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Old 08-27-2018, 04:57 PM   #41
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There certainly are, as well as other countries, and I think they are usually used for savings accounts rather than mainstream checking accounts that new residents to a country need asap. With some big banks you can open an account without being resident if you already have an account in another country. (For clarification, The Channel Islands are not part of the UK and not part of the UK banking system)
I have an account with Standard Chartered in Jersey, mostly for investments, but it has a fully functioning cash account attached to it. I could have a debit card on that account if I wanted, and they can do direct debits and standing orders; the account has an IBAN but is also integrated with the UK BACS payment system. The main limitation is that you need a certain amount of money overall in your relationship with the bank (in effect, every customer is a "private banking" customer), but I don't have to keep a minimum cash balance.

Do you have the TransferWise debit card yet? I'm not normally an evangelist for any sort of consumer item, but this card is very clever. It is tied to your TW "borderless account", in which you can hold multiple currencies (say, USD, EUR, GBP, CHF). When you make a payment in one of those currencies, it looks like a "local" card, so there are no fees. If you pay 50 USD but you only have 30 USD in your account, it will make up the rest from one of the other currencies, with only TW's small conversion fee to pay. On a driving trip across Europe this can save quite a lot in $2-3 transaction fees every time you stop for gas or coffee.
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Old 08-27-2018, 05:29 PM   #42
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I have an account with Standard Chartered in Jersey, mostly for investments, but it has a fully functioning cash account attached to it. I could have a debit card on that account if I wanted, and they can do direct debits and standing orders; the account has an IBAN but is also integrated with the UK BACS payment system. The main limitation is that you need a certain amount of money overall in your relationship with the bank (in effect, every customer is a "private banking" customer), but I don't have to keep a minimum cash balance.

Do you have the TransferWise debit card yet? I'm not normally an evangelist for any sort of consumer item, but this card is very clever. It is tied to your TW "borderless account", in which you can hold multiple currencies (say, USD, EUR, GBP, CHF). When you make a payment in one of those currencies, it looks like a "local" card, so there are no fees. If you pay 50 USD but you only have 30 USD in your account, it will make up the rest from one of the other currencies, with only TW's small conversion fee to pay. On a driving trip across Europe this can save quite a lot in $2-3 transaction fees every time you stop for gas or coffee.
I already have a Transferwise borderless account (in $ and €), and I will definitely get the debit card once I am in Europe (it is not available in the US yet, I believe).
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Old 08-27-2018, 08:05 PM   #43
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I will definitely get the debit card once I am in Europe (it is not available in the US yet, I believe).

According to their website, it’s not. That’s a shame. I have a yearly bill I need to pay in Europe and they won’t accept my US based debit/credit cards. I always have to ask family to help out, which is less than ideal. Eventually I’d like to figure out a better solution.
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Old 08-28-2018, 04:11 AM   #44
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Alan,

I am not advocating any tax cheating, but aren't there banks in the English Channel Islands where you do not have to be a resident to have an account?
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I see that the Channel Islands (Guernsey and Jersey) are on the FATCA compliant list. The UK also signed agreements with them in 2013 to report on accounts as part of an IGA.
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Old 08-30-2018, 01:34 PM   #45
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I have been taking the first few steps this week towards the move:

- I have started liquidating investments in the US. I feel so fortunate that I get to do this when the market is doing well! I would have hated liquidating during a bear market because the money may not be reinvested for a while.
- I made an appointment with a lawyer specializing in the exit tax and expatriation process to make sure that I do this by the book.
- I called HSBC and it looks like they would be able to help me transfer my savings from the US to France. I need to open a US account and a French account with them. They can apparently open the French account 1-2 months before I actually leave the US (I will need to prove that I am actually moving to France and I will need to appear in person at one of their offices in the US to verify my identity - a bummer because their closest office is 1,000 miles away). Then I can link the 2 accounts and transfer money myself using their online banking platform.
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Old 08-30-2018, 02:24 PM   #46
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I have been taking the first few steps this week towards the move:

- I have started liquidating investments in the US. I feel so fortunate that I get to do this when the market is doing well! I would have hated liquidating during a bear market because the money may not be reinvested for a while.
- I made an appointment with a lawyer specializing in the exit tax and expatriation process to make sure that I do this by the book.
- I called HSBC and it looks like they would be able to help me transfer my savings from the US to France. I need to open a US account and a French account with them. They can apparently open the French account 1-2 months before I actually leave the US (I will need to prove that I am actually moving to France and I will need to appear in person at one of their offices in the US to verify my identity - a bummer because their closest office is 1,000 miles away). Then I can link the 2 accounts and transfer money myself using their online banking platform.
Sounds like you are making good progress. Pity you don’t already have a bank account in France, we had maintained ours in England.

However, our son didn’t have a bank here and he went the HSBC route you talk about. He opened an HSBC account online in the USA and when it came to opening a UK account he set it all up then went into their branch in LA during a visit to his sister. A real pain I know but I think for money laundering laws they need to have in person id checks.

Both he and us have HSBC accounts in the USA and UK and it is very easy and fast to move money between the accounts although for small amounts (under $100k) I use Transferwise to move money between the accounts. In your case then when the time comes you will be moving it all, with us we still have US pensions going it every month.

Like you we have been so lucky with the timing of both the markets and the forex rate as the pound collapsed against the dollar.
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Old 08-30-2018, 03:43 PM   #47
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Sounds like you are making good progress. Pity you don’t already have a bank account in France, we had maintained ours in England.
I still have a bank account in a small bank, but they don't handle international transactions particularly well.
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Old 08-31-2018, 01:30 AM   #48
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I still have a bank account in a small bank, but they don't handle international transactions particularly well.
If you haven’t already I would give Transferwise a whirl, if they don’t recognize the routing and account numbers then nothing lost but I think they do the conversion to euros so it should just be a regular local French bank to French bank transfer at the France end.

These links describe the way it works and how it is different from an international transfer. No money actually transfers internationally as they have their own bank accounts in all the countries they operate. You put the money you want into your US account using ACH or wire and in France they then move Euros to your bank using that country’s banking system. It relies on the fact that people in France are also wanting to move money to the USA. I use them a lot and once you have set up the first ACH transfer you don’t have to enter your bank details again, or if you are someone who never likes to give your bank details to anyone then they provide you with their US bank details and you simply wire money to them. I have done it both ways. Last week on Friday I sent $15k and had the option of ACH and receive the money on Monday or use a wire transfer and get it same day. Since it would have cost me $7 more to do the wire I opted for ACH. (The exchange rate and final amount in the bank was the same, I was just happy to wait over the weekend). If I do an ACH transfer method early in the morning the money is usually in my U.K. bank the same day.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/tr...nd-is-it-safe/

https://transferwise.com/gb/blog/how...nsferwise-work
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Old 08-31-2018, 08:38 AM   #49
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If you haven’t already I would give Transferwise a whirl, if they don’t recognize the routing and account numbers then nothing lost but I think they do the conversion to euros so it should just be a regular local French bank to French bank transfer at the France end.

These links describe the way it works and how it is different from an international transfer. No money actually transfers internationally as they have their own bank accounts in all the countries they operate. You put the money you want into your US account using ACH or wire and in France they then move Euros to your bank using that country’s banking system. It relies on the fact that people in France are also wanting to move money to the USA. I use them a lot and once you have set up the first ACH transfer you don’t have to enter your bank details again, or if you are someone who never likes to give your bank details to anyone then they provide you with their US bank details and you simply wire money to them. I have done it both ways. Last week on Friday I sent $15k and had the option of ACH and receive the money on Monday or use a wire transfer and get it same day. Since it would have cost me $7 more to do the wire I opted for ACH. (The exchange rate and final amount in the bank was the same, I was just happy to wait over the weekend). If I do an ACH transfer method early in the morning the money is usually in my U.K. bank the same day.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/tr...nd-is-it-safe/

https://transferwise.com/gb/blog/how...nsferwise-work
Thanks Alan. I have used Transferwise to move small amounts of money to my French bank account before. It worked well. I transfer some USD from my US bank account to my borderless account at Transferwise. Then I convert the USD to Euros (still in my borderless account). Then I transfer the euros to my French bank account.
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Old 09-07-2018, 11:28 AM   #50
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I have now decided to make my final move from the US to France at the end of the year (unless I run into some delays). I thought that I would take a few years to regroup after the divorce before making my move, but I want to get on with my new life.

My lifestyle is going to change dramatically. I will be leaving a 2500 sqft house in the US for a 1-bedroom, ~400 sqft condo, which I will be purchasing in the spring (and which costs about the same as the house). Real estate is expensive where I am going and I don't need much room anyway. Actually I am looking forward to having a smaller place with much less maintenance. I already have a (much larger) vacation condo in the area. But I think that I would prefer renting it out than living in it for now (I might change my mind later).

My new target monthly budget, after purchasing the smaller condo, is also going to be drastically reduced. It will be around 2,300 euros a month, all in (trying to keep my withdrawal rate where it was before the divorce).

I reached out to some people who live in the area to have an idea about my expected bills:
monthly recurring bills should be about 1,400 euros (food, health insurance, electric, water, internet, phone, car insurance, gasoline, HOA fees, property taxes). And I will set aside about 350 euros a month for more irregular expenses (medical co-pays, car repair, etc...).

I have liquidated quite a few investments in the US already. But I still have to push the trigger on liquidating my Roth IRA (already in cash) and my HSA (also in cash).
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Old 09-07-2018, 11:56 AM   #51
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Thanks for the update.

All the very best for the move and new life.
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Old 09-07-2018, 12:09 PM   #52
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Bonne chance!
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Old 09-07-2018, 12:51 PM   #53
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To all outward appearances, you are handling this turmoil well. A testament to your good character.

Wish you nothing but success.

Cheers.
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Old 09-07-2018, 12:52 PM   #54
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FIREd..you've had a rough Summer, your first thread about your fears this might be happening was less then 60 days ago. And now it's happened...Best wishes as you move to a new life and may some contentment and happiness be right around the corner. Check in and let us know how you are. I hope your budget works out as planned.
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Old 09-07-2018, 12:58 PM   #55
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All the best to you in your new life, FIREd.
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Old 09-07-2018, 01:25 PM   #56
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@FIREd - I hope you don't leave this community. I for one will look to you for advice on visiting France , even though I've been there before many times, can't hurt to get that 'man on the ground' perspective :-)
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Old 09-07-2018, 01:36 PM   #57
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I have now decided to make my final move from the US to France at the end of the year (unless I run into some delays). I thought that I would take a few years to regroup after the divorce before making my move, but I want to get on with my new life.

My lifestyle is going to change dramatically. I will be leaving a 2500 sqft house in the US for a 1-bedroom, ~400 sqft condo, which I will be purchasing in the spring (and which costs about the same as the house). Real estate is expensive where I am going and I don't need much room anyway. Actually I am looking forward to having a smaller place with much less maintenance. I already have a (much larger) vacation condo in the area. But I think that I would prefer renting it out than living in it for now (I might change my mind later).

My new target monthly budget, after purchasing the smaller condo, is also going to be drastically reduced. It will be around 2,300 euros a month, all in (trying to keep my withdrawal rate where it was before the divorce).

I reached out to some people who live in the area to have an idea about my expected bills:
monthly recurring bills should be about 1,400 euros (food, health insurance, electric, water, internet, phone, car insurance, gasoline, HOA fees, property taxes). And I will set aside about 350 euros a month for more irregular expenses (medical co-pays, car repair, etc...).

I have liquidated quite a few investments in the US already. But I still have to push the trigger on liquidating my Roth IRA (already in cash) and my HSA (also in cash).
FIREd, you create a beautiful demonstration of resilience. Congratulations on your rapid, look ahead not back, and stay optimistic way of proceeding. My best wishes to you!

When you are setting up your 400 ft2 condo, please share some details. I have a small space for the USA at 670, and at times I struggle to figure out how best to set up. I have zero interest in going larger, and anyway, larger would cramp my budget.

Ha
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Old 09-07-2018, 03:46 PM   #58
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@FIREd - I hope you don't leave this community. I for one will look to you for advice on visiting France , even though I've been there before many times, can't hurt to get that 'man on the ground' perspective :-)
I plan to stick around! While some information on this site may not be relevant for my situation anymore, there are still plenty of good discussions about the personal aspects of ER that will remain of interest to me. In particular, I am moving to a country where retiring early on one's own investments is even more out of the norm than in the US. And I am sure that it will come with challenges (people are already questioning how I will be supporting myself).
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Old 09-07-2018, 03:53 PM   #59
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I plan to stick around! While some information on this site may not be relevant for my situation anymore, there are still plenty of good discussions about the personal aspects of ER that will remain of interest to me.
Yep, you never know when another good debate on shaving/not shaving body hair might break out.
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Old 09-07-2018, 04:27 PM   #60
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You have made the hard decisions about getting on with your life. Good luck and I look forward to hearing from you more when you actually move.
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