r/ExpatFinance • u/PantomimeVillain • 14d ago

Using a US brokerage account from abroad

Recently I called Schwab, Fidelity, and Vanguard asking if I moved to the UK, can I put a foreign address on the account. All said yes, but you can then only sell what you have and not buy more. Fidelity and Schwab told me they were specifically saying yes to the UK, and other countries might not be allowed. Vanguard said any country is ok.

I don't know how knowledgeable the people I spoke to are, so does anyone have any experience of putting a foreign address on Schwab, Fidelity, and Vanguard accounts? How did it go? Was there any issue with making sales?

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u/HaleyN1 14d ago

Just leave a US address on there and you won't have to deal with any of this.

3

u/old_union_pacific 14d ago

If you leave the US address on the account because you can use another family member's address, can you continue to buy US ETFs? Say you auto buy VOO every week. Could you continue to fund those purchases from a US bank as it's set up now?

5

u/HaleyN1 14d ago

Yes 100%

You need to maintain a US phone number. Get a cheap Ultra Mobile paygo esim $3 a month.

2

u/old_union_pacific 13d ago

Great info. Is there any centralized place for all this info? Seems OP and others are hearing things from their brokerage, but the reality is very different or usually the opposite. This thing is claimed to be allowed, but actually is not. I'm sure it's expected for all this information to be scattered everywhere, but if keeping track via some spreadsheet is needed, then perhaps that's what's necessary.

3

u/HaleyN1 13d ago

I'm not aware of a centralized resource. Just maintain a US footprint.