Sending US dollars to China electronically - best way?

[Martin B]

2 minutes ago, homerjay1011 said:

Hi everyone,

I'm a complete novice when it come to money transfer stuff. I plan to wire money using BoA to CCB. What's all this about sending USD as opposed to RMB? How does that work when the person in China receives USD in their band account with RMB in it?

 

Thanks for the help!

You send in USD and the recipient receives RMB at some conversion rate minus fees. I use the APP 'Wise' (formerly Transferwise) for these transfers. Reasonable fees, quick, and easy to use. There are other apps available (eg Xoom), and some more expensive old-school options as well (eg wire transfers, Western union). 

[Randy W]

16 minutes ago, homerjay1011 said:

Hi everyone,

I'm a complete novice when it come to money transfer stuff. I plan to wire money using BoA to CCB. What's all this about sending USD as opposed to RMB? How does that work when the person in China receives USD in their band account with RMB in it?

 

Thanks for the help!

The CCB will maintain the USD amount as a balance separate from the RMB amount until the recipient asks to convert it.

You get the best conversion rate that way - most services (including BofA) make money off the buy/ask spread if you convert it before sending.

BofA wire transfers are how I always transfer money - usually around $10,000 to $20,000 at a time. Other services may be cheaper if you are sending less money, since they charge $45 regardless of the amount transferred, but be aware of how much they are making off the conversion.

Edited June 2, 2022 by Randy W (see edit history)

[homerjay1011]

That makes sense. I plan on sending a smaller amount, around $500, but will eventually be sending $10,000+.

Question about receiving usd in the ccb account. My wife is in the US with me and her chinese phone number no longer works. Do you think this will be an issue? Or is it simple to convert the usd to rmb?

[Randy W]

3 hours ago, homerjay1011 said:

That makes sense. I plan on sending a smaller amount, around $500, but will eventually be sending $10,000+.

Question about receiving usd in the ccb account. My wife is in the US with me and her chinese phone number no longer works. Do you think this will be an issue? Or is it simple to convert the usd to rmb?

lol - It's unclear what you're trying to do. Send money to your wife in the US??

If you are sending money to her account in China, she will need to be able to manage it, including being able to receive text messages from the bank. 

The CCB app may give her access to the account, IF it will work overseas, but it just doesn't seem like a good idea, unless she can discuss what she's doing with the bank in advance.

But, yes, conversion is a fairly simple process, although they may need her signature on the paperwork.

[homerjay1011]

Hah i could see how that might come across as odd.

Trying to actually send money to her parents, but her parents won't give us their bank information cause they don't want to take our money. So once it's in her ccb account, she plans on sending red pockets via wechat and guilting them into taking it lol

Seems like the best course of action is for her to call ccb in advance to ensure there aren't any issues.

[Randy W]

1 hour ago, homerjay1011 said:

Hah i could see how that might come across as odd.

Trying to actually send money to her parents, but her parents won't give us their bank information cause they don't want to take our money. So once it's in her ccb account, she plans on sending red pockets via wechat and guilting them into taking it lol

Seems like the best course of action is for her to call ccb in advance to ensure there aren't any issues.

You COULD simply send RMB (have BofA do the conversion) - a little more expensive that way, but possibly more expedient under the circumstances.

[Martin B]

10 hours ago, homerjay1011 said:

Hah i could see how that might come across as odd.

Trying to actually send money to her parents, but her parents won't give us their bank information cause they don't want to take our money. So once it's in her ccb account, she plans on sending red pockets via wechat and guilting them into taking it lol

Seems like the best course of action is for her to call ccb in advance to ensure there aren't any issues.

Does your wife have Alipay? You can use Wise to send money directly from your checking account to her Alipay (she will receive it in RMB), she can then transfer it to her WeChat, and send the red envelope. We've done this twice without any issues, it's quick, can all be done from my phone, and fees are very reasonable. 

See here: https://wise.com/us/blog/new-send-cny-instantly-to-alipay-users

Edited June 3, 2022 by Barfus (see edit history)

[homerjay1011]

She does have alipay, so that might be a good option!  Does alipay have some sort of bank account number or does wise have a send to alipay option?

Also, when using services like xoom or wise, does it automatically convert it to rmb? Or is it a choice you have to make?

[Randy W]

13 hours ago, homerjay1011 said:

She does have alipay, so that might be a good option!  Does alipay have some sort of bank account number or does wise have a send to alipay option?

Also, when using services like xoom or wise, does it automatically convert it to rmb? Or is it a choice you have to make?

Xoom will send ONLY in RMB - be sure to check their conversion rate - THAT is where they make their money.

I've never used Wise, but barfus said earlier, "You can use Wise to send money directly from your checking account to her Alipay (she will receive it in RMB)"

[Martin B]

On 6/7/2022 at 11:38 AM, homerjay1011 said:

She does have alipay, so that might be a good option!  Does alipay have some sort of bank account number or does wise have a send to alipay option?

Also, when using services like xoom or wise, does it automatically convert it to rmb? Or is it a choice you have to make?

Wise will give you the USD->RMB conversion rate before you send the money and lock it in for 10 minutes. I don't recall there being an option to send USD. I know Wise is a very widely used (including by us a few times) and overall they are pretty competitive when you take into account fees + conversion rate. 

For the Alipay option, we just entered the email address associated with my wife's Alipay account as the recipient.  If you're worried, you can do a test transfer of something like $50 to see how it goes. 

[homerjay1011]

Thanks for all the help everyone!

Managed to easily transfer some money via wise for father's day!

[Randy W]

On 6/9/2022 at 5:50 AM, Barfus said:

Wise will give you the USD->RMB conversion rate before you send the money and lock it in for 10 minutes. I don't recall there being an option to send USD. I know Wise is a very widely used (including by us a few times) and overall they are pretty competitive when you take into account fees + conversion rate. 

For the Alipay option, we just entered the email address associated with my wife's Alipay account as the recipient.  If you're worried, you can do a test transfer of something like $50 to see how it goes. 

I'm looking at Wise - they have a "same currency" option (i.e., USD), which allows sending to China as an option. That may work out to be cheaper and easier than using my BofA account.

Edited September 6, 2022 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

A new option (from a Xoom email)

 

Send to China with speed and ease. Hi Randolph, Now you can make quick and direct payments to friends and family in China who use Alipay, with Xoom. If you send to loved ones in China, there’s a good chance some of them use Alipay regularly to spend and send money. Instead of filling out all their bank info for a deposit, just enter their Alipay ID to get started. Download the Xoom App or go to Xoom.com on your computer or phone!    Send Money Now

Fees and limits apply.
Limit 50,000 CNY per transaction to Alipay customers.

Edited November 4, 2022 by Randy W (see edit history)