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Amex FR with foreign income?

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Amex FR with foreign income?

This is perhaps a bit of an edge-case, but I'm curious if anyone has similar experience...

 

I'm a foreign national, with a US visa. I split my time between the US and my home country. I have several US Amex accounts that I applied for on my ITIN, including a Platinum charge card, credit card and a personal loan. I've been a member for around 2+ years, and seen my credit limit increase from $2k to over $55k across multiple accounts. Every payment has been made on time, and I rarely carry a balance on any account beyond a couple of thousand dollars.

 

So far, I've not had a FR and hopefully won't, but after playing with the 'Check Spending Power' tool three times his morning and putting in some quite ridiculous figures, I've since read that this seemingly innocuous tool could potetially trigger a financial review. I thought it was just a neat feature to play with, but alas, may have shot myself in the foot (and certainly won't be touching it in future!)

 

Despite putting in accurate income figures, my fear is that all of my income is earned outside of the US. If I got an FR, the documentation I'd be able to submit is all foreign (English, but outside the US.) - my tax returns, bank statements, etc would all be from overseas. This seems at odds with the IRS forms and other US-centric income verification I've seen in other reports.

 

Are there any members on here with more complicated income affairs - perhaps, like me, dual residents - that have successfully passed an financial review with Amex? Do they accept overseas documentation?

 

 

Thanks in advance.

Message 1 of 20
19 REPLIES 19
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

Can’t help you with your main question but regarding the ‘check spending power’ triggering an FR.  Undocumented rumor that has spread.  There is no proof at all that using that feature triggers an FR.  Just another one of the many myths about Amex.

 

Edit to add- A request from Amex for income verification is not the same as a FR.  Typically you will see a request for POI when requesting CLIs that exceeds the amount of credit that they will extend without POI.  In those cases, if you don’t supply the POI you just won’t receive the CLI and there really is no consequence if you don’t supply the POI.  A full Financial Review puts a hold on all of your accounts and if you don’t provide whatever documentation that they request or they aren’t happy with the results of the FR, your account will be completely closed.  Too often we use the term FR for Amex when it’s just a normal creditor POI and they definitely are not the same.

Message 2 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

Wow, interesting. That's good to know. Literally every article seems to quote  it as gospel. Thanks for providing a balanced view.

Message 3 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?


@Anonymous wrote:

Wow, interesting. That's good to know. Literally every article seems to quote  it as gospel. Thanks for providing a balanced view.


People also preach that Amex won’t approve CLIs or new cards if you have balances on your cards because they just don’t like you to carry a balance.  Another myth

Message 4 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

Here's what Pook89, a former Amex employee, had to say about playing around with the Check Spending Power button:  https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Amex-Charge-limits/m-p/5026303#M1469242

 

"When you use this function, you are telling the system that you WILL be using your card for that purchase within 8 days. Don't play with it!"

Message 5 of 20
K-in-Boston
Epic Contributor

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

Wonderful answers thus far.  I would also add that unlike income verification for a CLI, where Amex only seems to accept the IRS Form 4506-T (and if it is prior to August, they will not process it if you put the 2 most recent years since the most recent year's tax return will not be available to them), they do seem to be more flexible with documentation during an actual financial review.  Playing with the button is unlikely to trigger an FR, but it does increase the risk of your charging being cut off while those funds are on hold or for being flagged by the fraud department.

Message 6 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

Good to know also.

 

It would be nice if they made that clearer. The only 'warning', per se, is the friendly advice that it won't affect your credit rating.

 

Nothing about it potentially triggering an audit!

 

Hopefully my 3x tries earlier won't be an issue. I did $20k and $10k (both rejected) then $5k (approved) on a new Platinum. Hopefully the 2x rejections won't be a factor. Nothing so far (touch wood) - card still seems active.

 

I'm just nervous after only just discovering the FR rabbit hole. Literally everything I've done so far seems to have been listed as a warning one place or another... played with 'check spending power', used my card overseas almost exclusively, logged in to the site about 300 times to sign up for the initial programs (and just because I was far too excited to actually get the card...), ran a $3k purchase on the 2nd day, took out 2x lines within the next 4 months... the list goes on.

 

I assumed that all the free points they were offering for minimum spends would mean they would eager for card activity... but after reading all the scare stories this morning, it sounds like I've just been digging a hole...

Message 7 of 20
K-in-Boston
Epic Contributor

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

I don't think those tries will be an issue.  Before I knew better, I went up to $75,000 but didn't want to know the answer for anything higher.  The fraud thing would be more likely if you were escalating the amounts (i.e. $10k, $20k, $30k, $40k, etc.) to see where it cut off; if someone had compromised your account that would be an expected behavior.  If you have the income to support it, Amex wants the spend.  I've completed numerous signup bonuses with a single large charge after activating the card (with Amex and other lenders) without an issue.

Message 8 of 20
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?


@Anonymous wrote:

Here's what Pook89, a former Amex employee, had to say about playing around with the Check Spending Power button:  https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Amex-Charge-limits/m-p/5026303#M1469242

 

"When you use this function, you are telling the system that you WILL be using your card for that purchase within 8 days. Don't play with it!"


I'm well aware of what Pooka89 had to say about the function but there still is no proof that using the feature leads to FRs (and he didn't say that it does).  Lots of people have used that feature multiple times, including me, and never have received an FR.  It's just pure speculation and an unfounded one at that.

Message 9 of 20
bondsandloan
Regular Contributor

Re: Amex FR with foreign income?

This is a very interesting question. I am not going to comment on the FR but the overall situation.

What did you tick when you applied for the US Amex - US Resident or US non-resident? I don't think Amex would give you a US card if you didn't tick US Resident. And if you are a US Resident (see the substantial presence test from the IRS), you automatically have to declare US taxes (even if you only have foreign income) and take that extra taxation. If you have been a US resident (based on SPT from the IRS, even without having a green card), this opens a pandora's box making you liable for a bunch of old taxes.
Hence to answer your question, Amex should not (and maybe will not) take proof of foreign income for a US based card. As I think you attested to be a US resident when you applied for that card.
Message 10 of 20
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