Large International Money Transfer - What to Do?

sd4f on 05/03/2019 - 05:15

I've left Australia and gotten a job overseas. I've got sizeable savings still in my Australian bank account, which I would like to use to purchase a property in Europe.

I've never done this, nor lived outside of Australia before, so I haven't got the slightest clue about what to do, insofar as shop around for better exchange rates.

This brings me to my concerns; the banks offer poor exchange rates, so I've had a look around, and want to learn what is the procedure that takes place, for instance, do I need to transfer money to a forex account and then they'll send the agreed sum in the new currency into another account (hopefully my one as well) or do I have it all wrong?

Are there any things to be really careful about? Since I am overseas, will I have problems dealing with my bank (CBA) in Australia to release the money?

Financial

Comments

  • Cheap Steve on 05/03/2019 - 06:23
    +4

    I lived in the USA last year and transferred $50k Aussie dollars from my CBA account to my US Wells Fargo account using Transferwise for a much better exchange rate than the banks. I understand your concerns as I was also nervous transferring large dollar amounts between countries. Start will a $100 transfer first to get used to the process.

    • pyramid on 05/03/2019 - 11:54
      -1

      +1 for transferwise

  • aoeueoa on 05/03/2019 - 07:12
    -1

    HIFX will do it. Good rates.

  • 2jzzzz on 05/03/2019 - 07:53

    Can't open a ING account, transfer the cash to it and then over a period of time, take it out at near Visa rates from ATM?

    • stirlo on 05/03/2019 - 09:02
      +1

      Wow, withdrawing a house deposit in cash through an ATM… What to do with all the cash/hope you don't get mugged. Ironically its does seem like it could be the lowest fee option.

  • 7am on 05/03/2019 - 08:32
    +4

    Transferwise worked for me.

    • 7am on 05/03/2019 - 15:27

      You also get a better rate on your first transfer, or if someone's referred you. If you need a referral, let me know.

  • quirki on 05/03/2019 - 09:08

    A big caveat if you're using transferwise over a few transfers - the first time you do a transfer the rate will be great, but they do a dodgy where they widen the spread after a few transfers because by then you implicitly trust that they have the best rate so don't shop around!

  • Nexo on 05/03/2019 - 10:12
    +1

    I know I'll cop a lot of shit for suggesting this but hear me out. You can move your money through cryptocurrency. You would have to put your money in a cryptocurrency exchange in Australia, then make an account at an EU exchange, purchase cryptocurrency in the Australian exchange with your AUD, withdraw your cryptocurrency to your EU exchange account, when it transfers intp your EU exchange (which should take 5-10 mins) then you sell it and get credited euro/pounds in your EU exchange account, from there you should be able to withdraw it to an EU bank.

    So from the moment you buy the crypto in Aus and transfer it to EU it should take a total of 10 mins max, add 10-15 mins for selling/buying. The cost to you would be transaction fees and withdrawal fees of about 2-3%. You would probably get hit much harder through bank fees and conversion fees if you use banks to move money internationally I think. Crypto isn't fluctuating wildly these days at all and this could be done through buying/purchasing Ethereum (ETH) which is generally more stable than Bitcoin (BTC). You can see how the price fluctuates if you google 'Ethereum coinbase' or 'Bitcoin coinbase'.

    Currently ETH is 176.8 AUD on an Australian exchange which I use, if you have $50k aud that would get you roughly 281 ETH ($49,680 AUD) after purchasing/transaction fees.

    After withdrawing from the Aus exchange you will have 280.999 ETH (it costs 17 cents to withdraw any amount of ETH).

    The current ETH price in EU is 112.6 Euros ($180.3 AUD). Let's suppose EU exchange charges roughly the same fees (about $300) then you should be left with 279.3 ETH after you sell your ETH in the exchange.

    279.3 x 112.6 EU = 31,449 EU. 31,449 Euros to AUD = $50,310 AUD.

    Lastly, the only risk I see is that ETH price could fluctuate in the 15-30 mins it takes you to get everything done but it's quite low these days in my opinion. Definitely worth considering I feel. Just make sure there's no legal complications with this method though.

    I would advise you seek a financial adviser and do your own research before going through with any action. If you have any questions please ask!

    • havebeerbelywillsumo on 05/03/2019 - 11:28
      -2

      …and you did "cop" LOL

      and no reason why from the neg nazis as usual, no idea of the validity of your post but the last line indicates sincerity to me, pity it has been seemingly ignored.

      • Nexo on 05/03/2019 - 12:58

        Haha, I knew it would happen, it's so typical of lazy Ozbargainers to neg posts and comments that they disagree with or don't understand on here but they don't have the time to respond to point out any flaws or complications they see with the advice. They just see the word crypto and press neg because mainstream media has scared them so much with FUD headlines.

        My friend which moved overseas has used this method before so I definitely know it works, but I always recommended professional financial advice from someone that knows the local laws and regulation, to be safe. Hopefully op sees it :)

        And if anyone has any issues with my suggestion please say something, I'll be happy to explain.

        • afoveht on 05/03/2019 - 21:18
          +1

          Yes, this, not hoarding hodling, is a perfect use case for crypto and hopefully what it will be used for after the greedy speculators move on to something else.

  • iDroid on 05/03/2019 - 11:03
    +1

    Transferwise is awesome for this.

    You can create "borderless accounts", I have a USD, EURO, Sterling and AUD accounts which I can instantly move money between at awesome rates.

    I've been using Transferwise for a number of years with excellent results.

    I highly recommend them.

  • onetwothreefour on 05/03/2019 - 11:51

    Withdraw it all and take it as cash. Nothing can go wrong.

  • [Deactivated] on 05/03/2019 - 12:12
    +2

    Why nobody has mentioned about Citi Bank? You can transfer money from Australia to overseas without any fee as long as you have a Citi bank account in the country you are moving to. Exchange rate is one of the best as well.

    • hal9000 on 13/03/2019 - 12:12

      citibank ftw!

  • cashless on 05/03/2019 - 12:59

    transferwise

  • GG57 on 05/03/2019 - 14:28

    I would be more worried about buying a property overseas than in transferring the funds.
    Have you researched all the ins and outs of doing that?
    Do you, as I assume a non-citizen / maybe non-resident, have to fulfil any other obligations before you buy?
    What is the property market like in your new country of residence? Is this a bigger or smaller risk than other forms of investment?
    How easily can you sell the property if you need to leave in a hurry?

    Etc.

  • Sunshines bright on 11/03/2019 - 10:49

    Check rates here. https://trading.worldfirst.com/

  • txb on 13/03/2019 - 22:15

    Why transferwise over currencyfair?

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