martinbkk

I've had some very useful responses to previous questions here and hopefully someone can point me in the right direction on this.

I will arrive in Doha with some sort of visa but definitely not with RP in place. Whilst I know this might happen quickly I am fairly confident it will not, at least not within the first month.

How do I take the money I will be paid, likely in the form of a cheque drawn on a local bank, and get it to my family through one of my existing bank accounts either in UK or Thailand?

Thanks

OriginalSunshine

difficult. try and set up an HSBC account where you are now, and then get them to open an account in Doha as well so that you can get the local cheque paid.

also note that it's close to if not illegal to work in Doha without an employment visa.....

jam25mack

When I was in Kuwait I used to get paid by cheque and then they would let me cash it at one of the local banks. Then take you big handful of readies and western union (or whatever) it into a bank account elsewhere.

Just tell them your visa is being processed.

scot47

I don't know about Qatar but in KSA Western Union is quite expensive. The more you send, the more it costs.

britexpat76

Western Union is expensive. QNB let you open a basic account that you can use to draw money and send home. Also find out which bank the company uses as they would probably do something to help

co durham boy

Tell them to pay you cash . Cash is king here , it will be no big deal for them and less hassle for you .

Johnnyboy11

My Sponsor opened a Commercial Bank of Qatar savings account for me whilst I was on a Business Visa. No problems being paid into the account and then using a bank transfer to send cash home to the UK. You'll needed an IBAN number and Swift number for the UK account which was easy to get.

gottheTshirt

If you are paid by cheque then you can cash the cheque at your companies bank.

Why not simply ask your company to transfer part of your salary to your UK bank ?

martinbkk

Thanks folks some good ideas here. Seems it might not be a complete black hole after all. I had thought about Western Union but I know it's expensive. Having the company do the transfer would probably be the preferable solution, they buy stuff from overseas and do TT payments all the time I think so should be no big deal (maybe!).

Cash probably is the solution for what I need in country, it's the international stuff that gets more awkward.

The savings account info is interesting. I know that here in Thailand a current account requires a work permit generally but a savings account can be opened without. Since savings accounts come with ATM cards and allow transfers they are often preferred. Hadn't thought that might apply elsewhere so I will look into it.

Thanks

Quackers

Give it to me and I'll take it to Thailand for you

martinbkk

Has anybody used the Moneycorp service? Is it a better option than WU?

Mogs

It is cheaper than Western Union, and no problems - so yes better option than Western Union

Theseus

I opened a normal QNB curent account with just my passport and letter from my employer on a 6 month business visa. I couldn't get a credit card or loan but thats not what you're after anyway. It won't be a problem. I even got a chequebook which is useful for rent etc. Also if you open a first account you get a relationship manager and preferential rates on transfers worldwide. There are cheaper ways of sending money still but the less hassle factor makes it worth it in my book.

martinbkk

This is very useful information, a 6 month business visa, letter from your employer and passport was enough to get the job done, brilliant. Credit card and loans are completely irrelevant in my case, I want to get money out of the country, simple as that. There will always be a price I guess, nothing's for nothing.

Not sure about the relationship manager. If you knew anything about my relationships you'd soon realise a top line psycho analyst and some heavy duty therapy would not help.

Theseus