Strategy to obtain US Amex

[Daventry]

Rejected for CSP. I was told on the phone to wait for letter to find out why.

It’s a shame because already have a personal and a business card.

Hopefully the reason is high credit limit and I can ask them to split it?

 

[desafinado74]

I just opened two bank accounts this week. I did not take copies of those documents, they were happy with me emailing copies while I was in branch. They then printed them out.

I printed out a copy of my ITIN letter and a couple of bank statements while over there, made the process easy when opening accounts. Didn't seem to worry them that it was a copy.

Awesome, thanks guys for the replies.

 

[flyingfan121]

Data point on Chase that might be helpful:

About a month ago, I opened a Chase checking account (in-branch while visiting the US). Approximately a week later, I applied for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, unfortunately missing the 100k offer. Given my limited credit history (my first Global Transfer Amex was only ~4 months old), I wasn't very optimistic.

As expected, I received a rejection letter citing "insufficient information on credit file" and "limited transactions/funding in my Chase account." I decided no harm in calling the reconsideration line, but before that, I transferred approximately $15,000 USD into my Chase checking account.

During the reconsideration call, I acknowledged my limited credit history but explained I had some significant upcoming purchases and was hoping to get approved for the CSP. The agent asked about my income and occupation, placed me on hold, and then informed me I'd receive a decision via email.

Stilll wasn’t hopeful at this stage as in everything I’d read Chase is firm in the 12 months credit history… but Lo and behold, a few hours later, I received an approval email with a $5,000 credit limit. The card arrived about a week after that.

 

[DAC1]

Awesome, thanks guys for the replies.

Another anecdote for you from today - tried to open an account at Chase. Got told I needed the documents to be printed.

He sent me across the road to the library. Printed out my renters insurance policy. He said that wasn’t sufficient, I needed a bank statement at a minimum (which I don’t have yet). So no luck for me at Chase until I have some statements from my other accounts.

 

[desafinado74]

Another anecdote for you from today - tried to open an account at Chase. Got told I needed the documents to be printed.

He sent me across the road to the library. Printed out my renters insurance policy. He said that wasn’t sufficient, I needed a bank statement at a minimum (which I don’t have yet). So no luck for me at Chase until I have some statements from my other accounts.

Damn that sucks. Out of curiosity, which city was this at?

 

[DAC1]

Damn that sucks. Out of curiosity, which city was this at?

Chicago. Bank branches there (particularly those near ORD) are actually good options given there is a very large Polish immigrant community and they’ve had a bit of experience setting up NRA accounts. All three bankers I dealt with this week at BOA, PNC and Chase were Polish themselves.

If anyone wants to open an account in Chicago (specifically, within 15 minutes of ORD), PM me and I’ll provide you with details of the BOA and PNC bankers I dealt with because they were very helpful.

 

[desafinado74]

Chicago. Bank branches there (particularly those near ORD) are actually good options given there is a very large Polish immigrant community and they’ve had a bit of experience setting up NRA accounts. All three bankers I dealt with this week at BOA, PNC and Chase were Polish themselves.

If anyone wants to open an account in Chicago (specifically, within 15 minutes of ORD), PM me and I’ll provide you with details of the BOA and PNC bankers I dealt with because they were very helpful.

Thanks for the helpful reply. At the moment Chicago is not on my itinerary, but will PM you if i change my mind.

Out of curiosity, did you apply for any credit cards while you were at the branch ?
And what made you pick PNC ? It is the first time that i have come across someone who chose to open a PNC bank account.

 

[Daventry]

Called again and the automated system told me they had sent a letter asking for more details. So managed to get through to a customer rep who sent me a secure link to upload passport, itin and bank statement.

Fingers crossed - btw this would be my third Chase card. It’s a bit tiring having to upload everything for every application but I guess there’s no other way unless you have a SSN?

 

[Daventry]

Thanks for the helpful reply. At the moment Chicago is not on my itinerary, but will PM you if i change my mind.

Out of curiosity, did you apply for any credit cards while you were at the branch ?
And what made you pick PNC ? It is the first time that i have come across someone who chose to open a PNC bank account.

Just in case this helps, I opened my Chase and Citi accounts in Miami. I showed a US HSBC statement as proof of address.

 

[DAC1]

Out of curiosity, did you apply for any credit cards while you were at the branch ?
And what made you pick PNC ? It is the first time that i have come across someone who chose to open a PNC bank account.

Didn’t apply for any credit cards yet because (1) I’m still waiting for my ITIN and (2) I did not see much point in wasting a card slot (for 5/24 purposes) on a BOA secured card when I’ll be able to get an Amex through GT in the next month or so.

I picked PNC because I had heard they are very flexible for NRAs (particularly around proof of US address requirements). So far it’s been good, they have already delivered my debit card to my US Global Mail address within 3 days.