Can I open a bank account that works in both the US and China?

[Cody]

My wife, who is living with me in Pennsylvania, wants to open a bank account for her mother in China. She wants to be able to add a hundred dollars per month to the account and give access to the funds to her mother. Are there banks that operate in the United States and China, where an ATM card would work in both countries?

[Randy W]

My wife, who is living with me in Pennsylvania, wants to open a bank account for her mother in China. She wants to be able to add a hundred dollars per month to the account and give access to the funds to her mother. Are there banks that operate in the United States and China, where an ATM card would work in both countries?

 

Bank of America and China Construction Bank have an agreement where the BofA ATM card can be used at a CCB ATM with no charge, and a competitive conversion rate.

[SheLikesME?]

My wife, who is living with me in Pennsylvania, wants to open a bank account for her mother in China. She wants to be able to add a hundred dollars per month to the account and give access to the funds to her mother. Are there banks that operate in the United States and China, where an ATM card would work in both countries?

 

Bank of America and China Construction Bank have an agreement where the BofA ATM card can be used at a CCB ATM with no charge, and a competitive conversion rate.

This is good to know. Thanks Randy.

 

I have a friend trying to set up a business where he will buy batteries from China. I am trying to help with this through a friend of mine over there. We may pay this person and it sounds like a good method. Also wife wants to show some expenses in overseas activity on taxes.

[Beachey]

Another option, I know China Merchants Bank has a branch in New York City depending on how close you are to the city in Pennsylvania.

[Randy W]

My wife, who is living with me in Pennsylvania, wants to open a bank account for her mother in China. She wants to be able to add a hundred dollars per month to the account and give access to the funds to her mother. Are there banks that operate in the United States and China, where an ATM card would work in both countries?

 

Bank of America and China Construction Bank have an agreement where the BofA ATM card can be used at a CCB ATM with no charge, and a competitive conversion rate.

This is good to know. Thanks Randy.

 

I have a friend trying to set up a business where he will buy batteries from China. I am trying to help with this through a friend of mine over there. We may pay this person and it sounds like a good method. Also wife wants to show some expenses in overseas activity on taxes.

 

 

But they (CCB) have a limit of 4500RMB in one day or thereabouts (it can vary by machine - the one near the university was only 2000RMB per day).

 

With the CCB/BofA agreement, we are able to wire money for free, but the BofA has plenty of hoops to jump through if the amount is over $1000. We are able to get around this, however, by wiring from my TDAmeritrade account through the BofA for free (although someone skims $10 off it along the way).

Edited May 6, 2011 by Randy W (see edit history)

[TLB]

 

 

 

But they (CCB) have a limit of 4500RMB in one day or thereabouts (it can vary by machine - the one near the university was only 2000RMB per day).

 

With the CCB/BofA agreement, we are able to wire money for free, but the BofA has plenty of hoops to jump through if the amount is over $1000. We are able to get around this, however, by wiring from my TDAmeritrade account through the BofA for free (although someone skims $10 off it along the way).

 

thanks for the info on the CCB/BofA relationship; my credit union has a joint account for us, and she has an ATM card; there's a 1$ charge each time she withdraws, which is annoying but not really a big deal since she only withdraws once a month. The info on wiring for free is valuable, I'll have to check that out.

 

Oh, and Randy, thanks for the $10...

[bullmastiff]

HSBC . you can open both accounts in USA and China. then, have power of attorney for her mother.

min. balance $100 K ; could be in investment also ,eg. IRA acct.

[dnoblett]

But they (CCB) have a limit of 4500RMB in one day or thereabouts (it can vary by machine - the one near the university was only 2000RMB per day).

 

With the CCB/BofA agreement, we are able to wire money for free, but the BofA has plenty of hoops to jump through if the amount is over $1000. We are able to get around this, however, by wiring from my TDAmeritrade account through the BofA for free (although someone skims $10 off it along the way).

 

thanks for the info on the CCB/BofA relationship; my credit union has a joint account for us, and she has an ATM card; there's a 1$ charge each time she withdraws, which is annoying but not really a big deal since she only withdraws once a month. The info on wiring for free is valuable, I'll have to check that out.

 

Oh, and Randy, thanks for the $10...

On my trips to China I use to use the ATM card from my credit union, worked fine, recently started to charge a fee on international transactions.

 

A couple years ago I sent over a card from credit union for Mum to use, but for some reason it would not work for her.

 

Last summer I learned of that BofA relationship, and it worked great when my wife was over there last summer.

 

A word of caution, inform the bank of this, or their fraud prevention department may simply shut the card off if used in China.

[Beachey]

HSBC . you can open both accounts in USA and China. then, have power of attorney for her mother.

min. balance $100 K ; could be in investment also ,eg. IRA acct.

 

The problem with HSBC is you can not use the same account in China and the US. They are two different banks owned by the same company. So there is no advantage to HSBC over CCB/BOA. BOA owns some percentage of CCB which is why the ATM withdrawals are free. BOA and CCB are also throughout the US and China respectively while HSBC is only in some US states and I have only seen HSBC in big Chinese cities.

 

Though I have had issues with BOA so I do not use them.

 

I use Wells Fargo International Personal Banking to do wire transfers which cost $20 each transfer. You need a non-US address to set up that account however.

[foobaz123]

I'll toss in the simple option of Paypal. I put money in my Paypal account via the website for lao po to pay the rent on our apartment there. She goes to the ATM near the apartment and pulls it out. No fees or anything else that I've noticed. As a bonus, it works in places where my normal bank card doesn't for some reason.

[bullmastiff]

The problem with HSBC is you can not use the same account in China and the US. They are two different banks owned by the same company. So there is no advantage to HSBC over CCB/BOA. BOA owns some percentage of CCB which is why the ATM withdrawals are free. BOA and CCB are also throughout the US and China respectively while HSBC is only in some US states and I have only seen HSBC in big Chinese cities

 

 

True . Only Big Chinese cities. You can do everything on line . No fee.

BOA , you must notify them when you are travelling in China so they won't freeze your account.

If Paypal works and doesn't cost much , that's great way.

otherwise, wire transfer it ( $40 fee each time ) . Not to do it everymonth, instead save the money and send it every 4 -5 months .

[Beachey]

How does PayPal work? Can you get a PayPal ATM card? I have seen many criticisms of PayPal privacy practices so I have never linked my bank account to them and just charge it to my credit card when I have to use PayPal.

[Guest ExChinaExpat]

How does PayPal work? Can you get a PayPal ATM card? I have seen many criticisms of PayPal privacy practices so I have never linked my bank account to them and just charge it to my credit card when I have to use PayPal.

 

I have used PayPal for several years. Before I left for China, I sold a car to a friend. She transfers money every month from her US bank account, into PayPal. I can then transfer the funds into my US bank account. There is a fee for this transaction however, but it's very efficient and secure. PayPal uses the most up-to-date "HTTPS" protocol, for secure transactions. It is safe, it is secure as any bank, if not moreso.

 

Yes, you can get a PayPal ATM card. This ATM card will enable you, or the one in possession of it to withdraw funds from the PayPal account just like a bank. There is a PIN code associated with it. I gave the PayPal ATM card to my friend in China along with the PIN code. They could withdraw funds directly from any ATM machine in China. It's a very secure way to provide and transfer funds Internationally.

 

Once you open the PayPal account, it will take a little effort to set up the transfers, but once they are set, it will be easy from that day forward. PayPal works hard to ensure your privacy and security, and will alert you whenever they feel someone or something may be violating your privacy. In this day and age, you must provide personal information to any bank, or other service to manage your funds. Because PayPal is International, and operates 24/7, there are always support staff available to talk to. However, I suggest you not tell them you intend to give a PayPal ATM or credit card to a third party so they can withdraw funds. That's just none of their business, and besides, if you tell them, they may lock your account.

Edited May 8, 2011 by JiangsuExpat (see edit history)

[foobaz123]

As to paypal, I ordered a second card in lao po's name and then mailed it to her after it came here. She uses it there in the same manner that I use mine here.

 

As to getting money in to it, there are two ways I know of.

 

The first is the standard "add money" option on the website. That takes a few days and is free.

 

The second is what we've come to call "paypal shuffle". In short, you send money to person X (a family member or such) and they bounce it right back to you. If you use the Personal options you can do this for free. The advantage is that it ends up in your account immediately, instead of several days later. To use the instant transfer option, you need a credit card attached to your paypal account. Amusingly, you can use the check card that goes to the checking account you've already attached to paypal, if you don't want to use an actual credit card.

 

So, with that in mind. Every month, I do the paypal shuffle with my brother to get the rent money for the apartment in place. Then she can just go to the ATM and pull it out. Simple.

[Beachey]

So, with that in mind. Every month, I do the paypal shuffle with my brother to get the rent money for the apartment in place. Then she can just go to the ATM and pull it out. Simple.

 

I am curious, if you are doing this every month, why do you need to do the PayPal shuffle since you should be able to do it by the regular method since it is planned.

 

If it is last minute need, the PayPal shuffle is a good workaround. As I alluded to above, PayPal has a habit of freezing accounts (among other things) for unusual behaviour in your account. How long have you been doing this?