Adding a foreign spouse to a US bank account.

[Ang Oras 13]

This is our story on adding your Philippine wife who is not yet in the US to your existing Bank account.

[Ang Oras 13]

After a long exhausting search for a Bank that would allow us to do this turned up nothing but dead ends I've read on here about others who were successful in doing this prior to 9/11 here's what we did my Philippine wife has not had here interview yet we're still in the process so I looked into adding her to my Wells Fargo account No Luck!!! First they said it was no problem she would just need an ITIN then once we went through all the Red Tape to get that they then said she'd have to be here first to sign the forms but there is hope yet I was never able to get her added to the Wells Fargo account but I was able to to go to Members Credit Union and open an account with her all I needed was a printed copy of her passport, her Unified Multi Purpose ID, a copy of her Birth certificate, and a copy of our Marriage certificate it took just one day and also we were able to start an account with State Farm Bank online they wanted the same required documents + a bill with both names and showing our address to be the same for this I added my wife's name to the Spectrum Internet bill as well as the Duke energy Power bill but I had already added her to these bills 2 months prior so we already had 4 bills to present this works someone at State farm bank on the phone even told me this couldn't happen but someone else walked me right through it on the phone I just needed to mail or bring the documents in they are an online bank but if you give them your zip code they'll tell you where there's an office that can check your documents this works and just to think we almost gave up hope on having an account together to show at the interview please email me and tell me your story .......

Edited July 29, 2018 by Ryan H
Reason for edit: to remove personal email address.

[Mr&Mrs G. 903]

I was able to open a joint bank account with my wife who is a US citizen.

 

We are both resident in Ireland but traveled over earlier in the process to start showing my wife's intent to domicile. We went to a local BB&T explained the situation and they opened the joint account without any problems, all they needed from me was my passport and my wife's information. We lodged some cash into the account and bank cards were issued a few days later, also to help establish credit rating we requested a secured credit card. To do this we opened a second account and lodged the amount we wanted to have on the credit card, we have no access to this deposit and it acts as a security for the credit card. Its an excellent way to establish credit rating and after 9-12 months when you have proven that you can operate a credit card correctly they release the secured funds back to you. For the interview I was able to show the joint bank account and credit card statements.

 

Oddly the only issue we have had is for a $5 dollar bonus that we were entitled to for using their Zelle service. Somehow it counts as income and without a social security number for me on the account they can't give the bonus. 

Edited July 28, 2018 by Mr&Mrs G.

[pushbrk 12,826]

People can have many different reasons for wanting joint bank accounts but for newlyweds who have never lived the US together, there is no expectation to have one that is connected to the immigration process.  While in separate countries, opening a second account and giving the debit card for that account to the foreign spouse can be an easy and convenient way to give the foreign spouse access to money, but services like Xoom.com usually tend to be less expensive alternatives.

 

Mr and Mrs G are in different circumstances, in that the US Citizen didn't have a US bank account either AND they could both go to the bank in person in advance of moving to the US together.  That's apples, (I love apples) but the Filipino spouse living abroad is oranges.

 

Long term, the cheapest and easiest way to transfer money to the Filipino Spouse is to have her open a US Dollar account at a Philippine bank and use Xoom.com or Transferwise to send US dollars directly to their account.  You can send Pesos too but the exchange rate will not be as good as she'll get at the bank.

 

Edited July 28, 2018 by pushbrk

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from Process & Procedures to Progress Reports.

[Ang Oras 13]

What's the difference in her having a US dollar account from me just sending US dollars that is automatically converted to Php?????

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

12 minutes ago, Thomas Reinhardt said:

What's the difference in her having a US dollar account from me just sending US dollars that is automatically converted to Php?????

Alot of times the official exchange rate into Pesos SUCKS. So a dollar account means that you send the money to them and they are able to pick it up in dollars, and then exchange it at a better rate. 

 

BTW where in NC are you at? I am down around Sanford. 

Edited August 20, 2018 by Cyberfx1024

[Ang Oras 13]

I'm in Denver North Carolina 30 minutes north of Charlotte NC .

[D & T 115]

A month ago I was in the US and me and my husband opened a joint bank account together without any issues with Wells Fargo. I just presented my passport and since my husband, the USC, already had his mortgages and retirement planning with the (and myself opened a bank account for myself earlier this year as well) we opened it very smoothly. They gonna ask you the reason for opening it, of course, and you can just say you are in the middle of the immigration process and intent to live there when It's over. We added some money there mainly for my use while I'm here in Brazil and will present the bank statements and papers that we opened this account at the interview.