FAQ Opening a bank account in Northern Ireland

Brendan Burgess

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Any volunteers to summarise and update this thread into a new Key Post?

The purpose would be to deal with the practicalities of it and not whether or not it is a good idea. That can be discussed in other threads.

I suggest the following format, but it's only a suggestion:

The easiest way to open a sterling account in Northern Ireland
Get the forms from any branch of Ulster Bank fill them in and send them back. (?)


Alternatives (but outside the scope of this thread)
A bank in mainland Britain, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands.


The best banks to deal with
X Bank - opens a fully functioning account with cheque book, ATM, and online access (Website: Phone number: )

Y Bank - offers a good savings account as well

Z Bank - not good because you have to call a UK call centre.

Avoid AIB and Bank of Ireland - as the whole point of opening an account in sterling is to avoid the risks associated with the euro and the Irish guarantee. AIB in Ireland will open an account with their London branch but it's time consuming and you don't get online access etc.

The exchange rate is probably more important than the banking charges
The biggest costs are likely to be in the exchange rates. A better exchange rate might save you 1% of €100,000 which would make the normal account charges irrelevant.


Tax position
Register as a non-resident so that they don't deduct withholding tax. If you don't, tax will be deducted by the Queen. (?)

You must declare the interest on your Irish tax return and pay the equivalent of 25% DIRT (?)

Tips
Don't transfer euro to a sterling account.
Convert to sterling in Ireland first and transfer sterling.

Consider using Transfermate

Find a UK friend who spends euro
I have an English friend who has a daughter in College in Ireland. She lodges money to my sterling account and I pay her bills in euro. Obviously you need to trust the person well to do that.
 
Thinking of it since, what I would like in a sterling bank account


1) A normal fully functional bank account

  • Cheque book
  • ATM
  • Online access
(I don't have these with my AIB account)

2) Good phone service if I have a problem

3) Ideally a good exchange rate for transferring money in and out.(Although they might always be beaten by Tranfermate)

4) Ideally able to manage it from Dublin e.g. make deposits in a local branch - rather than post the lodgement.

5) Able to switch move surplus funds in and out of a competitive interest bearing deposit account.
 
It is perhaps worth noting that nowadays Bank of Ireland and probably First Trust (AIB) in NI are covered by the UK deposit guarantee. People may wish to continue to deposit with the banks they do business with, but get the benefit of the alternative guarantee.
 
I was planning to visit Ulster Bank in Newry and I rang to make an appointment. The guy in the call centre said that I could open a current account from Dublin over the phone.

The number from the Republic is 1800 303 004

There is a choice of a Step Account or a Standard Account. The costs are the same, but the Standard Account has a cheque book and you may apply for an overdraft. So I went for the Standard Account as I do occasionally write sterling cheques.

They took all my information over the phone which took about 15 minutes. They are now sending me the documentation to sign and return with the usual proof of identity and address.

I will have a fully functioning online current account with a Visa Debit card and online banking.

At this stage, I don't have a savings account and to open one, I must present myself in person. I will check out where the best savings account is and it might well be with another financial institution.

Brendan
 


Brendan,

I too rang the UB about opening a current account in Newry.
I was given a number to contact - new business I guess. Got through to Belfast.
Went through the application process and I am expecting the documents shortly.

I was told that once my current account was set up and money deposited in that I could contact the Newry bank asking them to open a 1 year fixed deposit a/c currently offering 2.8% and that the Newry branch will do this without having to go up North. I said I thought I would have to present in person and Belfast told me no.

So I hope that will be the case.

Daddy
 
Brendan thanks a million for posting this information. I didn't realise before now that it was possible to open a sterling account in the North without actually being resident there. As with Daddy, I was told I can open a savings account (without having to be there in person) once my current account is up and running so once I get the documentation signed and returned it shouldn't take long then to get a savings account opened. I was pleasantly surprised at how straightforward this all was.
 
Tips
Don't transfer euro to a sterling account.
Convert to sterling in Ireland first and transfer sterling.
Click to expand...

Can I ask Brendan why you advise doing this? Is it due to charges?
 
RichardS said:
Can I ask Brendan why you advise doing this? Is it due to charges?
Click to expand...

Im guessing so, UB dublin were offering .834 the other day, but I got .8525 in the bureau de change in buttercrane so its worth looking around.
 
Hi Brendan, was discussing this at the weekend and the topic of off-shore accounts was raised. Is a sterling account in the North viewed the same as an off-shore account and do you have to declare this account to revenue (even if it is a current account earning no interest)?
 
Anyone got any current information re opening a sterling deposit account in N Ireland. I have a current account with Ulster bank but cannot open a deposit one with them unless I go in person to Newry. They have all my id etc , from when I opened the current account last year.

Does not need to be UB, just a bank paying ok interest on a saving account in sterling. I'm surprised that they are not biting the hand off me for my money..
 
Was in BOI in NI today to do this and just need a bill/bank statement from down here along with a passport, which they need for non resident a/cs
 
Transfers from NI account

My work situation is changing and I have the option to be paid is sterling - working for UK company, but from Ireland. There are complicated tax benefits doing this that I don't yet fully understand..

But for now the question is, if I open a bank account in Belfast outlined above, would I be able to transfer money from it to my home current account (AIB)? Mortgage and all bills/payments are managed via my AIB account.

Thanks
 
You will be but you will be at the mercy of exchange rates and fees.
 
igloo said:
But for now the question is, if I open a bank account in Belfast outlined above, would I be able to transfer money from it to my home current account (AIB)? Mortgage and all bills/payments are managed via my AIB account.

Thanks
Click to expand...


Same situation myself, did some research on it today and found the following useful /showthread.php?t=167160 , looks like they banks are not the best options.
 

I would like to know the answer to ths question too??

I opened a current account with UB in Newry recently and it will pay no interest on the account.

I was also told that I could not open a savings account - only a current account, or another account paying out .0001% in interest?!
(which would be kinda pointless...imagine filing a tax return for that amount of interest / dirt?!!)
 
You need to declare the account and also the interest to the Revenue.

There have been plenty of posts from people who have managed to open up non-current accounts with Ulster in NI.
 
Thanks Tony

tonyrtsmith said:
Same situation myself, did some research on it today and found the following useful /showthread.php?t=167160 , looks like they banks are not the best options.
Click to expand...

Looking into currency fair now as an option for regular transfers
 
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