Can I Keep My CH Bank Account? US citizen

Finance, Taxes, Banking, Insurance and Retirement
1
I would appreciate some help with the following situation:

I (US citizen) was living in Switzerland from 2012-Jan 2023, and I have had a standard bank account with PostFinance since 2014.

I deregistered my B permit in Jan 2023 and I moved to Dubai - am I allowed to keep my PostFinance account open?

I received a “Tax Residency Self-Certification for Individuals” form from the bank, but I don’t understand if it means not having residency in CH means I will need to close the account.

Thanks for any help with this

2
That is up to the bank to decide, there is certainly no legal requirement to do so.

Tom

3
But it does mean that the bank can share your banking information with the tax authorities in your country of residence, and for those with US links, with the US IRS.

4
Thanks. Yes, that’s ok I always file my US taxes. It’s just more convenient for me to have my Swiss account.

So there’s no hard and fast rule that US citizens without residency in CH cannot keep their Swiss accounts?

5

No, it’s entirely up to the bank to decide whether to allow you to keep it open or not.

6
My husband, a Swiss citizen, upon asking his bank if he could maintain his CH account after we’ve moved to the US hopefully next year, was informed it was only possible for a limited time and with an insanely high daily fee. Considering how much difficulty banks here have to go through for Americans, I would be very surprised if it would be easy to keep a PostFinance account open from abroad. But worth asking them. Just always file your FBAR.

7
The banking landscape is changing significantly; and given the rise of Fintech bank alternatives like WISE and REVOLUT that is ok.

The question I believe you are asking about keeping your Swiss Bank Account is more specifically, how can I easily have a way to pay and receive Swiss Francs (CHF). Which is actually quite different than having a Swiss Bank Account. (Unless you also are looking for a loan or a mortgage)

I had to face this same challenge, but in a slightly different manner as Citibank UK just forced me to close all of my accounts (USD, GBP, CHF, EUR and CAD), it it a total pain - as I loved having this one debit card that just took the right currency from the right account when I used the card.

Citi closed the account for cost and regulatory reasons.

Now I have done my research and here is the solution that should work (though it is in the early stages). I keep the majority of my money earning VERY GOOD interest rates at Interactive Brokers (IBKR) and then I have a Wise account that I use for payments.

So far, it is working very well and I am earning about 1-2% more in interest than I did at Citi (depending on the currency)

The rise of the Fintechs like Wise and Revolut mean that a bank account is no longer nearly as necessary as it used to be.

BUT, one must be aware that the Fintechs are new and growth focused - so their customer service is not great - if you do something non standard that their systems do not easily accommodate, then you may encounter greater challenges.

Hope that is helpful,

-D