Has Anyone moved to UK?

WhiteDaisy128 · #1 05-11-2018, 09:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tcsparky

WhiteDaisy,
Do you still have a US bank account? I'm asking, because I have a few bills that will still need to be paid here by direct debit. I don't know how to transfer money from my UK bank account to a US bank account. I asked at my bank (a small regional bank) and got blank looks.....then a shrug.

Yes, we do still have a US Bank account and US credit cards (you'll want to keep up your credit so when you repatriate you have enough credit to buy a house, rent a place, buy a car, etc.). Our Capitol One credit card does not charge and international transaction fee, so that's what we mostly use here. There are several companies that don't, so look around.

Our situation is a bit different because my husband is actually still paid in US dollars (as a direct deposit into our US bank). We use transferwise to move money back and forth and keep an eye on the exchange rant and try to move big chunks of money when it's most favorable. We can also take money out of ATMs with our US card and then walk it into our UK bank to deposit it - that's the absolute best exchange rate you'll probably get, but you are limited to X amount of money each day.

tcsparky · #2 05-11-2018, 08:46 PM

Yes, I learned pretty quickly that the exchange fees were awful! My credit union only charged a $2.00 exchange fee per transaction, so it was definitely a great deal. I pulled cash from the ATM on every trip after the first one.

My situation is a bit opposite yours, I guess. I'll be paid in pounds by a UK school into a UK bank account. But somehow I need to get money transferred into my US bank account to cover a couple of bills (student loan and storage). The credit union employee just shrugged and gave a strange look.

I do have a seldom-used checking account with Bank of America, but the person I spoke with there said that they don't do international banking. It can't possibly be this difficult. Bad guys in movies do this all the time!!

WhiteDaisy128 · #3 05-12-2018, 08:32 AM

You'll have to have a UK account and a US account and use a service like Transferwise to move money. It's really easy. You should be able to keep your credit union account if you are happy with it and just turn pounds into dollars in Transferwise (or a similar service).

Definitely find a card that has no international transaction fee at all. We have a USAA Visa card, a Charles Schwab card, and a Citibank Mastercard with no international transaction fees.

You'll get a debit card from your UK bank and that's fine to use too, but make sure you don't let your US credit score suffer from lack of activity.

navane · #4 05-16-2018, 12:57 AM

One programming note: make sure you tell your US bank and credit card company that you are moving to the UK before you go. Back when I lived there, they put a freeze on my accounts and cards a few weeks after I arrived because they thought my transactions overseas might be fraudulent. Getting it sorted out was easy and only took a phone call; but, it took a day longer than it should have due to the time difference.

tcsparky · #5 05-17-2018, 08:06 PM

Thanks for the advice, WhiteDaisy and Navane! I'm sure I'll have more questions as I go along.

The school told me a few weeks ago that they would receive their sponsorship license on the 11th of May. I got in touch with them on Tuesday, because I hadn't heard from them. Bad news....temporary setback. The school's application to sponsor me was denied. Whoever filled out their form had checked me off as a supply teacher (substitute teacher), which isn't an approved foreign hire.

So, they have now re-filled out the form (hopefully correctly) and expect to have the sponsorship license in their hands in 4 weeks. Then send me a scanned copy. Only THEN can I fill out the Work VISA application. Which can take 2 weeks - 120 days, per the embassy website. <sigh>

I thought getting a job offer in February gave me plenty of time to get everything cleared to start a job in September. Maybe......maybe it will be cutting it close. We'll see!!

tcsparky · #6 05-25-2018, 07:34 PM

One piece of good news-- I heard from the DofE, and I should receive an emailed copy of my UK Teaching License on Tuesday! So, at least a step in the right direction.

A friend of mine there said that a report on BBC stated that there were the fewest number of Work Visas extended last month due to quotas. The school seems confident that a Science Teacher carries enough "points" that there should not be an issue.

So, back to waiting!

tcsparky · #7 05-31-2018, 07:48 PM

For some reason today I went back and re-read the letter from the school offering me a job. In one of the paragraphs, it says that "the college will apply for the appropriate Tier 2 work visa on your behalf."

I wish I had registered that months ago- it would have saved me so much worry. This also explains why they wanted to know the earliest date I would be in the country, so I could come by to get "the security process started." They need my fingerprints.

If I am reading this correctly, then I won't have to wait for the work visa and can go over as early this summer as I want to. The work visa will be applied for once I arrive, and the school will have people to handle it. Phew!!!

I probably should have read that much more carefully the first time!