“... You should be able to get most any chequing/checking account that a regular US Citizen/resident can get, but many banks aren't really aware of how to sign up a Canadian. For this reason, I suggest going to a bank in a major border town if possible, since they've likely done this before. Also, you should call beforehand and even ask to speak to the branch manager(s) to determine their familiarity with foreigner bank accounts, and perhaps ask them to do a bit of research with their own information systems, since it should be possible with any of the major US Banks."