Funny you should say that: I recently noticed that my former employer had their address changed in the last few years as well: They were known by a house name (no number) but Royal Mail decided to add a house number and apparently no longer delivers mail that is addressed to the house name only. So, I take it back: Addresses can change, and I’m sure someone at Royal Mail takes deep pleasure in the resulting chaos 
Probably to ensure expensive corporate subscriptions to its PAF (Postal Address Finder) 
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Hi Evan,
I finally have an answer for you. Unfortunately, if you no longer have a UK address we will have to close your account when we fully migrate to the current account. This is because of new immigration laws that require us to run regular checks. To run these checks, we need a UK address 
I’m really sorry about this! Hopefully, we will be in Spain in no time!
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Great to have a reply to this. Do you think the terms and conditions could be updated to reflect this?
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Strange that they are immigration laws rather than Anti Money Laundering laws that require this. Also odd that most UK banks are ok with EU residents having UK bank accounts.
I guess I can keep my account until the very end. I currently am awaiting a chargeback from a Monarch flight which should be refunded in the next few months and wouldn’t want the closure of my account to mean that I’d miss out on that refund.
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I’m guessing they are referring to this:
The regulations themselves do of course not demand UK addresses, but I guess Monzo’s implementation does.
Interesting.
Whilst I don’t currently live in the UK, I do have permission to remain in the UK (given I have a UK passport and citizenship). In theory, I’d pass Barclays interpretation quite easily.
My mum and stepdad have UK bank accounts still and they live in Spain and have done for years…
Access to a basic bank account is enshrined in EU legislation:
Note that this right does not apply to current accounts where additional services like debit cards and overdrafts are normally included.
I wonder if Monzo would consider the possibility of offering basic bank accounts? This would make Monzo accessible to many more potential customers throughout the EU.
They are new UK laws and come into effect early 2018.
The Regulations still say that you may be refused a basic bank account if you already have a similar account with another bank in the same country. So if say you had an account at First Direct then Monzo could say No.
Also, if you are applying for a basic payment account outside the country where you live, banks may want you to prove a genuine interest for doing so – for example if you live in one country but work in another. So if there is no source of revenue there such as salary or pension they may still decline.
Nevertheless you still have the right to a basic account if you meet the requirements. Quite why anyone would need to open a basic account when they already have a current account baffles me. This would almost certainly be a niche legitimate requirement and rightly questionable.
I imagine that legitimate applicants would have a genuine interest. “Banks cannot simply refuse you a basic account because you don’t live in the country.”
Source for this? One might have family abroad to support financially, a second home in that country, or perhaps still looking for work abroad. Deposits could come from transferring funds from a home-country bank account.
You split my reply. The comment on salary or pension was as an example of legitimate interest. Your example of relatives abroad is another possible example if asked to justify opening an account in a country where you are not resident.
as I stated before they can if you are not resident ask you to explain why you have a genuine interest in that country and it will depend on your response if you convince them or not.
You did not read the comment properly. It was not regarding obtaining a basic bank account when you have a full or premium bank account but when you have a similar account i.e. another basic bank account or similarly restricted account
Actually, banks can simply refuse to open an account as @anon44204028 explained you will find CAB Info here to check all the details but I am only quoting one paragraph
A bank or building society can refuse to open an account for you. They don’t have to give you a reason, and there’s usually nothing you can do about it. A bank or building society isn’t allowed to open an account for someone who needs leave under the Immigration Rules to enter or stay in the UK but who doesn’t have it, for example, someone who has entered the UK illegally or who has ‘overstayed’ after their visa has run out. If you are in this category you also can’t be added to someone else’s account as a joint account holder or be a signatory or beneficiary in relation to any account. Your bank or building society will carry out status checks to ensure that you don’t come into this category.
Banks have several challenges when dealing with non-residents. First there’s validating identify and avoiding money laundering which is much harder to do through foreign docs they don’t recognise. Then there are increasing anti tax evasion measures - Common Reporting Standards which means if you have a non-resident you have to report all transactions to the account holders local tax authority. Lastly there are cross border legal and regulatory rules which depend on residence as well as point of service. It can be illegal to offer an account without a banking license in their country of residence. Not always but it varies by country and requires close maintenance of legal opinions and records on how you contact acct holders.
All of which means; whilst not impossible, iit is extremely expensive for a bank to maintain accounts for non-residents. As bank accounts here are typically offered free there’s little incentive. Why would they bother?
A couple of banks do it through their International arms, Barclays and HSBC but only if you deposit a large enough amount to make it worthwhile.
I’m now facing the same issue in reverse. I have two US current accounts, I never thought much of it, I just put a trusted person’s address on them since the websites wouldn’t accept non-US addresses. Now, I’m wondering if I should just transfer money over and close my US accounts…
I’d try. They may not even be willing to transfer the money internationally if you wait too long. My wife had some Amazon shares from working there. Held in the US she eventually gave up on accessing them because they wouldn’t recognise her marriage certificate and name change (it wasn’t much).
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I wonder if there will be any changes to Basic bank account holders when the UK leaves the EU. 