Opening a UK bank account?

Question

I've heard that it's difficult for foreigners to open bank a/c's in the UK. We're from Australia. We plan to spend 6 months working and travelling in the UK (we have 5-yr entry clearances). Initially we'll stay with relatives and then prob move into a flat-share. It may be awhile before we have a permanent address. how will we open a UK bank a/c? Of course we can use our Aust bank a/c and credit card but it costs a fortune to use these in other countries, so ideally I would like to open a local bank a/c as soon as poss. Thanks in advance for any help!

Answer 1

There are a few options to do this from Australia. Think it costs about $80.

See here:

http://www.workgateways.com/working-uk-b...

There are 2 options to choose from. Visa First and 1st Contact. See links in article above.