Money transfer into China nightmare

[Kelby]

Hey there Forumers, long time no see.

 

I've taken a peel through the archives and seen that lots of people have had success transferring money into  China. I spent literaly an entire day trying to do the same, bashing my head against my keyboard and wanting to scream at the Western Union support line, but to no avail. So, I humbly come to you to 1) vent and 2) ask for guidance and 3) give a write-up of sorts.

 

 

For the basics, I am simply trying to get USD from my Bank of the West account to me here in China.

 

Let's get started.

 

 

Stop 1. The ATM

 

So, the most direct and painless way I assumed to be able to get money sent from the states to me was to withdraw it from the ATM. When I first got here three years ago I was shafted by my old workplace when they only paid me 1000 RMB for my first month of work, and in my desperation I stuffed my local credit union (I'm from the US, BTW) card into an ATM and took out a few hundred RMB at a decent rate. Hooray!

 

Things did not work so smoothly when my wife and I went to a Bank of China ATM the other day. Nor did it work at HSBC.

 

There started my first call to Bank of the West (my currentbank, not the aformentioned credit union). they got their records cleared up that I'm in China, and raised my daily withraw rate. They said it should work for any purchases and withdrawls immediately.

 

And then it still didn't work today.

 

 

Stop 2. Western Union (西联汇款)

 

Being told of the almighty powers of Western Union by a (Chinese) friend whose father works in the US and WU's his paycheck back to said friend's mom every month, I figured I'd give it a shot. It looked slick, and neat, and appeared like it would be easier than a wire transfer. That's when my migraine started forming though.

 

I went back and forth between Bank of the West and Western Union's help lines getting everyting figured out. Here are the issues I ran up against.

 

Issue 1: Bank of the West automatically rejects WU transfers assuming they're fraudulent. I stayed on the line with BotW while I tried another transfer and had them earmark it so it wouldn't get automatically shut down (cause I'm not committing fraud). That seemed to work, but after getting all of the issues cleared with my own bank, the thing still wasn't going through.

 

Issue 2: WU's people told me that because I was using a US card from a non-US IP address, by law (supposedly) they had to deny it for security reasons. Using a VPN did not fix this issue. However, I did use their transfer directly from bank account option which seemed to work.

 

Issue 3: Then the transfer was denied with no information given. I recieved an email within an hour after my transfer showing as pending saying I needed to call such and such a number within 4 hours or they would automatically cancel the transfer (it was 2 A.M in Zengzhou at this point). So I called and essentially parroted all of the info on the forms to their superviser who was doing a "confirmation check."

 

After getting al my info Ms. superviser got all awkward and said I'd get a confirmation email within 15 minutes. I didnt. Or, I should say I got a denial instead of a confirmation.

 

I called customer service back and they gave me no reason for denying me, indignantly said "there's no gaurantee a transfer will go through," and essentially told me I can try again but it's essentially luck of the draw. Naturally this is infuriating because if they don't tell me what went wrong, I have no way to know what to fix. Knowing yelling at this poor, obviously outsourced call center women would not help, I turned back to my bank.

 

Issue 4: My bank said it was an issue on their end and suggested I call WU back and have them run the transaction as a "point of sale transaction." WU help had no idea what that is, offered me a coupon code for my trouble and suggested I try from a physical WU location. Unfortunately there appear to be non here in Zhengzhou.

 

 

Stop 3. A Wire transfer.

 

Bank of the West doesn't do international transfer.

 

 

Stop 4. Back Where we Started.

 

As in the reply below, i went to the ATM and ended up getting the cash I needed.

 

The issue: Trying to withdraw from a non-existant Savings account.

 

Moral of the story: No matter how badass you think your Chinese is, switch the stupid machine to English so you don't mash the wrong button and wonder why your money isn't coming out.

 

 

So, what would you have done differentely? What has worked for you other folks moving money into China in the past?

 

Gonna go take some Aspirin now.

 

Edit: For conclusion and clarification.

[Lu]

I always used the ATM. There should be one or more logos on your card that show which international bank agreements they're a part of. Mine says 'Maestro', for example, which means that I can withdraw money from any ATM that also has this logo on it. Not all banks are member of all agreements, so sometimes you have to shop around a bit for different ATMs.

Or could you perhaps ask your parents to do the WU thing? It seems like that might resolve a number of issues. 1) It's their money, so they're very authorised to do this; 2) they're in the US (I assume); 3) they can explain they're sending money to their son who is abroad at the moment, which might sound more reliable than a Chinese fiancee (btw, what business is it of the WU what you're using that money for??).

I have once helped a friend use a different method, I think in some countries it's called hawala. This Chinese friend had found a Portuguese roommate, who was still in Portugal but needed to transfer the 押金. He transfered it to my Dutch bank account (free within the Eurozone) and I withdrew it from my Chinese bank account and gave it to my friend. This works great, provided you know someone you trust who has bank accounts in the relevant countries.

Good luck, and congratulations on the upcoming wedding!

[Kelby]

Thanks so much for the well wishing and the advice!

 

I agree that it's none of their business what I'm doing with the money. It's the same thinking that the US consolate has any time you want to take a Chinese person to the states. I mean I've smuggled tons of lllegal immigrants into the US, but what's to say that's happening this time?

 

My wife and I just walked to the 中行 ATM and took out the money we needed, so for now mischief managed.

 

Edit: Agreement and sarcasm.

[gato]

I would persist with the ATM method.

[889]

The post serves as a good reminder that anyone heading to China, or travelling internationally generally, should have at least two bank accounts back home and carry at least two ATM cards. And have an emegency fallback in place if those cards are lost or such.

 

As to explaining the why behind your transfer, there are money-laundering rules in place which mean you can expect to be asked to explain yourself now whenever transferring larger sums to or from the US.

 

In any event, I would keep trying the ATM card in different places; the system can be temperamental. Another possibility is to set up Paypal accounts in the US and China, linked to your US and Chinese bank accounts, respectively.

[Lu]

As in the reply below, i went to the ATM and ended up getting the cash I needed.

The issue: Trying to withdraw from a non-existant Savings account.

Oh I've done this too. In Taiwan though, and fortunately I, too, eventually figured it out by trying a few more times and pressing different buttons. Glad to hear it's all resolved!

I kinda get banks and WU being wary of large amounts of money leaving the country, but I somehow seem to have seen that it was somewhere in the 1000-2000 dollar range and does that really warrant that kind of suspicion? I think you can take more than that with you on the plane without declaring. As to 'marriage scams' and such, once someone has decided that they want to give some amount of money to their partner, what business is it of the bank as long as they don't overdraft and are sure of the receipient's bank account? It's not the bank's business whether your partner is after your money, no? The visa thing is a bit different I think, as illegal immigration doesn't only affect the smuggler but also society as a whole.

[889]

"It's not the bank's business whether your partner is after your money, no?"

You are completely missing the point.

In the U.S. particularly, the government has in effect deputized the banks as its investigative agents. If a bank doesn't make the inquiries it is required to make by law and regulation, it can face a lot of problems, and to avoid any risk of these problems, banks are usually very cautious these days and impose those "tell us about it" requirements across the board, without much attention to amount, especially on international transactions, which the powers-that-be now regard as inherently suspicious.

 

You might want to lament the situation, but the situation is what it is.

[Lu]

I'm not 'completely missing the point', I just didn't know things are like that in the US. And now I do. I'm glad banks in my country don't have such regulations.

[889]

I meant you missed the point in my previous post, which did set out the situation: "As to explaining the why behind your transfer, there are money-laundering rules in place which mean you can expect to be asked to explain yourself now whenever transferring larger sums to or from the US."

[陳德聰]

I feel for you. I spent a long time thinking I just wasn't able to use ATMs anymore when the one near my house stopped working. It was only about a week or so later that I tried a different ATM and I had my finances back in order, but imagine asking people if they know where the second closest ATM is and having them confused about why you'd ever want to walk farther than you have to. Sigh, oh China.

[Kelby]

Well, when I went last night the peculiar thing was that three out of the four BoC ATM's still didn't take the card. I think I'mma stick with the one that worked until it doesn't anymore.

[Botterli]

The atm close to me doesn't work with my foreign card if I use Chinese language, but if I choose English it gives me an option to choose "overseas card", which it doesn't seem to offer in the Chinese edition.

[imron]

three out of the four BoC ATM's still didn't take the card

If there's an ICBC near you try that.  Historically they have had better support for international cards.

[889]

If you're in a very big city like Beijing or Shanghai, remember that Citibank ATMs also have a reputation for working when everything else has failed. Of course, even Citibank won't work if it's a problem with the card itself or your home bank.

[Simon_CH]

The first thing before heading to China is always to open a bank account with an internationally operating bank that supports all major transfer methods, most importantly Maestro. Then make sure your monthly (or daily, weekly) withdrawal limit is high enough for your purposes. All BOC, ICBC and most other Chinese banks' ATMs support Maestro so you shouldn't have a problem withdrawing money anywhere in China. The US has a somewhat antiquated banking system exacerbated by the fact that their regulations are extremely strict (and often: stupid) when it comes to international transfers. But once you've set it up it works without any problems for all of my friends. 

 

I would really not bother with international transfers anymore, such a hassle and in the end more expensive than repeated withdrawals of up to RMB 3000 (ICBC and other ATMS). 

[Sinofaze]

 

Issue 4: My bank said it was an issue on their end and suggested I call WU back and have them run the transaction as a "point of sale transaction." WU help had no idea what that is, offered me a coupon code for my trouble and suggested I try from a physical WU location. Unfortunately there appear to be non here in Zhengzhou.

 

There are loads of WU agents in Zhengzhou, mostly in the branches of Agricultural Bank of China. You can find an agent nearest to you here-

 

https://www.westernunion.com/us/en/home.html?method=load&countryCode=US&languageCode=en&pagename=HomePage&tid=t_p_in

 

I've used WU in Zhengzhou and other parts of China, both sending and receiving payments. I think you misunderstood your friend's advice about his father sending money in. It works better if you go to a WU agent in person with the cash. Obviously, you will need somebody US-side (family/friend) to make a cash-transfer at their nearest WU agent. They take in their passport and complete a simple form, listing the destination WU agent to you (again- the link) and you go to collect with your passport. It's all documented and you get given receipts.

 

If your US bank has on-line services, you can settle with your family/friend who is making the transfer.

 

I myself am currently looking to see if my home-country's bank will make online transfers to my Chinese account. The bank showed me how to transfer money from China to home using international banking codes. I've yet to determine if this method works home-to-china or if it can be done through both banks' online services, if you get me. I shall have answers next week, I hope.

 

Off-topic, I'm interested in what you said about a previous employer-

 

 

When I first got here three years ago I was shafted by my old workplace when they only paid me 1000 RMB for my first month of work

 

Was this employer in Zhengzhou? I'm keen to know and have a good idea who this may be.

 

PM me, if you like.

[zhouhaochen]

USD Money transfers into China usually work very well, however you have to be VERY CAREFUL to write the receipients details correctly.

 

I am amazed to hear that there are banks in the US that do not do international transfers

 

I would stay away from Western Union, because they are simply too much work and have too high fees, bank transfers get the job done nicely and much cheaper.

[Angelina]

Kelby, do you ever go back to the US? If you go there soon you can get new cards and then you will be fine. Also, you can get someone to talk to your bank, maybe friends/family members. 

 

I have been using Visa Electron debit cards to withdraw money in China for a few years now. I haven't been able to use my Maestro debit cards. If debits cards work, anything can work.