Strategy to obtain US Amex

[blacksultan]

Hey all. I am just going to give another update from my end. I have just come back from a 2 month trip abroad and wow how this thread has grown since then. I have finally caught up and see some new faces and a lot of questions. For those who don't know me I have the hilton aspire card and I can say the benefits really stack up (I stayed at hilton properties for the most part, and successfully got suite upgrades from the most basic room type booking about 75% of the time).
I also mainly use the aspire card when booking rooms at the hilton or spending on site for the bonus earn rate on points, and also when purchasing things in the USA.
From the look of things, we are all getting stung by $10-20 fees for just repaying the card via wire/FX. I myself previously used TorFX and that cost $20 per transfer.
So when I arrived in the USA my intention was to open a US bank account whilst I was there, and as blacksultan has mentioned a few times, the Citibank checking account with the free global transfer was the direction I went. Very easy and straightforward, as soon as I land into New York, I go to my hotel in Manhattan, drop off all my luggage and then I walk into the closest Citibank branch. All you need is you passport and another bank card in your name (I already have an aussie Citibank account so I used that card). There's a few different checking account options but I went with the most basic. At first I was a little sceptical that as a non citizen and non resident that they would not open an account for me but the lady who did it was really helpful and she knew what she was doing, not really questioning why I needed a US account. I guess being a Citibank customer already helps?
So once all the paperwork is done she also asks me if I want my debit card mailed to me at my hotel next day delivery. I am thinking sure thing, and she says once I get my card I need to bring it back to her so she can finalise and activate my account.
Once all that is done I now have a US and an Aussie citibank account both with separate online access. Global transfer is a piece of cake. You can either directly send funds from you Aussie account to US and it gets converted for you, or you can convert to USD first and hold them in "citi global currency account" and then send funds as US dollars. Either way I believe the exchange rate is the same, so what I have been doing is convert first and then transferring in USD. Seems to work as the amount I send = the amount received, hence no more fees!!! I also note that the exchange rate is a little bit better than using a FX platform, better than TorFX at least. Already made a bill payment to amex and works like a charm.

What about the fees to hold the US checking account? Well there is a $10 monthly service if but can be avoided by making one qualifying direct deposit OR maintain a $1,500+ combined average monthly balance OR one qualifying bill payment per statement period...... one bill payment..... hmmmmmm

I know this is not an option for some, as this requires you to actually be in the US to open the account, but if you have a trip planned to the US already, I may be well worth it in the end if you intend to use your US amex frequently.

thanks for all the info .We are planning to go to california in May so I suppose we could drop into citibank branch there.
Have you got a SSN/ITIN ? Do you know if you could open a savings account with citi and get them to issue you a letter stating you needed an ITIN? that`s one of the prerequisite for an ITIN application.

 

[DC3]

... a little bit better than using a FX platform, better than TorFX at least ...

Thank you for your update, Spazmos.

I had noticed that it was possible to use TorFX (as others have been doing), so had been planning to do this and had already opened an account. Anyway, I have received a phone call from TorFX to inform me that they are unable to forward money to credit card companies (i.e., the bit that says “For further credit to: .................... “). They just straight-out asked if it was for my credit card, so I was honest with the answer. The reason given for not processing is “Regarding Anti-money laundering provisions ..................... “.

So, a bit of a bummer really. I certainly won’t be visiting the USA for some months to look at opening a bank account.

 

[albyd]

Their system is weird. I already have a long standing account with Citi US and want to open another similar account, and they won't do it unless I'm there in person. I can understand as a new customer but one that's been a customer for a long time ...

 

[PointsLife1]

Thank you for your update, Spazmos.

I had noticed that it was possible to use TorFX (as others have been doing), so had been planning to do this and had already opened an account. Anyway, I have received a phone call from TorFX to inform me that they are unable to forward money to credit card companies (i.e., the bit that says “For further credit to: .................... “). They just straight-out asked if it was for my credit card, so I was honest with the answer. The reason given for not processing is “Regarding Anti-money laundering provisions ..................... “.

So, a bit of a bummer really. I certainly won’t be visiting the USA for some months to look at opening a bank account.

Yes for further credit is the reason TransferWise will not on send. XE also have a warning asking if this is for a credit card when adding to description.

I hope they don’t call soon.

 

[blacksultan]

In less then a week . Actually the additional card was on its way to my friends place as well and I had to call to get it redirected . I thought I would play it safe by getting an additional card before I cancelled my own card and had a new one sent to my oz add .

Post automatically merged: Feb 2, 2020

I applied for the Hilton aspire card . Was informed they can’t give me a response just yet and will get back within 14 day’s . Does anyone know what happens from here ?
My wife got approved for the same card .
How does one obtain the digital number to local onto digital wallets before the card arrives ?

Update : I got a call from US Amex around 3 am seeking income details for my Aspire application.I was not keen to proceed as my wife has been approved for the same.
They asked my income, profession and employer name details before I said I wished to withdraw.
I wonder if I would have been approved considering my add is in US but employment in Oz or If I could have switched to amex bonvoy card.Any thoughts?

 

[DC3]

Update : I got a call from US Amex around 3 am seeking income details for my Aspire application .... They asked my income, profession and employer name details before I said I wished to withdraw

Any thoughts?

I thought that the advice was to wait for six months before applying for another card.

Possibly a red flag now.

 

[PointsLife1]

In less then a week . Actually the additional card was on its way to my friends place as well and I had to call to get it redirected . I thought I would play it safe by getting an additional card before I cancelled my own card and had a new one sent to my oz add .

Post automatically merged: Feb 2, 2020

I applied for the Hilton aspire card . Was informed they can’t give me a response just yet and will get back within 14 day’s . Does anyone know what happens from here ?
My wife got approved for the same card .
How does one obtain the digital number to local onto digital wallets before the card arrives ?

Interesting article about telling credit card companies you have moved overseas and changing address, seems to be some say yes and some others are wary.

Any thoughts?

[/https://thepointsguy.com/guide/moving-abroad-what-to-do-with-credit-cards/

 

[Finale]

Update : I got a call from US Amex around 3 am seeking income details for my Aspire application.I was not keen to proceed as my wife has been approved for the same.
They asked my income, profession and employer name details before I said I wished to withdraw.
I wonder if I would have been approved considering my add is in US but employment in Oz or If I could have switched to amex bonvoy card.Any thoughts?

They asked me that pretty much every time I called to apply. I just told them I was self employed, which was the truth.

I don't think you can switch to Bonvoy without a new app. Normally to do a product change (PC) with Amex, you have to hold the card for a while and the new card has to be from the same family ie hilton to hilton, MR to MR. You also can't do from charge to credit.

 

[Finale]

I thought that the advice was to wait for six months before applying for another card.

Possibly a red flag now.

It is just that Amex doesn't like approving a card with no credit history/score which normally takes about 6 months after the first GT card. I'm not quite sure about the use of nova credit but it should be the same.

You can normally do 2 credit cards with them in 90 days. Charge cards are excluded from this limit I believe.

 

[DC3]

It is just that Amex doesn't like approving a card with no credit history/score which normally takes about 6 months after the first GT card. I'm not quite sure about the use of nova credit but it should be the same.

You can normally do 2 credit cards with them in 90 days. Charge cards are excluded from this limit I believe.

Yes, I wondered about the second card application so soon after obtaining the first and when asked the ‘hard’ questions by Amex, then withdrawing. Most of use wouldn’t know what to do in that situation so thanks for the heads up.

 

[blacksultan]

They asked me that pretty much every time I called to apply. I just told them I was self employed, which was the truth.

I don't think you can switch to Bonvoy without a new app. Normally to do a product change (PC) with Amex, you have to hold the card for a while and the new card has to be from the same family ie hilton to hilton, MR to MR. You also can't do from charge to credit.

Thanks for your response . Did they ask for any proof of income employment ? Was it obvious from your answer that you were not employed in the US ?

 

[blacksultan]

Yes, I wondered about the second card application so soon after obtaining the first and when asked the ‘hard’ questions by Amex, then withdrawing. Most of use wouldn’t know what to do in that situation so thanks for the heads up.

We have a big trip coming up to japan and the US in April &may so the points & benefits would have come in handy .
As I said I withdrew from the aspire as my wife has already been approved for the same and I didn’t see the point in both of us having the same card type .
I wouldn’t mind having the bonvoy but I’m not sure it’s worth it .

Post automatically merged: Feb 4, 2020

They did confirm that no check was done on my credit file until that point .

 

[DC3]

I thought that I would post of my experience in applying for a USA Amex card, as others have done, especially having benefited from the experiences of those AFF members.

I recently applied for the Aspire card, on-line, by GT (using passport number for identity) and approval came through within 10 minutes. The courier used by Amex was UPS, so, tracking was provided. The card arrived at My US within about 48 hours.

Once UPS tracking indicated arrival at MyUS, it took another 48 hours to show up in the MyUS suite, then delivered to Oz from MyUS by FedEx, which I had selected as the courier. The card took 10 days to arrive by FedEx at my Oz address from MyUS.

However, what I did differently was to include “Apt xx_x-xx_“ in both the first and second address boxes (as well as the street address in the first address box) on the Amex application, rather than use “Ste” or by just entering the suite digits in only the second box, in order to try something different. Surprisingly, Amex included the complete address in this case, contrary to the experience reported by others.

There were no issues with Amex not including the information that I provided in the address boxes. I would think that this should not make any difference to the mailing address, but at least it was allocated to my suite at MyUS, straight up. I have included a screenshot, below, of the Amex envelope/address details.

Following card activation, and setting up my communication preferences, I received a security code from Amex, through TextNow, for verification purposes. No phone calls.

Now, the problem that I have is to work out how to pay the card statement balance, when due. My original plan was to pay through TorFX, but when they phoned to ask (after I set up a ‘tester’ payment in order to verify the banking details) if this was a payment to a credit card, that was the end of that. Now to look into the other options, although it will need to be by International Wire transfer, regardless.

 

[blacksultan]

I thought that I would post of my experience in applying for a USA Amex card, as others have done, especially having benefited from the experiences of those AFF members.

I recently applied for the Aspire card, on-line, by GT (using passport number for identity) and approval came through within 10 minutes. The courier used by Amex was UPS, so, tracking was provided. The card arrived at My US within about 48 hours.

Try xe currency like many of us have

Once UPS tracking indicated arrival at MyUS, it took another 48 hours to show up in the MyUS suite, then delivered to Oz from MyUS by FedEx, which I had selected as the courier. The card took 10 days to arrive by FedEx at my Oz address from MyUS.

However, what I did differently was to include “Apt xx_x-xx_“ in both the first and second address boxes (as well as the street address in the first address box) on the Amex application, rather than use “Ste” or by just entering the suite digits in only the second box, in order to try something different. Surprisingly, Amex included the complete address in this case, contrary to the experience reported by others. There were no issues with Amex not including the information that I provided in the address boxes. I would think that this should not make any difference to the mailing address, but at least it was allocated to my suite at MyUS, straight up. I have included a screenshot, below, of the Amex envelope/address details.

Following card activation, and setting up my communication preferences, I received a security code from Amex, through TextNow, for verification purposes. No phone calls.

Now, the problem that I have is to work out how to pay the card statement balance, when due. My original plan was to pay through TorFX, but when they phoned to ask (after I set up a ‘tester’ payment in order to verify the banking details) if this was a payment to a credit card, that was the end of that. Now to look into the other options, although it will need to be by International Wire transfer, regardless.

Post automatically merged: Feb 4, 2020

I wonder if it is possibly to apply under global transfer a second time using a different country to oz . I also have credit cards and documents from another country to Oz that is an option under the nova credit option .

 

[DC3]

I wonder if it is possibly to apply under global transfer a second time using a different country to oz . I also have credit cards and documents from another country to Oz that is an option under the nova credit option .

There’s some chit-chat on FT about GT to other countries, although it will take a bit of sifting to find if there’s anything of much use (mainly USA-centric). May be worth reading while waiting for any AFFer input:

Global Transfer experiences - FlyerTalk Forums

American Express | Membership Rewards - Global Transfer experiences - Originally Posted by roastpuff Doesn't seem possible unless you convert your Canadian MR card into an American MR card, as if you were moving countries. Do you know if the points would transfer 1:1 in such a situation?

www.flyertalk.com

 

[blacksultan]

There’s some chit-chat on FT about GT to other countries, although it will take a bit of sifting to find if there’s anything of much use (mainly USA-centric). May be worth reading while waiting for any AFFer input:

Global Transfer experiences - FlyerTalk Forums

American Express | Membership Rewards - Global Transfer experiences - Originally Posted by roastpuff Doesn't seem possible unless you convert your Canadian MR card into an American MR card, as if you were moving countries. Do you know if the points would transfer 1:1 in such a situation?

www.flyertalk.com

Thanks . If I meant using my profile from another country to apply for another US Amex . Wondering if I would be considered as a different individual if I use different details .

 

[blacksultan]

I thought that I would post of my experience in applying for a USA Amex card, as others have done, especially having benefited from the experiences of those AFF members.

I recently applied for the Aspire card, on-line, by GT (using passport number for identity) and approval came through within 10 minutes. The courier used by Amex was UPS, so, tracking was provided. The card arrived at My US within about 48 hours.
Most of us have been using xe currency and mentioning the statement no instead of the card no .
Once UPS tracking indicated arrival at MyUS, it took another 48 hours to show up in the MyUS suite, then delivered to Oz from MyUS by FedEx, which I had selected as the courier. The card took 10 days to arrive by FedEx at my Oz address from MyUS.

However, what I did differently was to include “Apt xx_x-xx_“ in both the first and second address boxes (as well as the street address in the first address box) on the Amex application, rather than use “Ste” or by just entering the suite digits in only the second box, in order to try something different. Surprisingly, Amex included the complete address in this case, contrary to the experience reported by others.

There were no issues with Amex not including the information that I provided in the address boxes. I would think that this should not make any difference to the mailing address, but at least it was allocated to my suite at MyUS, straight up. I have included a screenshot, below, of the Amex envelope/address details.

Following card activation, and setting up my communication preferences, I received a security code from Amex, through TextNow, for verification purposes. No phone calls.

Now, the problem that I have is to work out how to pay the card statement balance, when due. My original plan was to pay through TorFX, but when they phoned to ask (after I set up a ‘tester’ payment in order to verify the banking details) if this was a payment to a credit card, that was the end of that. Now to look into the other options, although it will need to be by International Wire transfer, regardless.

 

[DC3]

.. have an online chat with the amex agent, ask for international wire transfer, they will send all the details. Once got those, signup with xe, create a recipient with the details you got from amex. Then you can start the transfer

... ask AMEX (via chat) that you want to make repayments to your card via wire transfer and then they will give you all the details of their "intermediary" account e.g bank account number, routing number, branch that you will be sending funds to. When you are entering all the details for the FX you also must specify For Further Credit (FFC) to instructions in the description/recipient reference, which is just your name and amex account number ....

Amex Chat has provided me wih the following details:
- Bank Name
- Bank Address
- Routing Number
- For further credit to (my name) and (Amex account #)
- SWIFT
- Account Number

That part is all good.

However, I now want to set up the Recipient details in the XE account, so as I can pay into the Aspire card account. XE asks for the following:

- Recipient Name
- Recipient Address

Am I missing something here? Is the Recipient meant to be my name/address (or the "American Express Wire Depository"), or something else? This is something that many would have already done. Perhaps someone who has already done this can point me in the right direction (as to what I'm meant to enter), regarding the Recipient information, please. It's probably quite obvious but I'm not seeing it.

Thanks.

Edit: For content

 

[DC3]

... Perhaps someone who has already done this can point me in the right direction (as to what I'm meant to enter), regarding the Recipient information, please. It's probably quite obvious but I'm not seeing it ...

So, having tried Amex Chat again (tonight), the additional information provided for Wire Transfer is:

Recipient Name: American Express TRS TMS Depository
Recipient Address: P.O. Box 650448, Dallas, TX 75265-0448

Edit: Some may find this information to be useful. However, my guess is that there are probably numerous addresses that could be used for Amex, and probably numerous Recipient Names, as well.

I should add that it was like pulling teeth to get Chat to provide the Recipient details for some reason. Took three phone calls in the end.

 

[Spazmos]

thanks for all the info .We are planning to go to california in May so I suppose we could drop into citibank branch there.
Have you got a SSN/ITIN ? Do you know if you could open a savings account with citi and get them to issue you a letter stating you needed an ITIN? that`s one of the prerequisite for an ITIN application.

It's well worth getting a US account whilst you are there. Nope I don't have an SSN or ITIN as I don't really need it yet. Possibly if I want to maybe start investing in the US I might look at getting an ITIN. For foreigners I don't think we can get a SSN, but they do the same thing anyway (withouth the benefits of being a US citizen). I reckon it wouldn't hurt to ask them for a letter if you are going to open an interest earning savings account, ask for a ITIN for taxation on the interest.

We have a big trip coming up to japan and the US in April &may so the points & benefits would have come in handy .
As I said I withdrew from the aspire as my wife has already been approved for the same and I didn’t see the point in both of us having the same card type .
I wouldn’t mind having the bonvoy but I’m not sure it’s worth it .

I found Japan to be more generous with Diamond upgrades to suites, however you gotta ask for them (as politely as you can) when you check in at the desk. You still get executive lounge access regardless, but on the other hand with the bonvoy card you are only a gold elite status and that perk is not included. I know which hotel chain I would rather stay at...