncle and aunt live out in Portland. I guess I need to get in touch with them! I will be in Miami/Orlando/New York next year and was hoping to do it then.

Also does anyone know how much are you allowed to bring into the US before declaring it?

 

[jayjane]

You can bring 10,000 US in cash/money order. Anything over you need to declare. I had a job advising international students in the past. This was a common question. A lot of international students were able to get bank accounts even those staying for a short time. I think you have to go in-person (esp post 9/11) with your documents and there is usually a minimum deposit for this type of account.

 

[citygirl]

Actually, isn't it $9,999 USD? I believe anything 10K and over needs to be declared.

 

[jayjane]

http://internationalcenter.umich.edu/intlstudents/money.html

I believe 10,000 is the allowed maximum still.

 

[ndcj]

Any large bank (think Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Chase, etc) will open an account for you as long as you have a passport and a US address. It's even possible to open an account with a foreign address only in most large banks if the person helping you knows what they are doing.

You will need to do it in person, and you'll be asked to fill in an IRS form called a "W8-BEN", declaring that you are a foreign person and not subject to US tax withholding.

 

[BAFinance]

Opening accts in the States for non citizens/residents is hard. I would recommend Bahamas, Panama, or Caymen Islands.....in all 3 places you can have accounts in U$D.

 

[lewitravel]

I guess I will just have to give it a try when I'm over there. BAC and Citi have taken a hammering in the market lately, hopefully they sort themselves out. Panama could be an option as a lot of flights connect there but how stable is it? I guess these days nothing is certain, even in the States!