uk bank account while living in malta

So far done well by - just not telling them I left. But I will this week try to get HSBC to open me a UK account based on my premier status - they're supposed to do this apparently

Luckily lived in a rented apartment of a friend so post is not a problem.

I live in Austria and have a Bank account in the UK and in Austria. I am with Barclays Bank, they know I no longer live in the UK and I am resident in another country.

I have a standard account, and I have about 100 quid in it, I use it for holiday money when I visit, so I just transfer money into it when required.

We have current accounts with two different banks in the UK with no problems with us being here, I think problems arise with savings accounts especially with Halifax.

Current accounts do not seem to be a problem but many UK banks will not let you open a savings account if you have an overseas address.
If you have an existing UK account and live abroad you must tell them your correct address otherwise when your cards renew they will be sent to the wrong place and unless that address is family or reliable friends you leave yourself open to fraud.

This is an interesting read http://www.smartrelocationguide.com/blo … ve-abroad/

We never had any problems with NatWest who just needed everything in writing and we now get all our bank stuff here.
Still not managed to get one here though other that Postapay. I think I need to try a bit harder, The problem is always a bank reference and Natwest will give them and charge £15 for it but it's just getting them to actually do it. If you ring them they say write to my branch, which I did but still nothing,,,,,,,,,, It's like banging my head on a brick wall...
Ray

Have you tried Banif?

If you haven't In a while it's worth trying again in sliema branches.

Since recently the September EU directive giving anyone the right to an account has been inscribed in local law.

Sliema because they are most likely to be aware of this

I just changed my address on my UK account to my new address in Malta and updated it when I bought my own apartment. O did not have any trouble with this. Sorting out a Maltese account was a nightmare, but got there in the end.

No problems at all with my uk Santander current account. I notified them of my new address in Malta and get a paper statement from them each month. A little tip for a savings account is to open one with NSI. National savings & investments. Ok the interest is not brilliant, .75% at the moment, it was 1.40% a year ago, but has been slashed by brexit. But uk interest rates will rise over the next year or two, so I would expect the NSI rate to rise accordingly. I manage both accounts online, but also opt for monthly paper statements. Did you know you can also open a current /savings account with maltapost here. You will need your eresidence card, passport, and proof of address.

I forgot to mention you are also issued with a debit card with the maltapost account, it is a minimum 50e to open, but I found it a hell of a lot less hassle than going through the mainstream banks here. Good luck

I originally tried banif but that was before the e-residency card. Tried Lombard who wrote to my UK bank for a reference and that was the last I heard of that. Postapay is via Lombard Bank and the card is issued by them. I have one but it's only a workaround to get us by. It's not a proper account. HSBC were not much help and asked us to get our bank to send them a reference, I'm still waiting on that. BOV were much the same.
I will get there in the end.....

Just an update to this thread.
I tried Banif and all seemed well until they wanted me to deposit a months living expenses up front which I don't have spare.
Back to the drawing board it seems.
This came a day after I told my UK bank not to send a reference to HSBC. I now need to write to ask them to send one.. groan.. another 2 weeks gone...

RayAucote wrote:

Just an update to this thread.
I tried Banif and all seemed well until they wanted me to deposit a months living expenses up front which I don't have spare.
Back to the drawing board it seems.
This came a day after I told my UK bank not to send a reference to HSBC. I now need to write to ask them to send one.. groan.. another 2 weeks gone...

They must have changed their rules as we only had to deposit €100 and we were able to withdraw it straight away and we never had our residence card, we were lucky.

They want €500 now and an e-residence card. They didn't say how soon I could access the account which is a big no no for me.

In relation to Lombard Bank, RayAucote, I had the exact same experience regarding the bank reference from one's 'home country', in my case Ireland where I have been living in recent years. The actual reference is a list of 3 or 4 questions sent to the bank at home with a request to tick boxes to answer the questions. Lombard sent this request to my bank in Dublin on 4th November last year and after a month of hearing nothing from Lombard, I went to the branch in Sliema to make sure it had sent it to the correct address. They had, it turned out, and I was told that I just had to wait. But I called my bank in Dublin and it told me it had NOT received the letter from Lombard! I went back to Lombard and told them this, and they sent a new request to my bank in Dublin. Another month passed.....and my bank in Dublin called me to say it had received the two requests TOGETHER (not sure we can trust Malta Post). Long story short, my bank in Dublin despatched the reference to Lombard, and things started moving. Happy to report that I was eventually able to open my Lombard account, but as others have indicated, it is an ordeal. That's because of the anti-money laundering regulations in place that require banks to do all they can to ensure that our money is legit. The morale of the story is......call your bank at home to ask if it received the reference request from Lombard and, if not, get Lombard to send it again. Best of luck.

#Thomas G D.
I am not sure if my bank would provide a reference from a 3rd party which may explain why no response. With regard to HSBC I did get a call from my bank to confirm my request which at the time I rejected because of the Banif situation.
Having been on HSBC website it seems they do not require a bank reference if I have E-residency and lease agreement.
It seems that it depends on the branch you visit and who you see on the day and whether their spouse/partner sent them out in for the day in a good mood...  
I'm going to try HSBC Sliema next week as that is the only branch that it can be done from anyway, armed with a printout of the website stating their requirements.
Re. money laundering, it's no different for any other bank in the EU and they don't seem to have a problem, particularly in the UK. Transferwise,  Revolut and even Paypal seem to be able to verify in less that 24 hours.
Anyway, we'll see how I get on after my 2 hour + journey to Sliema.
I will not be a happy bunny if I meet obstruction at the bank.

Ray

1) Under the circumstances, I suggest you contact the national competent regulatory authority, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) which states:

Excerpt: ‘…….Part 4 – Access to payment accounts

A. Payment accounts with basic features

Under PAD [Payment Accounts Directive], consumers legally resident in the EU have a right to open and use a payment account with basic features. This right applies irrespective of the consumer’s place of residence.

An application for a payment account with basic features should be processed without undue delay, and the account should be opened or refused within 10 working days at the latest after receiving a complete application……’

Source:

file:///C:/Users/Win%208.1/AppData/Local/Packages/Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe/TempState/Downloads/Consultation%20-%20PAD%20transposition%20March%202016.pdf

2) The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) contact form:

https://www.mfsa.com.mt/pages/contact.aspx

3) In addition, please see:

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … 30#3620586

I opened  a bov account with  my.uk passport,reference  letter  from Barclays  (£10 for a few words) & my Malta address  plus uk bank statements,  had to notify  bov when  I got my residence  card. & had no problems.

Fionn wrote:

1) Under the circumstances, I suggest you contact the national competent regulatory authority, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) which states:

Excerpt: ‘…….Part 4 – Access to payment accounts

A. Payment accounts with basic features

Under PAD [Payment Accounts Directive], consumers legally resident in the EU have a right to open and use a payment account with basic features. This right applies irrespective of the consumer’s place of residence.

An application for a payment account with basic features should be processed without undue delay, and the account should be opened or refused within 10 working days at the latest after receiving a complete application……’

Source:

file:///C:/Users/Win%208.1/AppData/Local/Packages/Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe/TempState/Downloads/Consultation%20-%20PAD%20transposition%20March%202016.pdf

2) The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) contact form:

https://www.mfsa.com.mt/pages/contact.aspx

3) In addition, please see:

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … 30#3620586

I doubt I have enough years left to get a result...

DerekRP wrote:

I opened  a bov account with  my.uk passport,reference  letter  from Barclays  (£10 for a few words) & my Malta address  plus uk bank statements,  had to notify  bov when  I got my residence  card. & had no problems.

I have everything needed, and more except....a bank reference. I cannot get one sent to me, it has to be to a bank and I must write to my branch in the UK to get it.
I think I will use the online appointment system at HSBC which means they will call me and I can verify what they want, they don't ask for a reference on the website but I suspect they will when I get there.
NatWest want £15 for a reference.
Ray

Having visited HSBC in Sliema today I can only say what an absolute disgrace.
What a bunch of amateurs,  no idea of what customer service is. Banif branch in Victoria is not much better.
I wasted 6 hours today just travelling to Sliema and back, good job it only cost us €2.
Made sure I would be able to see someone by using the online appointment system but got a reply email telling me to just go into the High St branch before noon.
This I did armed with a folder full of paperwork.
I finally get to the correct place in the bank, poorly signed, only to find out that I can have an appointment at the end of AUGUST, I was so shocked I didn't ask what year....
Then when I told them I had travelled for nearly 3 hours to be told this they  said why not go to Victoria branch.... I went there first and was told it had to through Sliema...
Grrrrrrrrrrrr.
On the + side, if there is one, they don't require bank reference anymore. They have asked someone at Victoria to contact me by phone to sort it out.
I'm not optimistic.

Ray

DerekRP wrote:

I opened  a bov account with  my.uk passport,reference  letter  from Barclays  (£10 for a few words) & my Malta address  plus uk bank statements,  had to notify  bov when  I got my residence  card. & had no problems.

Hi Derek,

Out of interest, what sort of initial deposit did BOV require?

Ray

Hi Ray, the reason I decided  on bov was that hsbc wanted  me also to go to their main branch, bov didn't.cant remember the exact  amount  I opened  my account  with think it was around  5k euros  good  luck

DerekRP wrote:

Hi Ray, the reason I decided  on bov was that hsbc wanted  me also to go to their main branch, bov didn't.cant remember the exact  amount  I opened  my account  with think it was around  5k euros  good  luck

Thanks Derek,
I think that rules out BOV if that's what they demand.  Just as well you didn't go to Sliema to book an appointment from between 1 to 3 months waiting time. Actually, Sliema told me it can be done in Victoria,  shame they didn't tell Victoria branch about this. 
Banif wanted 500.
Maltaposts  Postapay want 50 single or 100 joint.

Thanks for the info.

Ray

When we opened ours with Banif they only required €100 but we were able to access that from the very next day and could actually withdraw it again.
Perhaps you could check on whether the same still applies with the €500 they are now asking for. If so you might be able to time it so that you do a direct transfer into the new account to start it whenever in the month you normally transfer your money and then withdraw it more or less straight away.
There is no need to wait for your debit card, you can withdraw over the counter as they only use your eResidence/ID  card.
Would agree that Banif (Victoria) are not the most helpful of people, but they don't seem any worse than the others.

Ray

hi Ray

When we opened our account with BOV ( it was 5yrs ago) then did not ask for a deposit there where happy once we told then uk state pension was going in also was out local branch. We do xfer some extra from uk each year to cover living expenses we get charged 4€ for this but we got 18€ in interest! It is a savings account rather that current (the advisor said this was better for us as get more interest ) but we have a debit card so just take money out of atm as and when. So if you have not already gone to BOV may be worth it.

Hi Derek
Going back to original post, having uk bank account. Have a Halifax current and savings account , no problems when we have moved, lived in Spain before here just gave them new address. We did close another  account before we left, then tried to open another with that bank but could not as no longer lived in UK. So I think if you have already closed UK bank account may have a problem, but as far as I'm aware if you have an open account should be ok but will not be able to change it to a better/differ account if you want to. Hope that helps.

Fusspot wrote:

hi Ray

When we opened our account with BOV ( it was 5yrs ago) then did not ask for a deposit there where happy once we told then uk state pension was going in also was out local branch. We do xfer some extra from uk each year to cover living expenses we get charged 4€ for this but we got 18€ in interest! It is a savings account rather that current (the advisor said this was better for us as get more interest ) but we have a debit card so just take money out of atm as and when. So if you have not already gone to BOV may be worth it.

That's ok but we have been with Banif four years and no major problems. When we first moved here BOV seemed to want to put every possible obstacle in our way, so if they didn't want us then, we don't want them now!
We don't have our pensions paid direct into the bank here, as that means we are locked in to the rate Citibank, who unless it has changed are used by UK pensions office, give UK pensioner's transfers, and I doubt they are the best. Plus you lose control of when it arrives.

Ray

Hi Ray (foxglove) I was replying to RayAucote as he mention deposit with Derek.
Re pension, one xferred in July was at 1.13€ per £1 which in the current climate is quite good! and it always in bank on the first Thursday of month, also we don't pay any charges at bank for this, so it suits us. The yearly xfer we do check out a couple of place for the best rate.

Lowest we have ever had was €1.128 on Wednesday this week but just checked and it is down to €1.115 today! (Net of charges)

As far as having it paid direct to our Malta account, We were advised by the UK pensions office that whilst they send the payments to Citibank on the due date it can be up to three days for it to reach our account so we did not bother. Get more or less the same rate or better and it is down to us when we transfer it so we can sometimes wait and get a better rate.

Ray

www.xe.com/ucc for the exchange rate

SimCityAT wrote:

www.xe.com/ucc for the exchange rate

1 GBP =1.11529EUR    British Pound1 GBP = 1.11529 EUR
↔
Euro1 EUR = 0.896624 GBP
2017-07-28 14:16 UTCAll figures are based on live mid-market rates. These rates are not available to consumer clients.

The above is from your link and as it says, not available to consumers.

This afternoon, Transferwise and others have that as the actual rate available to all!

Ray

I did a transferwise first thing today and it should be in my Maltapost account today but I allow another 24 hours before I use the card.  That cost me £2.49 in total for £500.  We, like Ray, like to choose when to transfer so our pensions will always go to our UK bank.
The deposit asked for at Banif of €500 was last week, but that may be different this week......
No Maltese bank would survive  in the UK and there is a definite market for a UK run bank in Malta.
Ray

Will Brexit make things even more difficult?

jimsims wrote:

Will Brexit make things even more difficult?

Over a year since the last post and I do not think anyone is any wiser.

I know people that still have a UK account and live all over the world.

Of there is no deal yes. The governments no deal planning documents that were released last week covered this and state we might be cut off from our accounts and funds.

But as no one knows what will actually happen no one can answer this question

There are UK banks who specialise in being international else new style online only banks also cover many countries etc.

In practise it’s not a problem though UK presss often mention people who had their accounts closed for being foreign.

We have 3 UK accounts and 3 elsewhere. As for Brexit, how long is a piece of string? and it's not difficult.