Is there any bank that I can open a regular savings account online from a different country?

Question

I am in Jamaica and all the banks i have seen require you to be a Us citizen or an alien i need one where i can stay in jamaica and conduct my banking online with a US bank. Also I think ETADE might do it anybody knows about them???? Any suggestions????

Answer 1

US anti-money laundering laws require that you have 1) valid identification and 2) are a local resident/citizen. There are also sometimes age restrictions. These regulations have generally been adopted by the global banking community, so you're going to have barriers no matter what.
Solution? If you want to open up a US account, you can satisfy the second requirement by a) being a US citizen, b) having a green card or c) live in the US for 31 days. Part C is the easiest part and you can do it by vacationing in the US for more than a month. Other than that, you cannot open up a US-based account.

This isn't to say that you can't open up a US dollar account. For example, I live in Singapore and have a US dollar account. It functions like a US bank account except for the obvious - that is is legally registered in Singapore. Check your local banks to see if they can open up a US dollar account.

FYI: No, E*Trade requires the same restrictions.
https://us.etrade.com/e/t/welcome/generalgen

Answer 2

I don't know anything about etrade, but I can tell you that yes, most banks in the US do require you to be a US citizen and that you personally walk in to open any type of an account. They will require ID's and Social Security cards from you and you will have papers and forms to sign. Trying to do it online or over the phone would make it look like you are into some kind of fraud and isn't even possible to do.