South African bank accounts frozen?!

[Tina and Johan 206]

My husband got a call from his sister this morning, and she told him that on December 6th, his South African banking accounts were frozen by the government, presumably because he lives overseas. Has anyone experienced this? The only way for him to fix it, of course, is to physically go to that bank and fix it, but we have no plans to do that for several months. Any advice would be appreciated.

[DerekYolande82 4]

Oh crapsticks !!! Now I'm worried! How long after he's been there with you did they do that ? Wonder if it would make a difference if I go confirm my address just before I leave at the bank ? Or give A family member signing rights might help I hope! REALy a topic that bothers me. Was his account still active?

[Tina and Johan 206]

here's what we know since I wrote this post... FICA was checking to see that everything was current with his account after his mom (who has signing rights) had her wallet stolen with his debit card in it. Once she reported it stolen, he was unable to access it from the USA since you need the card to access; they said that he had to come in and reorder the card and unfreeze the account. Then, they sent him a letter in the mail, but with the strike, of course it never was delivered. He called the bank a couple weeks ago and they told him they require a certified copy of his ID from him and proof of residence plus her original ID from his mom to straighten things out. We had his stuff notarized here and mailed it out, plus emailed it to his mom so she could take it to the bank. We don't yet have an update on anything since. We do speculate though, that it may have been a random audit, so we're not all that sure why his account froze in the first place. It may have had zero to do with his mom's purse being stolen, and just them trying to update his records.

His suggestion: before you leave SA definitely give a family member signing rights for emergency access to your stuff. Also, go into the bank and tell them that you're relocating to the USA and give that address if you know it. They may require a bill or something with your name on it as proof, but you can arrange to send that after the fact. IF he hadn't given his mother signing rights, he'd have had to either go to the embassy and get his ID verified there or travel back to SA to do it all. Also, moving money back and forth between the USA and SA is a pain in the butt. Transferring options are limited. I'd recommend joining a facebook group called "South Africans in the United States" for tips on how to acclimate from Saffas who're already here. They can answer a LOT more questions about relocating and the business end of all that much better than I can since I'm the American.

I didn't mean to freak you out, although "oh crapsticks" was worth it to me! I literally LOL'd! Since you're still there, you shouldn't have near the issue that Johan is having. He actually left SA back in 2000 and immigrated here from Ireland. His banking is a tangled international web. I, on the other hand, keep it pretty simple. Good luck with your process! I see you're waiting for your NOA2. I hope it comes quickly.

[DerekYolande82 4]

? whooooo yAaay! Ok I'm relieved lol thx for the advise. Definitely going to look up the facebook page. Pure torture waiting for the noa2. To be honest we didn't think it would take this long other wise we'd have started earlier or me and the kids would've visited atleast once more before starting the process. Buttttt atleast we are thus far! Can only keep our fingers crossed all goes well!