How to maintain bank relations with USA

Hello!  I am in Belgium as well.  This is by no means 'legal advice' I am about to give.. but the only way to keep your US accounts active is if you lie to the banks/credit card companies.  The US credit card companies are legally only allowed to offer credit to those residing in the US.  You can inform your bank/credit card company that you are traveling for 11 months (that is the maximum they will allow) so you are authorized to use the card over here.  You can then wait 1 month then call back up and inform them again you are traveling again for business.  You will need a valid US address (probably whichever US address you gave the government to allow your visa). 

You should be able to apply online for US credit cards... you will just not be able to give your belgian address.. so someone in the US will have to send the cards to you.

Yeah, what ScottAxel said. Just apply for a normal credit card, using whatever address you have the bank account with, and tell them you're traveling. You don't need a bank-card, why would you need to get one direct from them? And if you're living here, open a bank account here, with an ATM card for that account, for when you need to get cash.

Thanks for you fast reply and advice!

I have the address, as I have the account with Chase as well.  To apply online you need a SSN and I have an ITIN (tax identification number).  I don't have the US nationality, I have Belgian citizenship. 

I wonder if Chase has no representatives in Europe that take care of their European customers and expats.  I found a link to international banking on their site but I always end up with the same contact numbers in the States.

If you're Belgian, and living in Belgium, why do you need an account in the US at all? I have mine because, I'm American, and still have American credit cards, and it makes things easier for me to just retain it all. You can get credit cards here, that you can use to purchase things with in the US without an issue... Why complicate matters trying to get a card in country that you aren't from or living in?

I was going to ask the same question.  When you do move to the US you will then be able apply for a card.  You should be aware though.. that with no US credit history (your Belgian credit history does not count) you will probably not be able to obtain a US unsecured credit card.  There are secured credit cards available (look into Orchard Bank.. they offer secured cards to people with no or bad credit).  But a secured card doesn't really offer credit as you 'secure' with your own fund.  (i.e.  you put 200 dollars into the credit account and you have 200 dollars to charge).  Secured cards are a decent way to build up a credit history.  It will probably take a year or more to build up enough credit though to get a decent US credit card. 

With all of the credit related issues in the US economy over the past years..  there will not be many options available to you.

Consider using PayPal for sending invoices and paying for stuff. You can connect PayPal to your bank account. Very very simple. If you send someone an invoice, all you need is their email address. If you want to spend money, have them bill you on PayPal.

I'd like to say Banks are obsolete, but that doesn't even begin to sound a smart thing to say. But we're getting pretty close to that.

Stefaan Meeuws