Large Money Transfers to Philippines

[hk blues]

2 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

Perhaps I misunderstand your comments, HK, and others, regarding maximum transfer amounts permitted into or out of Philippines?

I have transferred in excess of US$100k out of Philippines and several times amounts greater than $20k (all in single transactions) into the country. I have always used bank to bank wire transfers and no questions asked. The U.S. fee is around $15 and the Philippine bank charges $4? (or maybe it was $8? I forget now...). The transfers take one to two days to clear usually.

No misunderstanding Tom, I myself stated I have transferred in excess of $10k into the Philippines with no questions asked BUT that doesn't mean it's correct, simply another example of rules not being applied here. I would not assume it will always be the case though, somebody may get tripped up and face problems if a zealous bank employee is having a bad day and decides to follow the rules.

As for transferring out, Tom, I specifically remember you talking about this and staying you had to show documentation proving the source of the cash so I'm confused that you're saying no questions asked.

Anyhow, remember where we are and how inconsistently rules are applied - what you get away with today you may not tomorrow.

[Tommy T.]

21 minutes ago, hk blues said:

As for transferring out, Tom, I specifically remember you talking about this and staying you had to show documentation proving the source of the cash so I'm confused that you're saying no questions asked.

Actually, you are right about that - I forgot... I changed bank branches right after that since I moved my abode. Since then, no questions asked. Same bank, different branch. And much friendlier and more efficient personnel too. Sorry for confusion. 

I have worked with several different employees at this other branch and nobody asks anything, just process payments, etc.

[hk blues]

On 2/21/2021 at 11:24 AM, Tommy T. said:

Since then, no questions asked. Same bank, different branch.

To the surprise of nobody at all, Tom!

[Balisidar]

On 2/20/2021 at 4:58 AM, jimdones said:

I just checked the Transferwise FAQ and they hardly allow 10th of the amount, so the limit is pretty much the amount Dave mentioned above. The receiving bank may also ask a lot of questions when you deposit $100K. Better speak to a live banker at both sides before making such a transfer.

 

Definitely Jim.  When we talked to our bank here (BDO) before transferring around 65k USD for buying our house and appliances they wanted a copy of the bill of sale for the house.  They advised us they were following anti-money laundering laws so we were meticulous on the sending and receiving ends in explaining what the transfer was for.

No problems after that.

 

[Maxheadspace]

On 2/20/2021 at 11:39 PM, insite said:

If you have a HSBC account there and one here ( Premium ) it can be transferred online free !

I think City Bank offer something similar but I do not have any details.

HSBC sounds like the wisest way for me to move the large sums of money, since I will also be wanting a bank that has branches in both countries for future day-to-day transactions.  I looked at the HSBC site and the Premium account has too high of requirements for my interests, but their Advance account seems about perfect.  And the Advance account will allow international transfers as well.  If I recall, Citibank has branches in both the US and Philippines, so maybe I'll check that as well.  Thanks for the tip!

[Youngster]

Schwab brokerage charges me $15 for outgoing international wire transfer and BDO $5 for incoming wire transfer, so my total fee per transfer is $20 and takes 2 days usually to complete it.  But I normally use Xoom to transfer less than $3000 for cheaper fees between $7.99 and $15.99.

[Dave Hounddriver]

44 minutes ago, Youngster said:

Schwab brokerage charges me $15 for outgoing international wire transfer

And that is for a Large Money Transfer?  Like over $10,000?

[Youngster]

32 minutes ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

And that is for a Large Money Transfer?  Like over $10,000?

Per it's fee schedule.

 

Fees

Schwab does not charge a fee to receive a wire into your Schwab Brokerage or Schwab Bank Accounts.

Outgoing wires carry a fee of $25 per wire requested by paper form and $15 per wire requested online.

Limits

There are no limits to the number of wires or dollar amounts sent into or out of Schwab Brokerage or Schwab Bank checking accounts, but there must be adequate funds available to send outbound wires.

[amcan13]

I have sent 80K bank to bank wire for $45.   I sent from my account in USA to my account in Philippines.   My wife went in to bank and chatted up the manager so they knew what was going on and we also got expedited treatment when we came in to get the money in cash.  The bank actually drove out to check we were building a house I assume because the US laundrying and terrorism laws.  I was able to get my name on the account after the proper interview by the manager. I send large amounts a few times a year and live off it for months until the next top off.  I do the transactions online with my US bank website.  Make sure you have MFA for your banking online, that is a whole other topic.

One piece of advice is me sure you file your FBAR in the US which I now think is due at the same time as taxes now.  But the bottom line is you should be able to move large amounts of your own cash around as long as you declare interest and file FBAR.

[Scooter]

On 2/20/2021 at 10:39 PM, insite said:

If you have a HSBC account there and one here ( Premium ) it can be transferred online free !

I think City Bank offer something similar but I do not have any details.

I tried to set up Citibank in the us so when I came here I could get to my money easy but was told I couldn't just walk in the Philippines branch and get money out cause the systems weren't connected