US Trading from UK - advice please

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stutch

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US Trading from UK - advise please

Please can anyone advise me about the best process to use to trade US Options from the UK.
I was thinking about using OptionsXpress, is there any advantage to using a US bank account ?

Is a US bank account easy to open from the UK.

Are there any tax implications in the US - are the IRS interested ?

Any setup other advice would be welcome.
TIA
 
IRS are not interested... when you open any kind of investment account you will have to fill out a W-8 tax witholding form stating you are not elegible to pay US tax.

US bank account - extremely difficult to open! You have to be there in person, be resident and many other things... I would love a US account and have tried several times, including when I visited chicago - loaded with ID but no such luck. they have tightened up on non-resident accounts in the crackdown on money laundering and terrorist financing.

I trade US futures with a US broker, and just move money across the pond by wire transfer. You can get a $$ denominated account with most uk banks if you ask for one, but i have not found any advantage in doing this.
 
I use IB to trade US optrions. This is from a GBP a/c. You donot have to open a US a/c.
 
So, aside from the comission of IB do they deduct the necessary tax from you as well? If so how much?
 
no, you dont have to pay any US taxes, thats what the W8 form is for. they send you all your cash and you have to pay UK capital gains tax or whatever your accountant manages to wangle for you when your tax return is due in april.
 
In theory, under the new banking regulations (post 9/11 etc.) it's perfectly possible for a UK citizen to open a US bank account. In practice, however, no US bank will let you do so without detailed documentary evidence of your residing lawfully in the US! This is always the "bank's own policy", i.e. _not_ part of the new banking regulations at all, but this doesn't help you, so to all intents and purposes it's close to impossible.
 
Roberto said:
In theory, under the new banking regulations (post 9/11 etc.) it's perfectly possible for a UK citizen to open a US bank account. In practice, however, no US bank will let you do so without detailed documentary evidence of your residing lawfully in the US! This is always the "bank's own policy", i.e. _not_ part of the new banking regulations at all, but this doesn't help you, so to all intents and purposes it's close to impossible.
Click to expand...

Not the case in my experience.

The bank will need a copy of your passport and some household bills, and you'll need to wire some $$ but I managed it via post and email with no problem.
 
really? may I ask which bank, and if you could PM me a phone # for them I'd be very grateful. Would be very handy for me to have a US account
 
MartinD said:
really? may I ask which bank, and if you could PM me a phone # for them I'd be very grateful. Would be very handy for me to have a US account
Click to expand...

You have PM :)
 
hi
I couldn't find a better thread to ask this question:
How can i open a bank account in the UK? I'm from a newly joined EU country, have no permanent address in UK. I'm trading at betting firms and would like to move money via a UK acc.

And one more question:
If I would like to have a cheque (issued by a betting shop) without a hologram cleared how much time and cost would it take.
thanks in advance
would appreciate any comments
 
sanyesz said:
hi
I couldn't find a better thread to ask this question:
How can i open a bank account in the UK? I'm from a newly joined EU country, have no permanent address in UK. I'm trading at betting firms and would like to move money via a UK acc.

And one more question:
If I would like to have a cheque (issued by a betting shop) without a hologram cleared how much time and cost would it take.
thanks in advance
would appreciate any comments
Click to expand...

Search out UK banks on the web and compare any deals they offer, as service charges may differ. Here's one to get you started and give you some idea, but above all shop around.

http://www.wealth.barclays.com/BRC1...articlewealth&value=125&target=_self&site=int
 
sanyesz said:
How can i open a bank account in the UK? I'm from a newly joined EU country, have no permanent address in UK. I'm trading at betting firms and would like to move money via a UK acc.
Click to expand...
You have very little chance of legally opening a major bank account in the UK in your situation.

Money laundering regulations are fiercely applied and without two forms of id confirming your residence and identity you're going to be out of luck.

Trading at betting firms? Not UK based SBs you're not - unless you've slipped through the net.

'Moving money via a UK account' - ah...the scanners will pick this one up alright....
 
TheBramble said:
You have very little chance of legally opening a major bank account in the UK in your situation.
Click to expand...
As long as he has can give a permanent address somewhere he should have little problem, UK banks are quite happy to accept foreign nationals, though you may have to bank at their offshore branches.
 
Thanks for your comments guys
roguetrader: that link is really helpful, got the idea to go to the British Embassy ( for example they would certify a copy of my passport and maybe they can help(?))
TheBramble: Yes I know it's not easy. If I don't succeed now i will try it next year, maybe i will move to UK for some time and I will have all those things needed.
I opened a finspreads acc easily, maybe i had to post them a mail with printed and signed customer agreement i don't remember.
 
To be boring, and go back to the original thread ;-))

eTrade should be able to sort you out !!

Power eTradePro is a good tool IMHO.

Grenville.
 
I recently decided that I wanted to invest in some small cap US stocks for the long term. It seems that upon translating my funds to US$, at the rates offered to me by retail banks, I would lose over 4% of the capital I had set aside for this. This, I find unacceptable. I would appreciate any advice anyone could offer to get a better exchange rate.
 
Last edited:
Open an account with interactive brokers and wire the money into your trading account it's as simple as that, Oh and forget about tax.
 
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