u/muhmuhmuh11

Hi everyone,

I’m a German citizen and non-US resident and I’m trying to obtain an ITIN mainly because I would like to establish a proper US banking relationship and potentially open an interest-bearing savings/HYSA account.

I already have a US-issued American Express Gold Card, which I obtained through Amex Global Transfer, so I already have some US financial history, but I currently don’t have an or ITIN.

I’m confused about what exactly the IRS accepts as proof of the tax purpose for Form W-7.

I saw that there are exceptions involving interest-bearing US bank accounts, where apparently a letter from the financial institution may be used as supporting documentation.

Has anyone successfully obtained an ITIN in a similar situation?

Specifically:
Can wanting to open an interest-bearing US bank/HYSA account qualify, or does the account already have to be opened?

What exactly does the bank letter need to say?
How do you get such a letter if the bank requires an ITIN/SSN before they will open the account in the first place?
Would an existing US Amex account/card help establish any basis for the ITIN application?

Is there another legitimate W-7 exception commonly used by nonresident foreigners who need an ITIN for US banking?

I’m not trying to claim any tax benefit — I just want to understand the correct IRS-compliant way to document the need for an ITIN without filing a US tax return.

Would appreciate hearing from anyone who has actually gone through this process as a nonresident.

Thanks!

Moin Gemeinde!

Ich wollte mal eure Meinung hören - und wie ihr folgende Situation „handhabt“:

Ich liebe meine Kreditkarten (Amex) und zahle am liebsten mit Karte oder ApplePay.

In meinem örtlichen Freibad kann man vor Ort überhaupt nicht mit Karte zahlen. Weder Girokarten noch (welche ja auch objektiv für den Händler günstiger sind als) Kreditkarte.

Man kann aber auch Tickets online mit Paypal kaufen.

Ich stelle mir regelmäßig die Frage: Warum macht die Gemeinde „so ein“ Quatsch? Die Paypal Gebühren sollten doch wesentlich höher sein als (mind. Giro-)Karte vor Ort?

Ich bevorzuge daher lieber Paypal online. Wie macht ihr das - bevorzugt ihr dann auch lieber Paypal?

Moin!

Ich habe eine Platinum und habe über 40k, sodass ich keinen MR boost mehr bis Oktober bekommen.

Als ich neulich vorsichtig meinen Kündigungswunsch angedeutet habe, habe ich 30.000 MR geschenkt bekommen.

Kann man in Deutschland eine zweite Amex (bspw Blue) bekommen - und dort wieder den Boost abschließen?

Danke für Erfahrungsberichte!

Hi everyone, I’m currently going through a fraud/security review with American Express and I’m trying to understand whether my situation is normal or something more serious.

After a fraud alert on my account, I was asked to complete an identity verification through NotaryCam. I completed the full video call with the notary and showed my passport, so from my perspective the verification itself seemed to go normally.

However, afterwards I received an email from NotaryCam saying:

“At this time, we are not able to proceed with the notarization of your document. Your request has been forwarded to American Express for further review.”

This is the part that really confuses me. I actually spoke to the notary and completed the session, so I don’t understand what exactly “unable to proceed” means in this context.

My account is still partially active and some transactions are still going through, which makes the situation even more confusing.

Has anyone here experienced a case where the NotaryCam session itself happened successfully, but the notarization still could not be completed afterwards and the case was sent back to Amex for manual review?

I’d really appreciate hearing how this ended for others.

Hi everyone, I’m currently going through a fraud/security review with American Express and I’m trying to understand whether my situation is normal or something more serious.

After a fraud alert on my account, I was asked to complete an identity verification through NotaryCam. I completed the full video call with the notary and showed my passport, so from my perspective the verification itself seemed to go normally.

However, afterwards I received an email from NotaryCam saying:

“At this time, we are not able to proceed with the notarization of your document. Your request has been forwarded to American Express for further review.”

This is the part that really confuses me. I actually spoke to the notary and completed the session, so I don’t understand what exactly “unable to proceed” means in this context.

My account is still partially active and some transactions are still going through, which makes the situation even more confusing.

Has anyone here experienced a case where the NotaryCam session itself happened successfully, but the notarization still could not be completed afterwards and the case was sent back to Amex for manual review?

I’d really appreciate hearing how this ended for others.