Nosy banks

Give them a call and find out exactly what their issue is...

By becoming clients, you're essentially agreeing to all the general terms and conditions, which are subject to change.
If you find yourself at odds with any updated agreements, you have the right to terminate your relationship before those changes actually take effect.
Every bank is simply following the mandates set by federal law—there's always a legal reason behind their requirements.
If a staff member can't give you a straight answer to a specific question, don't hesitate to escalate it. Ask for the branch manager, the director, or even reach out to the legal department to ensure they address your concerns and clear up any confusion.

Sarah Morris57 said:So they called me again, but I didn't bother swinging by Chase—I didn't really have anything to take care of there anyway, plus it wasn't even on my way through town... and now I just got this notice in the mail saying I need to call them back ASAP. It looks super official, almost like some kind of summons from a court or something!

So, did you have any massive transactions? Like, maybe over $10,500 $0.00 that they’re talking about in that article up above?

-briskjackal5

Haha, I wish!
Like, about six months ago I needed a statement confirming my account number, and since then they haven't even looked my way—not that I actually needed anything or did anything out of the ordinary, so they didn't have any reason to come knocking and ask questions. I’ve just got this tiny little payment going through on the account—only a few hundred bucks—and it all goes smoothly through my online banking app.
They called me at the worst possible time, you know? And then I totally blanked on it, and now things have escalated to the point where they're sending me official notices. The notice basically says what they want... they want that questionnaire filled out.

Honestly, this whole ordeal is about as ridiculous as applying for an American visa.
"Are you a spy?" Please. I'd have to be a seriously incompetent spy to admit to that right off the bat!
And don't even get me started on this money laundering stuff—as if I'd ever hand over the account number I'm using for that! I mean, if I actually were doing that, I would've already managed to stay under the radar of the government and the big banks, so why on earth would I sign a paper saying I'm laundering money?

Suppose they hand me a questionnaire and I decide to fill it out using Mamić's signature style...
marital status: why the hell are you asking me this, you lowlife spies?
email: absoluteidiots@gmail.com
am I a terrorist: I'll show you some real terrorism, you bastards...

will they shut down my accounts?

wiredlynx28 said:By becoming clients, you're essentially agreeing to all the general terms and conditions, which are subject to change.
If you find yourself at odds with any updated agreements, you have the right to terminate your relationship before those changes actually take effect.
Every bank is simply following the mandates set by federal law—there's always a legal reason behind their requirements.
If a staff member can't give you a straight answer to a specific question, don't hesitate to escalate it. Ask for the branch manager, the director, or even reach out to the legal department to ensure they address your concerns and clear up any confusion.

My time isn't free...
Just like any other banking service...
Maybe those bankers would actually provide the data people want if they offered a fair fee for it...
Decades ago, when opening checking and savings accounts, they got everything they needed right then and there.
If they need extra stuff now... that's on them, not me.
So, let them figure it out however they see fit. If they want my help, I'll send over an invoice for "consulting services." And yeah, 100% upfront is non-negotiable.

Laura Chavez93 said:Suppose they hand me a questionnaire and I decide to fill it out using Mamić's signature style...
marital status: why the hell are you asking me this, you lowlife spies?
email: absoluteidiots@gmail.com
am I a terrorist: I'll show you some real terrorism, you bastards...

will they shut down my accounts?

On what grounds would they even close your accounts if everything is paid up...
The way you're looking at this survey... man, I bet you wouldn't be the only one feeling like that...

wiredlynx28 said:By becoming clients, you're essentially agreeing to all the general terms and conditions, which are subject to change.
If you find yourself at odds with any updated agreements, you have the right to terminate your relationship before those changes actually take effect.
Every bank is simply following the mandates set by federal law—there's always a legal reason behind their requirements.
If a staff member can't give you a straight answer to a specific question, don't hesitate to escalate it. Ask for the branch manager, the director, or even reach out to the legal department to ensure they address your concerns and clear up any confusion.

Alright then, if that's how it works, can you actually point me toward the specific legal statutes that force banks to demand exactly what everyone else on this forum was complaining about earlier?

wiredlynx28 said:By becoming clients, you're essentially agreeing to all the general terms and conditions, which are subject to change.
If you find yourself at odds with any updated agreements, you have the right to terminate your relationship before those changes actually take effect.
Every bank is simply following the mandates set by federal law—there's always a legal reason behind their requirements.
If a staff member can't give you a straight answer to a specific question, don't hesitate to escalate it. Ask for the branch manager, the director, or even reach out to the legal department to ensure they address your concerns and clear up any confusion.

Alright then, I'm calling Prka to go start some trouble.

I'm a client over at Chase. I don't actually bother visiting a physical branch; I handle everything via ATMs and online. They sent me these questions in the mail, stating I need to get them back to the bank by September 30th.

Here are the questions.
Part one asks for identification data: full name, Social Security number, date and place of birth, nationality, any dual citizenship, the country where I am a tax resident, whether I hold a US green card, my home address, and contact info.

Part two covers the purpose of my business dealings, including my employer and my annual salary.
Part three is about the nature of my banking activities.
It asks what I use the account for and how I use it, followed by a final section asking if I am considered a politically exposed person.

If I happen to have dual citizenship that isn't from the US, and I don't disclose it, is there any way Chase could somehow figure out that I have a second passport tucked away somewhere?

Is this questionnaire intended for individual clients?

That questionnaire is intended for individuals. And I am an individual.

Adam Fox3 said:I'm a client over at Chase. I don't actually bother visiting a physical branch; I handle everything via ATMs and online. They sent me these questions in the mail, stating I need to get them back to the bank by September 30th.

Here are the questions.
Part one asks for identification data: full name, Social Security number, date and place of birth, nationality, any dual citizenship, the country where I am a tax resident, whether I hold a US green card, my home address, and contact info.

Part two covers the purpose of my business dealings, including my employer and my annual salary.
Part three is about the nature of my banking activities.
It asks what I use the account for and how I use it, followed by a final section asking if I am considered a politically exposed person.

If I happen to have dual citizenship that isn't from the US, and I don't disclose it, is there any way Chase could somehow figure out that I have a second passport tucked away somewhere?

If I were you... I wouldn't send them anything.
But hey... do whatever you want.

vividranger8 said:Alright then, if that's how it works, can you actually point me toward the specific legal statutes that force banks to demand exactly what everyone else on this forum was complaining about earlier?

Look, here’s the foundation. It’s a massive pile of regulations, plenty of stuff in there to dig through.

🤔 Is there a legal professional in this group—perhaps someone who can shed some light on the matter—regarding what actually happens if I simply choose not to complete that survey?

Bank of America response

The Bank collects mandatory data based on the Anti-Money Laundering Act and its associated regulations, international standards, and the specific obligations imposed on banking institutions through the intergovernmental agreement the US signed with America to implement the FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) law. All collected information is protected by bank secrecy laws, and the Bank uses this data strictly to fulfill its legal obligations under the aforementioned regulations.

I decided to head down to Bank of America the other day to put some extra cash into a CD, and I ended up being slapped with this massive questionnaire:

Now, look, the first few questions are standard enough. They need to know if I’m already a customer, my Social Security number, my taxpayer ID, driver's license info, home address, and where I was born. Fine. It makes sense they’d also want my cell number and an email address so they can reach me if something goes sideways.

But then? Then things get weird. They start digging into personal details that have absolutely nothing to do with the agreement I'm trying to sign... They insist on asking for my phone number again (seriously, why do they need it twice?), and then it turns into an interrogation about whether I'm married or single, my employment status, my education level, exactly how much I pull in per month, my total years of work experience, and how long I've been at my current gig. Honestly, what on earth is the point?

I finally got it sorted! I needed some kind of official confirmation, so I had to swing by the Bank of America, but honestly—they ended up just asking for my contact info and all that stuff regarding my US citizenship... nothing too crazy!
She was also super insistent about having a phone number on file, but I can't really help her there—we didn't bother getting a landline when we moved, you know? So she was getting all stressed out, practically begging me to just give her any mobile number at all... and then they actually called my cell once they started going through those questionnaires. 😵

Sarah Morris57 said:I finally got it sorted! I needed some kind of official confirmation, so I had to swing by the Bank of America, but honestly—they ended up just asking for my contact info and all that stuff regarding my US citizenship... nothing too crazy!
She was also super insistent about having a phone number on file, but I can't really help her there—we didn't bother getting a landline when we moved, you know? So she was getting all stressed out, practically begging me to just give her any mobile number at all... and then they actually called my cell once they started going through those questionnaires. 😵

The way they handle this is quite frankly absurd... 🙂

Have they finally stopped with this nonsense?
I am asking specifically about JPMorgan Chase—I need to review some interest rates and royalty agreements, so I’m wondering if I can just get in and out without being harassed by endless surveys.
For the last few months, I’ve been trekking over to Goldman Sachs just to avoid dealing with them... 🙄