Transferring Money

[Jatuke]

Has anyone tried transferring money to China through the Bank of China or Western Union? Any experiences of sending or transferring money to China?

[Joseph-1]

The best and simpest way to send money to your girl is to open an account in the U.S. and get an ATM card with the Visa Logo on it. She can access these cards from most any Bank Of China ATM. I used one while in China and they work very well. The only thing to remember is that the card has to be on one of the global networks such as Quest or Cirrus, Interlink or Plus and Star are good networks.

I use BB&T Branch Bank & Trust, but other good banks are Citibank and HSBC. Both have branches in Hong Kong and Mainland China. HSBC has a branch in Guangzhou. My Lynn has her card and it works in her home town.

There are many banks that have these Visa ATM cards. The best beefit is convienience,but also a low transaction fee. If you use an ATM machine its really cheap. You also can go inside the bank and using the pin number at the teller booth you can get cash with the help of the teller. I warn you though that this way accrues a 3% fee in china. That can be a big ouch.

If you want to transfer money into a chinese bank account you have to first get chinese money as usual and the carry it to the bank teller for deposit.There are no direct transfers in china. Western Union exists but for the cost and convienience the U.S. Account and ATM Card are your best bet. Also Visa has a toll free number you can call from China if your card is lost or stolen you can cancel it. However replacement is a difficult process because the bank can only send a new card to your address in the states.

If such happens (Trust me,I learned that hard way) you can get it done easiy in the states but if your in China someone must watch your mail and ship it to you under seperate cover. Absolutley protect your card and youll be fine. Also keep a copy of both sides of the card so you know the number if you have to talk to your bank about it,if its lost or stolen you will know your data. Keep your copy in a safe place. Well hidden.

[Joseph-1]

The best and simpest way to send money to your girl is to open an account in the U.S. and get an ATM card with the Visa Logo on it. She can access these cards from most any Bank Of China ATM. I used one while in China and they work very well. The only thing to remember is that the card has to be on one of the global networks such as Quest or Cirrus, Interlink or Plus and Star are good networks.

I use BB&T Branch Bank & Trust, but other good banks are Citibank and HSBC. Both have branches in Hong Kong and Mainland China. HSBC has a branch in Guangzhou. My Lynn has her card and it works in her home town.

There are many banks that have these Visa ATM cards. The best beefit is convienience,but also a low transaction fee. If you use an ATM machine its really cheap. You also can go inside the bank and using the pin number at the teller booth you can get cash with the help of the teller. I warn you though that this way accrues a 3% fee in china. That can be a big ouch.

If you want to transfer money into a chinese bank account you have to first get chinese money as usual and the carry it to the bank teller for deposit.There are no direct transfers in china. Western Union exists but for the cost and convienience the U.S. Account and ATM Card are your best bet. Also Visa has a toll free number you can call from China if your card is lost or stolen you can cancel it. However replacement is a difficult process because the bank can only send a new card to your address in the states.

If such happens (Trust me,I learned that hard way) you can get it done easiy in the states but if your in China someone must watch your mail and ship it to you under seperate cover. Absolutley protect your card and youll be fine. Also keep a copy of both sides of the card so you know the number if you have to talk to your bank about it,if its lost or stolen you will know your data. Keep your copy in a safe place. Well hidden.

Also if you use the ATM card you dont have to convert currency.Wherever you are your balance will be displayed in the local currency. IE Hong Kong

=HK Dollars Tokyo= Japanese Yen Mainland China =RMB. It a nice way to do stuff. If you use a visa credit card they work in china just as easily. I guess the wosrt thing that can happen is if you lose your card,or are relieved of it by a pickpocket. I lost mine and had to replace it. At that time I was given the toll free number by the consulate at their emergency services number. Its a nice touch since toll free from china comes with a pricetag. This really is toll free. You also can use that number to do ordinary Visa business like check your account status arrange payments on credit cards etc. That number is 10-800-1102-911 Toll Free.

[AngryTexan]

I agree with Jim. Western Union is the only way to go. My fiancee too had the same problems with the ATM card. You can do a Western Union money transfer online, which makes it extremely convenient. The only complaint I have is that it is a bit pricey - typically the fee is 10-12% of the amount you are sending. Ouch

[owenkrout]

I have had no problem at all, in many places in Eastern China, including some rather out of the way places, in using a Bank of America Visa Debit card. There is one trick that you may not have known about. According to how your local bank sets their cards up, you may have to call Visa and have them activate the card for International use. It is easy to do. Your bank should be able to help you with that. The second thing is to be sure to look for an ATM with the Cirrus or whatever signature on it.

 

Doing things that way is the safe and easy way. Also the cheaper way. I have said before and I will say now. Do not use the Bank of China if at all possible. They will rip you off and take forever on anything they can. The Merchants Bank is very good. The Shanghai Pudong is good also, I hear.

 

It is possible to directly transfer funds to a Bank of China account. You do it through one of the Bank of China branches in the US. I have done this through the New York branch. However, again, I say don't do it. They charge a healthy fee on your end and another on the recieving end. They also will take about a month for the money to actually appear in China.

[dave]

yes i used western union for 1000 dollars they charged about 65 dollar fee but very easy to pick up

[markimwaiting]

Has anyone tried transferring money to China through the Bank of China or Western Union? Any experiences of sending or transferring money to China?

I checked Wal-mart.

If there is a Wal-mart in her city, they might be able to help.

There is a Wal-mart in Shenyang, but they didnt have a money recieving department there.

Some that have it is Beijing, Shanghai, GZ and a few more.

Just check it out, I didnt use it, but I did ask and it is available.

[owenkrout]

If you have the money to burn for the fees or if you really need to get it to them as quickly as possible and are going to use Western Union, the Postal Savings Banks now are Western Union pick-up locations. This is the largest bank chain in China in terms of sheer numbers of locations. Basically, anywhere that has a post office has a branch.

[Joseph-1]

The problem with these ATM guys is that they are not taking it to the next step. You will not be there using the card so if the machine does not work, you will not know it, or the reason that it did not work. You will not know that the machine debited your account without giving money. You will not know until your overdraft comes through. Then try to straighten it out on this end with your bank! Have fun!!!   Western Union is the way to go.

I hate to stretch anyones tunic,but I speak fron experience. Using ATM's was my only means in Guangzhou. As for Bank Of China. A machine held my card once because I didnt retrieve it within 10 seconds,but I went back and showed my passport and they gave it back to me,no problem.

Overdrafts are only a problem if you go past what you know you have.

I dont know why people make things so complicated when the arent. Americans in China have a bad tendency to shoot themselves in the foot.

The Chinese love us because most pay too much,and think they are getting a bargain. My girl taught me what I know. The trouble with most American guys is that they try to act like they know everything. If you let your girl handle things youll be pleasently surprised. Foreigners allways get stuffed if they negotiate their own deals.

[Myles]

Aloha from Hawaii.

The interbank electronic transfers is the best way to go. All banks in the

world will accept US Dollars. There is a transaction fee so the larger the

amount the lower the percentage. Same day transfer with funds available

the next day. We have sent money both ways and it works very well.

Travelers Checks get a slightly better rate at the airport money changers.

Cash will get a better rate on the street than the bank.

Myles aka Annakuen'GG

[Jatuke]

Thanks for the many useful perspectives. I'm still doing my research and the views on this thread have been helpful. I'm leaning towards the Western Union route, because I plan on just doing a one time transfer and seems there are less hassles than a bank transfer.

[sysy]

The most straightforward way is for your girl to open a $ account in Bank of China, and just send her a personal check. She can deposit it in her account for a small fee (about RMB 50, I guess) . The only catch, she has to wait for 3 months before she can withdraw. That rule was an old rule; don't know if it has changed. Even 3 months is fast compared to DOS, isn't it?

[newman]

I do use the BOC transfer through my bank. It usually takes a week but it's never failed. The cost is $42 regardless of the amount sent, twenty to my bank and twenty-two for the BOC. From all the posts it might seem that the best way depends on what location you are at and also your loved one in China.

[owenkrout]

Ah, the fees have apparently went down then. As I remember it used to be $35 to the BOC regardless of the amount.

[lele]

Has anyone tried transferring money to China through the Bank of China or Western Union? Any experiences of sending or transferring money to China?

I have got to go with the Bank of China in New York City's Chinatown.

 

They charge a mere $10 (or $15) for rush service to send up to 3000$US. Plus, once deposited into the local bank account (They need to have an account at ZhongGuo YinHong to use this), it is exchanged at the exact rate of 8.28, rather than the ATM exchange rate or cash exchange rate ot 8.2149.

 

The only problem is that even the fast way still takes roughly 1 week to get there.

 

Finally, a huge advantage is that you can withdraw the mony, if sent this way, as US$ or as RMB!!!