@Anonymous wrote:
Hey can anyone would like to help me with this what do you guys means by SSN . i have resently move here from Australia , would like to have a new credit card here which can provide me more number of reward on my every Shoping .
Thanking in advance
SSN = social security number. Every US citizen, permanent resident and non-resident alien authorized to work has one. It's supposed to be just for social security benefits, but in reality that's the national identification number. It's used for everything.
Some banks will let you open accounts with them using an Individual Taxpayer ID Number, but not all of them will.
If you recently moved here from Australia, you should be able to get a Social Security Number from the Social Security Administration as soon as you can prove to them that you're legally authorized to work in the U.S. That means either getting your permanent resident card (green card/I-551) or your employment authorization document (I-765). In some cases your visa will do as well, but in general you have to be able to show that you're authorized to work here, otherwise you cannot get a SSN.
If you can't get an SSN, you can try to apply for an ITIN (individual taxpayer id number) from the IRS, but you have to have a reason for it - i.e. if you need to file a tax return.
You can't get a SSN/TIN just for banking purposes. And without an ID number, you can't apply for credit. They have to be able to verify your identity (thanks, Patriot Act!), plus they have to be able to run a credit check on you. Banks used to be able to run it through with 000-00-0000 but I doubt you'll find any willing to do that anymore.
