I'm interesting in switching to QuesTrade for my QQQ trading. Reason: my trading size is always > 5,000 shares, so the Schwab (CyberTrader) 5,000 share maximum more than doubles my transactions costs. QuesTrade has no maximum. I called to inquire, and the phone rep told me that being a U.S. citizen presents no problem in opening an account, but I'll also need to have a Canadian residence. As close as I can figure, QuesTrade would have saved me about 22,000 in fees last year. Seems like it might be worth setting up some kind of "residence" for those savings. Do any US citizens on ET use QuesTrade? Has anyone else taken the "pseudo-residency" route? Would appreciate hearing any and all pros/cons of this idea.
I've been looking into Questrade for similar reasons. I actually have a Canadian residence, although I live in the UK - so I don't anticipate many problems. You may struggle to get the necessary individual proof of residence (say drivers license, utility bills etc). I suspect with your implied volumes you are trading full time so a "work" reference and geographical location won't be relevant for you. If you could set up Canadian corporation that may do the trick. Be warned, Canadian corporate tax rates are very unfriendly. You may also wish to invesitage setting up a corp and register extra-provincially in the lowest tax jurisdiction (Alberta). For US$22k in savings, it's worth looking into this via a trip to your nearest Canadian city! I'd definitely speak to a chartered accountant and lawyer as well. Another idea: - Rent an apartment for one month, get your account, then ditch the apartment and switch to a PO Box address. Or stay there longer... you'll love the summer lifestyle in a city like Vancouver (where I have a place) . I wouldn't push Questrade to help you on this too much. They may flag you as I suspect their license with Cybertrader limits them to Canadian residents, but more to the point they are likely only allowed to deal with Canadian residents because of the regulators. I notice they are only authorised to accept accounts from residents of 5 provinces. Good luck.
From their web site: Access Up to 3:1 Buying Power On Your Equity When you open a Questrade Margin Account with a minimum of $2,000 you will receive up to $6,000 in buying power on eligible securities How does this comply to the PDT rule?
Have you looked at Genesis? We have the lowest commissions in the street - and we can work something out with you - we do custom pricing as well. Feel free to send me an email, call or a PM.
No PDT for US stock, this is why Canadian residence is required, because SEC spot Canadian broker for to block this kind of workaround.
And here is their reply: "We do accept clients from Italy, the only requirement is that we need you to go to a lawyer to verify that you have legal documentation. The lawyer needs to send us a document signed by a notery". Seems a bit complicated...
These legal approval document are now standard with every brokers, specially if your are not resident, not specific at you.