Transfer money to Taiwan - share your experience

[tango42]

Ok, so after a year back to Taiwan from the US, finally I figured out the cheapest and quickest way to transfer fund from the US. You need to open an account with citibank in the US and another citibank account here in Taiwan. Then, it's easy to move fund online from one citiback to another citibank, and fast, within the same day or the next business day, depending the time you do your transfer. The exchange rate in citi bank is as good as can get. I have my mom deposit my paycheck back in the States (I work for a US company remotely) and move it to my citibank here in Taiwan and then, it's your money to spend. The transfer itself is free, and if you use citi's bank ATM, it's free as well. On a non-citi ATM, it's just a few Taiwan dollars per withdrawal.

Are you sure about the "free" part? Aside from HSBC's program for people with very high account balances, I've never heard of any bank offering free international transfers, even if the name of the bank is the same in both countries. Is the Citibank program also for those with high account balances?

mei0319, how is the Citybank account working out for you now?

[denl]

How long does a tt transfer take from Chinatrust bank taiwan to Hsbc UK?

[Raysolve]

I have had the same issues with intermediary banks with unknown fees. Also, using major local banks resulted in very bad exchange fees and international wire fees. In 2007, I stopped and started using a live FX broker. Then in 2008, I switched to their online currency broker to use free international wires and more competitive rates.

The company is called Currency Online https://secure.currencyonline.com/ef/1324/secure/register/trading.

Raysolve
http://www.evaluebusiness.com

[mei0319]

Sorry, haven't been on the forum for a while. Was in Japan for 4 months.
About my CitiBank experience, so far so good. I've been transfering for almost half a year now. It's free to transfer globally within the citi system. Citi in Taiwan don't charge anything for recieving it, either. Though, they would call to notify me that the transfer has come in and wanted to verify my identify over the phone. I usually just cut her short and let her go. There's a $15 monthly fee with my CitiBank account in the States, if the average balance drops below $1500, which is annoying but okay. After the fund is in my Taiwan Citi account, I move it to my checking account from the foreign currency account online and it'd just be the same thing, you can withdraw it with your card or go into one of the branches and do it at the counter. I'd imagine with other multinational banks, you could do the same. The reason I use Citi is that I could open an US Citi account remotely. I was already in Taiwan when I realise I need a better way to transfer fund, and I had no idea, still don't, when I would go back to the States for a visit.
I think Citi here has an English option in their website, though I am not positive. I am, luckly, bilingual.
Cheers,

Mei

[headhonchoII]

By the way, the phone call is to not only verify identity but sometimes to determine the nature of the cash transfer due to money laundering and tax laws.

[yinggeaussie]

As I travel to/from Australia a couple of times a year, I usually bring AUD10,000 cash with me each time the need arises, and get it changed after I arrive and give it to my partner to put in the bank. That way I avoid the Banks ripping me off with their Exchange rates and fees - the cash conversion rate for AUD-TWD being very close to the xe.com mid rates.

For smaller amounts, I have used an ATM.

[mei0319]

Where do you do the exchange? At the airport's currency exchange booth or a bank?

[yinggeaussie]

Where do you do the exchange? At the airport's currency exchange booth or a bank?

Sometimes at the Airport, else usually at a branch of the Bank of Taiwan.

[monokuro]

Thought I'd update this thread as I had another good experience this week.

Requested a transfer from Nationwide International (Isle of Man) on the morning of the 4th. Money was in my Cathay account by the afternoon of the 5th. Once again, it went via an intermediary bank (Citibank) but no charges were made (this isn't a one off, it's always been like that). Cathay charge something tiny to receive, so pretty much bang on the proper rate.

One thing I do (or did) have to do - is go into the bank to sign some form each time a payment is received. My branch said to get around this, if I just signed a load of blank forms - I wouldn't need to go in each time, they just one of the forms for me

Excellent service.

[Timabee]

I've had experience similar to other posts transferring from the U.S. to Taiwan - fees from both the sending institution and an intermediary institution. My U.S. bank TD Bank (formerly Commerce Bank) stated I could avoid the intermediary fee if they (TD) did the currency exchange. This assumed that TD had the ability to exchange into the desired currency (which they did not have as they are limited to "major" currencies). So, TD sent the WT through an intermediary, who charged for the currency exchange. The recieving bank (in Taiwan) did not chage a fee. I have not attempted to independently verify the explanation.

The post referencing Citibank accounts sounds pretty good. I had heard one needed to maintain a fairly substantial aggregate balance with Citi (all accounts and investments in total) to qualify for free transfer services but Mei's experience appears to settle that particular question. Defintely worth looking into.

I had earlier posted re: AMEX but later learned they limited their free transfer to domestic account only.

Have any U.S. posters had experience with USAA? They are a quite large financial service company specializing in servicing the military but "membership" is essentially open to anyone. Their "bank" is strictly online. I have been told that accounts holders can use any ATM they choose for withdrawals with no fee from USAA (whether the ATM owner charges a fee is a different story - but there are ATMs in the U.S. that do not charge). Not sure if this is the case in Taiwan or not. If so, it seems one could open a USAA account, pay any/all bills online and satisfy cash requirements by accessing a no-fee Taiwan based ATM network. I would be interested in hearing whether those of you actually IN Taiwan know of or have experienced problems with USAA.