Itwillrain

Hello. I will be making transfer from my UK bank account to a third party bank account in the UK while I am physically relocated to USA. The payment would be to close in a house purchase (yet to do the exchange) . Called bank up., they said fax the details over. Looked online, it says only payments upto 1k can be made using the app. The completion is not urgent. Q1 - would like to know how folks make significant amount transfer from from UK account to third party UK account?

Q2- Also, how to transfer funds (significant tamount) from UK bank account to US bank account.


Tha for your help.

Glasgow Girl

Q2: Wise, used to be Transferwise, for transfers between the UK and US, and many other countries. Best rates, and good service. You need to be verified first with ID checks so plan ahead.

Pulaski

Both within the UK and UK->US you can ask your bank for "a wire" - there may be a fee attached, but it is small compared to a substantial transfer. I think it maybe around £30.

If you're more comfortable using your bank and a wire for an international transfer than using an on-line transfer company such as Wise, then assuming the amount is more than about £50k then you need to ask your bank for "a dealing desk rate" (use those words, and personally I'd ask about a dealing desk rate even for a smaller amount as there is no harm in asking the question), and the exchange rate is likely to be similar to what Wise can offer, though the larger the amount, the better the rate is likely to be. You're going to get an exchange rate tied to the actual, real-time market rates, so the rate changes continuously and you may only be given 30s- 1 minute to accept the rate.

You should check ahead of time what your bank requires to approve a wire, and it might include a signed request from you as banks are very sensitive to the fact that a wire, once sent, is likely irrecoverable, especially if sent outside of the country where the bank is located. So the banks have really tightened up the documentation they expect from a private customer before they will send a wire. This can be annoying, but it is for the protection of both the customer and the bank.

PetrifiedExPat

Wise, used to be Transferwise

Nutmegger

Q2: further to Pulaski's post -- also check that your banking package doesn't include free transfers. All transfer fees are waived as a part of my regular account benefit package.

RICH

I am not sure "a wire" is a familiar term in UK banking. It might be a SWIFT transfer or something else, but the principle is the same.

I am not familiar with international wires, but in my job I spend all day sending US domestic wires for a mortgage company. I have only once sent a personal wire, for my own mortgage closing in US 13 years ago, and it involved filling in a form at the branch and cost about $30

Pulaski

I sent a wire last week (the first one in several years) because for some reason Chase wouldn't let me use either their on-line interface or phone banking service to pay off our mortgage, but insisted on a personal check (which I didn't have because we were away on holiday) or a wire. So a wire it was, and it just required me to use my banking app and "wire" was one of the options, along side transfer and Zelle; no paperwork or special authorization was required, but then it was only for about $900.

BTW Wires are used in the UK for large transfers. Joe Public in the UK might not be too familiar with wires, but they are common enough in commerce and banking.

penguinsix

I have HSBC Premier accounts in the UK and US and am able to move money back and forth between the two without a fee. I'm not sure if they are still opening HSBC accounts in the US but you could chekc.

Citibank has offices in both countries, though last I checked they were different legal entities. Not sure if their app allows transfers like this.

durham_lad

I use Wise for international transfers, still cheaper than my US HSBC to UK HSBC accounts.

in the UK I can transfer up to £10k per day between UK banks. A few years ago I wanted to send £50k to someone so I called HSBC and they said that it would cost if I did it in one transaction but if it was not urgent why don’t I send £10k/day every day for 5 days, we now know what you intend to do so no problem. I did the transfers using my phone app but could have done them on my laptop.

Pulaski

HSBC in the US is also a separate legal entity (from HSBC in the UK), and always was - being renamed from Republic National Bank when HSBC bought it.

tht

I have this with HSBC Premier as well. Of course they are separate legally entities, a UK company could not hold a US bank charter… but they are in the same app. It has been a long time since I did any significant transfers… but when I did I think I had worked out the the cut off point between HSBC (bad rate/no fee) and a 3rd party app (better rate+fixed fee) was around $1500… and as you noted when it was a larger amount I called the dealing desk (at Bank or Ireland).

PetrifiedExPat

Our mortgage payoff was also made through wire, as a mandatory part of the process, whereas a normal payment was through a monthly debit. Not sure why, maybe a legal thing? Also could be the sum, esp in 6 figure ranges.

EDIT: Misread Pulaski, moot point

Pulaski

I think you may be correct about a non-US bank holding a Federal charter, but non-US banks can and do operate branches (not a separate legal corporation) under state banking charters, just as non-UK banks can and do operate branches in the UK. In both cases those branches are typically small in number and/or have a limited purpose i.e. not offering mainstream banking services to the masses.

newadventure

I am not sure how to check, but i believe you can transfer more than the £10K limit by logging in online rather than via a phone app. Sounds strange, but i seem to recall having to do this for a payment last year

durham_lad

It is up to £25k these days.

https://www.hsbc.co.uk/help/banking-...king-payments/