Avoiding large FX charges when transferring savings

N

niallyb

Guest
Hi,

I have recently sold my house and will be emigrating to Australia later this year. I have a significant sum of money following the proceeds of the sale along with my hard earned savings. Ultimately this money will need to be moved from my Irish bank account to an Australian bank account. FX rates will fluctuate, but that to one side, I would like to avoid paying my bank a hefty euro to australian dollar conversion charge if at all possible as this will cost me several thousand dollars. I would be grateful for any advice on this matter.

Thanks!
 
HSBC offer free transfers via HSBC premier.

I don't know anything else about it other than what appears on the website above, like what other fees are involved (i.e. where's the catch??). Still it might be a place to start!

Edit:
Hmm, just had another look at the locations and there doesn't appear to be a premier centre in Ireland. Not sure if this is insurmountable or not!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Its a pity you didnt do it last week. The aus dollar hit a very brief high and has now come down again.
 
yoganmahew said:
HSBC offer free transfers via HSBC premier.
Click to expand...

It seems to be a moot point since HSBC don't service Ireland but avoiding a transfer fee which may not amount to much anyway is probably a lesser consideration than the FX margin the bank is charging on the conversion where even a fraction of a percentage point in the margin could add up since we are talking about a sigificant sum from the sale of a house.

Sorry cant really help with who has the best margins and you should probably consider both Irish and Australian banks i.e. convert here first and transfer AUD or transfer Euros out of your bank and have the receiving bank do the conversion depending on who offers the best rate.
 
Hi,

I am living in Australia at present and just done the same thing sold the house in Ireland and transfered money to Oz. Have a look at www.ozforex.com.au I got a great rate two weeks ago when the Euro was strong, so time you transfer well it will save you thousands.

PS you will love it here!
 
Spot Rate
Best option is to shop around

Optimum Rate
Establish what rate you would like to get going on currenct trends and ask a broker to notify you when it hits that rate
 
Thanks everyone! There's a few ideas there. I'm going to contact my branch tomorrow and see what they can do. I'll keep this post going with updates...

Cheers
 
A quick update folks, AIB currently offer a bank to bank transfer for a fixed transfer cost of €20, and will convert euro to Aus dollars at a rate of 1.64 for amounts under €13k. 1.65 for amounts > €13k and < €70k. For amounts > €70k the branch requests a rate from head office and there appears to be room for negotiation. They can alternatively perform a euro transfer, the Australian/foreign bank performing the conversion instead. This could work out better/worse depending on rates offered. Written consent is required to initiate the transfer and a fax is not acceptable. You can give a third party power of attorney to initiate the transfer in your absence.

I would assume other banks are pretty similar. It's a case of shopping around for the best rate.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top