OPENING A BANK ACCOUNT

Opening a UK bank acount in South Africa before I left was probably the best thing that I ever did when it comes to my family's move to England. My tip to all South African's leaving for the UK would be to do the same. In case these comments are perceived as Financial Advice - they are not, they are simply my opinion on a matter that really helped me.


It wasn't even my idea, so I'm not claiming to be a genius. My relationship manager at ABSA Private Bank almost forced me to and I'm glad she did.


Why am I so glad? Firstly, I had a target account to move my SA money to before I left. Secondly, I didn't have to go through all the stress of proving residential address, identification and income when I arrived in England.  Lastly, it meant that I could operate seamlessly from a financial perspective immediately on arrival.


My ATM card worked in all the cash machines and at all the EFTPOS machines at the checkouts at all stores. I also had a credit card to use in a country where I had no credit history. When I needed to pay for anything on-line or over the phone I did so with no problem whatsoever.

The alternative to the above is obviously opening a bank account once you have arrived in the UK.  To do this you will have to prove who you are and where you live and more than likely that you are earning a monthly income.

This means a passport - no problem.  Proof of address is a little more tricky as you will need a utility bill or a lease agreement.  For these it means you've found a place to live, signed the agreements and have already had the utilities switched into your name.  This can take some time - all time in which you will not be able to have a bank account.

Three months salary slips is self explanatory - you may have to wait three months once you've found a job before the banks will open an account for you.

I can't stress then how much easier things will be if you somehow get your account opened before you make the journey to the UK.

PROOF OF IDENTITY

As a South African, in South Africa, this was always an easy concept. We all had our green ID books and, if ever asked, this was sufficient proof of who we were. More recently, with the repercussions of international terrorsim and some people living off the proceeds of illegal activites an additional requirement has been set that we also needed to prove where we lived. Again this was easy - as we all lived somewhere and had the relevant utility bills addressed to us at our residential addresses.


When you arrive in England for the first time to settle you need to remember that you basically do not exist, except for some record kept somewhere that the relevant visa was issued to you. You definitely won't have an English ID book or card - they don't use them - yet. And there is much political debate as to whether they ever will. You more than likely will not have a fixed residential address and neither will you have any utility bills being posted to you at the address that you don't yet have.


Why is proof of identity so important you may ask? Well the number one most critical reason is so that you can open bank accounts. Without a bank account it is very difficult to operate, as you could imagine. My recommendation would be to open a UK bank account before you leave South Africa. Once you arrive in the UK you can then update your details with the bank to reflect your new address. More on this in a later post.


But getting back to identity. The basic idea is that you need to start building a track record again so that various credit agencies and banks can check on your "new history".


The first thing you need is an address, and obviously this comes with having a place to live. By and large I think most people will start their lives in the UK renting a home. To do this you will have to sign a short term tenancy (rental) agreement and this then will provide you with proof of address.


Now, once you are in your "new"home you will need to apply for an electricity, gas and water account. This is easily done contacting your preferred supplier and registering with them. Once connected you should start to receive correspondence from them. So now you have a utility bill adressed to you at your new home address. Amazingly this can now be used as a form of identity!


The next important step in the ID process is to register yourself on the voters roll. This can be done very easily by contacting the local county council office or the local offices of one of the political parties. I found them to be very obliging and all the necessary forms were received in the mail within a day or two.


Having a form of photo ID other than your passport is also quite handy. The most common of these is the British driving license. Fortunately for South Africans the process to obtain a British license is relatively simple. You need to find the closest Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) Offices and get yourself there with a couple of passport photos, your South Afrcan driving license and passport as well as about £90. There are a couple of forms to fill in and you will need to hand in your South African driving license and passport. I must admit, coming from South Africa, I was a bit nervous about leaving my passport there. But true to the DVLA's word the passport arrived back in the mail about 10 days later. This was closely followed by the card drivers license with a photo on it.


All in all the process is not difficult but it does take a bit of time.