Opening a bank account

[maplestar 2]

OK, folks. Things didn't go according to plan...which means I'm in waters I hadn't prepared for.

I came down for my post-Christmas visit to my fiancee. (I'm a church organist, so being away from Canada on Christmas Eve just wasn't an option!) When I got here, I saw that her health condition was bothering her far more than I'd realized (the difference between hearing "I'm having a rough morning" and seeing with my own eyes what that meant to her...as well as her not wanting me to worry when I was so far away).

So plans changed rapidly. And about two weeks ago, we got married here in the US and I won't be returning to Canada. (Which meant I had the "fun" of resigning from my job via e-mail and not getting proper goodbyes and not even having my laptop with me until my parents came down for the wedding; this weekend, it was calling the landlord to let him know I was giving up my apartment in Canada, now that my mother's had a chance to clean it up)...

ANYWAY...that's more of a diversion from my real question:

My wife (I still get a nice shiver from using that phrase) called to find out what she needed to do to add me to her bank accounts. Her financial institution told her I needed to file a W-8BEN, but I'm not sure about doing that given that my address would be within the US...etc. And the ITIN forms seem to want me to file a tax return, but since we were just married in January, I don't need to do THAT yet.

So I'm getting confused here.

Is there any good way to get a bank account before we file the I-130/AOS paperwork? Or am I waiting for my EAD and my SSN? I find this no-man's-land time a little stressful when I think about it.

[JillA 2]

I couldn't be added to my husband's bank account without an SSN#. Most banks you need one, but a few people have been able to open one without. There are some threads on here about that, if you do a search or two.

[thetreble 19]

I got a banker friend to open up an account for me without an SSN but it seems you have a 50-50 chance of that happening.

I don't see why you couldn't be on her accounts if you can provide them with proof of marriage but maybe some banks do require you to have some sort of status here. Right now, you don't have any.

[BradnKim 0]

I bank at Wells Fargo and I took my husband in to add him to my account and they had no problem with it. I brought our marriage certificate with us just in case, but I don't recall them even caring about that. They took down his info from his Alberta, Canadian driver's license and that was it. He got an ATM card in the mail a few days later. I'm not sure what the policy is with other banks though. Might be a good reason to switch banks?

Hope this helps.

OK, folks. Things didn't go according to plan...which means I'm in waters I hadn't prepared for.

I came down for my post-Christmas visit to my fiancee. (I'm a church organist, so being away from Canada on Christmas Eve just wasn't an option!) When I got here, I saw that her health condition was bothering her far more than I'd realized (the difference between hearing "I'm having a rough morning" and seeing with my own eyes what that meant to her...as well as her not wanting me to worry when I was so far away).

So plans changed rapidly. And about two weeks ago, we got married here in the US and I won't be returning to Canada. (Which meant I had the "fun" of resigning from my job via e-mail and not getting proper goodbyes and not even having my laptop with me until my parents came down for the wedding; this weekend, it was calling the landlord to let him know I was giving up my apartment in Canada, now that my mother's had a chance to clean it up)...

ANYWAY...that's more of a diversion from my real question:

My wife (I still get a nice shiver from using that phrase) called to find out what she needed to do to add me to her bank accounts. Her financial institution told her I needed to file a W-8BEN, but I'm not sure about doing that given that my address would be within the US...etc. And the ITIN forms seem to want me to file a tax return, but since we were just married in January, I don't need to do THAT yet.

So I'm getting confused here.

Is there any good way to get a bank account before we file the I-130/AOS paperwork? Or am I waiting for my EAD and my SSN? I find this no-man's-land time a little stressful when I think about it.

[antda 13]

Hi Maplestar,

Congratulations on your recent marriage/wedding. What a great unplanned surprise, indeed! May you and your spouse enjoy the rest of your married lives happily together in the USA! I hope too, that your wife's health situation improves, and that she will get the care she needs from you being there with her.

Now, in answer to your questions: I hate to say this, but more likely than not, the banks here in the USA won't let you have a bank account and/or be added onto a bank account unless you have a SSN. It's kind of like an "unwritten rule" here, that "everything requires a SSN" (as you will soon realize too), and without it, one's basically "nobody" here, according to "Uncle Sam". Likewise, I was in a similar situation years ago, whereby I just came over to visit my boyfriend (now husband), got married, filed the AOS, only had 1-2 weeks of belongings, and didn't get a chance to say goodbye...I also was in that situation too, whereby I couldn't be added to my husband's bank account nor could I get my US driver's license, until I had a SSN, which I had to wait until after I got my green card, and then had to wait an extra 1-2 months because of a delay there with the SSN folks (see my VJ timeline for more information). Before I got my SSN, I showed the bank all the valid identification that I had at that time (Canadian Passport, Canadian Citizenship Card, Canadian Driver's License, US Marriage Certificate, US Green Card, etc.) and they still said no...I had to have that damn SSN number...grrr! So I just "waited it out" for many months, while we had to figure out a way on how to pay all the household and extra immigration expenses (lol..not cheap there). In the meantime, I had money still stuck in some bank in Canada, which I couldn't even directly access and/or close that account, as I couldn't go back to Canada while my AOS case was pending (I didn't bother applying for AP). So I just took a little bit of my Canadian money out at a time through the ATM machine here in the USA (and being charged service fees and exchange fees while at it). After several months later, when I finally got my green card and SSN, I was finally added to our joint bank account, and got my US driver's license. As well, many months later, over several trips I did go back to Canada to pick up the rest of my belongings and to finally close that Canadian bank account. Lol...I was finally glad to see that money here in the USA, and to be added to our joint US bank account, after such a long time!

Meanwhile, don't let the stress of the immigration process get the better of you now, as it will be a long journey ahead, and this is just the beginning of more stressful things to come. Rather, you should be focusing on married life, and enjoying the time you and your wife have happily together.

Hope this helps. Good luck too, with the rest of your immigration journey!

Ant (Still waiting at the VSC for the I-751, Still waiting for Baby...)

P.S. If you're filing for the AOS, remember to file the following paperwork: I-485 Adjustment of Status Forms, I-130 Petition for Family Member Forms, I-693 Medical Forms, I-864 Sponsor Forms, Employment Authorization Forms (optional), Advance Parole Forms (optional), etc.

OK, folks. Things didn't go according to plan...which means I'm in waters I hadn't prepared for.

I came down for my post-Christmas visit to my fiancee. (I'm a church organist, so being away from Canada on Christmas Eve just wasn't an option!) When I got here, I saw that her health condition was bothering her far more than I'd realized (the difference between hearing "I'm having a rough morning" and seeing with my own eyes what that meant to her...as well as her not wanting me to worry when I was so far away).

So plans changed rapidly. And about two weeks ago, we got married here in the US and I won't be returning to Canada. (Which meant I had the "fun" of resigning from my job via e-mail and not getting proper goodbyes and not even having my laptop with me until my parents came down for the wedding; this weekend, it was calling the landlord to let him know I was giving up my apartment in Canada, now that my mother's had a chance to clean it up)...

ANYWAY...that's more of a diversion from my real question:

My wife (I still get a nice shiver from using that phrase) called to find out what she needed to do to add me to her bank accounts. Her financial institution told her I needed to file a W-8BEN, but I'm not sure about doing that given that my address would be within the US...etc. And the ITIN forms seem to want me to file a tax return, but since we were just married in January, I don't need to do THAT yet.

So I'm getting confused here.

Is there any good way to get a bank account before we file the I-130/AOS paperwork? Or am I waiting for my EAD and my SSN? I find this no-man's-land time a little stressful when I think about it.

Edited February 2, 2009 by AntandD

[Dakine 26]

OK, folks. Things didn't go according to plan...which means I'm in waters I hadn't prepared for.

I came down for my post-Christmas visit to my fiancee. (I'm a church organist, so being away from Canada on Christmas Eve just wasn't an option!) When I got here, I saw that her health condition was bothering her far more than I'd realized (the difference between hearing "I'm having a rough morning" and seeing with my own eyes what that meant to her...as well as her not wanting me to worry when I was so far away).

So plans changed rapidly. And about two weeks ago, we got married here in the US and I won't be returning to Canada. (Which meant I had the "fun" of resigning from my job via e-mail and not getting proper goodbyes and not even having my laptop with me until my parents came down for the wedding; this weekend, it was calling the landlord to let him know I was giving up my apartment in Canada, now that my mother's had a chance to clean it up)...

ANYWAY...that's more of a diversion from my real question:

My wife (I still get a nice shiver from using that phrase) called to find out what she needed to do to add me to her bank accounts. Her financial institution told her I needed to file a W-8BEN, but I'm not sure about doing that given that my address would be within the US...etc. And the ITIN forms seem to want me to file a tax return, but since we were just married in January, I don't need to do THAT yet.

So I'm getting confused here.

Is there any good way to get a bank account before we file the I-130/AOS paperwork? Or am I waiting for my EAD and my SSN? I find this no-man's-land time a little stressful when I think about it.

I got my my a ITF [in Trust for] savings account while she was still in the Philippines. No need a SSN or even her signature. They give a ATM card. Good for evidence of marriage. You/she may have to shop around to find a bank that has ITFs.

[Krikit 1,164]

SunTrust just added me on to my husband's account using his SSN and my passport ID. Once I received my own SSN I just took it down to them and they added it.

And I agree..... the no-man's-land is highly frustrating and stressful. Hang in there. You'll get through it.

[maplestar 2]

Thanks for all the great comments...

I have to admit, the worst part of this is the lack of preparation...I knew exactly what I needed for the K-1 and figured I had plenty more months to get everything lined up for the AOS paperwork. Surprise!

But it's very comforting to hear the "I've been there"s. I'm pretty sure I'll be find once we get the paperwork filed...but right now, I almost feel afraid in a weird way. I mean, I went to Walmart today, because I felt too weird to go with her to the Social Security office to change her name. But those "don't feel right" moments are few and far between, so that's good.

[croat 0]

I opened up a banking account with Key bank without any problems, even when I was still living in Canada.

I just went to the Key bank in Maine and told them I will be moving to the USA soon, and they let me open an account with them.

Got my driver's licence without having the SSN first.

Got my SSN 2 weeks after I arrived to the USA (Ohio).

So far, so good in Ohio.

[CDAgirlMI 51]

I opened up a banking account with Key bank without any problems, even when I was still living in Canada.

I just went to the Key bank in Maine and told them I will be moving to the USA soon, and they let me open an account with them.

Got my driver's licence without having the SSN first.

Got my SSN 2 weeks after I arrived to the USA (Ohio).

So far, so good in Ohio.

Huh...I went to Key bank & they wouldn't let me because I wasn't a US citizen.

I opened an account with Bank of America without any problems. I have no idea about a joint account if the spouse belongs to another banking institution.

[Udella&Wiz 325]

Sigh - as we all know one person can do something no questions asked, another has multiple obstacles. I had no real trubles getting the SSN or being added to my husband's bank accounts as full joint owner.

My obstacle came more recently when we wanted to apply for our mortgage back in the fall - I/ you have NO AMERICAN credit so they had to exclude my name from the mortgage and deed or else I just made it worse for the rate we'd get. You can look around for all the posts on VJ that deal with this subject as there are plenty. I could have gotten a credit card co-signed by my husband but I found that fairly demeaning since I have had my own cards and credit history since university)18 yrs) . I've maintained my Cdn credit card at TD just so I have something and I've been lazy about apply for a secured Credit card here- gawd knows with the US economy and banks being what they are, Bank of America may not even offer them anymore.

I have a state id card now so i'm going to apply for a Targét card and see how it goes - I went to apply for the Targét card a few months back and found I needed that state id (or valid drivers - but I don't drive)

Cheers and hope all goes well

[trailmix 77]

Sigh - as we all know one person can do something no questions asked, another has multiple obstacles. I had no real trubles getting the SSN or being added to my husband's bank accounts as full joint owner.

My obstacle came more recently when we wanted to apply for our mortgage back in the fall - I/ you have NO AMERICAN credit so they had to exclude my name from the mortgage and deed or else I just made it worse for the rate we'd get. You can look around for all the posts on VJ that deal with this subject as there are plenty. I could have gotten a credit card co-signed by my husband but I found that fairly demeaning since I have had my own cards and credit history since university)18 yrs) . I've maintained my Cdn credit card at TD just so I have something and I've been lazy about apply for a secured Credit card here- gawd knows with the US economy and banks being what they are, Bank of America may not even offer them anymore.

I have a state id card now so i'm going to apply for a Targét card and see how it goes - I went to apply for the Targét card a few months back and found I needed that state id (or valid drivers - but I don't drive)

Cheers and hope all goes well

Sorry to hear about the hassles you have had with the mortgage and credit thing.

I was talking to the TD Bank - U.S. a few weeks ago and he mentioned that they consider something like 10 months of credit to be a good indicator.

Anyway, I only mention this as if you have an American Express card in Canada, you can use global transfer to get a U.S. card and immediately start building up your credit rating. Plus I think JCPenney will give anyone a credit card

Edited February 4, 2009 by trailmix

[thetreble 19]

Boy oh Boy...it can be tough when you are new to a country and you need something but have no credit history where you have moved to.

It took me 2 months to get my mortgage information verified by the mortgage company. As some of you know, they wanted insane amounts of information to prove that I'm good with money and I have a credible work history. There were days where I wanted to seriously pull my hair out because no one seemed to want to believe that I was a credible person.

I know how hard it can be.