Karlthecamper Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Hi, Would really appreciate it if anyone could take out a few moments to let me know their experience with opening an Australian bank account prior to emigrating. Is there a particular bank known to charge very little to receive transferred funds from the UK? Have you had a good/ bad experience with a particular bank you'd be willing to share? Is there a particular type of bank account which you'd recommend with transferring /receiving UK money in mind? Is there a bank known to charge the least for cash withdrawals? It would be great to have an insight from someone who's opened an Australian bank account from the UK then used it to transfer UK money prior to moving out there. thanks a bunch, Vonny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 If you want to save the most money on the process... 1. Set up an Aussie bank (ING Direct is best for free cash withdrawals). Not sure you can do that in advance of getting here though. So any you can would do, can always change later. 2. Sign up with currency fair/transferwise 3. Transfer money into currency fair/ transfer wise from UK account and transfer converted dollars into Oz account. You have just got a way better exchange rate and saved loads on fees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrownEyedGal Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Hi I always recommend NAB. Very easy to set up from the UK and no fees. I also like HSBC but I joined them when I arrived here, also no fees. They have accounts that you can keep your English/foreign money in and then later if you want to exchange for Australian currency, (I can't remember the proper name for it). I haven't actually used it myself, but its something I want to do. I am also with Ozforex for money exchange but this site is linked to Moneycorp - there is a representative here. Moneycorp is based in the UK so maybe you could set up with them before leaving? I'm sure other PIOers can offer better advice. Plus if you search the site, this enquiry has been asked several times, so you will get a good gist on what's good or negative. BEGal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith and Linda Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 If you want to save the most money on the process... 1. Set up an Aussie bank (ING Direct is best for free cash withdrawals). Not sure you can do that in advance of getting here though. So any you can would do, can always change later. 2. Sign up with currency fair/transferwise 3. Transfer money into currency fair/ transfer wise from UK account and transfer converted dollars into Oz account. You have just got a way better exchange rate and saved loads on fees Not too sure about point 1 there lastonealive, most banks have a an account which is fee free for withdrawal's, (Comm bank is mine). There are some Aus banks with UK branch's / links, so just google them up and see what each has to offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Not too sure about point 1 there lastonealive, most banks have a an account which is fee free for withdrawal's, (Comm bank is mine).There are some Aus banks with UK branch's / links, so just google them up and see what each has to offer. Yeah point 1 is wrong if he means big cash withdrawals from a bank, for some reason I was thinking ATM's at which ING is free for all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peach Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Yeah point 1 is wrong if he means big cash withdrawals from a bank, for some reason I was thinking ATM's at which ING is free for all. Only if you withdrawal $200 or more is ING always free.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Only if you withdrawal $200 or more is ING always free.. That was the case but they changed it to all. Unless they have changed it back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graemsay Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 I tried to sign up for NAB before I left the UK, but, err, the online system didn't work. So I popped into a branch after I arrived in Melbourne, and, err, the guy I needed to speak to to sign up had gone home early. So I went elsewhere... I ended up opening an account with Citi. They're fee free, but also don't have charges for using your account in overseas ATMs and for purchases. They do multicurrency savings accounts. In the UK they offer the Citi Gold service for those with over £50,000 or £75,000 in savings which gives a multicurrency (Pound, Euro, US Dollar) current account. I don't know if this is available in Oz, but it might be an interesting option if it is. So far so good, but I've only been with them for a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parley Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 My local supermarket is my ATM. I just walk up to the self service terminal at Woolworths and withdraw cash. You don't have to buy anything and there are no fees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 I tried to sign up for NAB before I left the UK, but, err, the online system didn't work. So I popped into a branch after I arrived in Melbourne, and, err, the guy I needed to speak to to sign up had gone home early. So I went elsewhere... I ended up opening an account with Citi. They're fee free, but also don't have charges for using your account in overseas ATMs and for purchases. They do multicurrency savings accounts. In the UK they offer the Citi Gold service for those with over £50,000 or £75,000 in savings which gives a multicurrency (Pound, Euro, US Dollar) current account. I don't know if this is available in Oz, but it might be an interesting option if it is. So far so good, but I've only been with them for a week. Yeah citibank is another good option definitely worth mentioning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrownEyedGal Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Darn, that's not good @NAB. Like you I am also with Citibank. So far no issues. Their savings account is pretty good too, decent rates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djfuddy Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Opened account with Commonwealth online, then visited their branch in London with ID and have full access to online banking. Used UKForex as currency exchange company, rate far better than Moneycorp and have Australian and UK offices. This means you pay no bank charges on the transfer as you transfer to their UK account and they transfer from their Australian accounts to yours. Commonwealth have biggest ATM network and emigration account manager in London was super friendly with great advice around how credit scores work, how internet banking works etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 I ended up opening an account with Citi. Citi's online application page at https://www.citibank.com.au/AUGCB/apfa/augcb/ocmff/InitializeSubApp2.do says one of the conditions is: You must be a permanent resident of Australia Do they actually mean you must have PR, or is it just excluding visitors and tourists? (I tried contacting them through the website but it wasn't working.) I have a Citi UK account and would like to open one in Aus, but I have a temporary visa (457). Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karlthecamper Posted February 3, 2015 Author Share Posted February 3, 2015 Thanks for taking the time to reply everyone. A lot of choice then it seems but at least a few bank names we can look into and compare from here. As we'll be exchanging pounds to dollars, we need to get a bank account opened ASAP! Hopefully the rate will stay like this for another month or so... (From our point of view obviously!) we'll need to look into the recommended money transfer companies too. thanks again! X Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Citi's online application page at https://www.citibank.com.au/AUGCB/apfa/augcb/ocmff/InitializeSubApp2.do says one of the conditions is: You must be a permanent resident of Australia Do they actually mean you must have PR, or is it just excluding visitors and tourists? (I tried contacting them through the website but it wasn't working.) I have a Citi UK account and would like to open one in Aus, but I have a temporary visa (457). Thanks I've contacted them but the response was "call us and we'll see what we can do". I've also been emailing someone from a branch near my office in London but seems I am not a wealthy enough potential client and he hasn't deigned to respond. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Meant to also say that ING Direct don't seem to be able to handle migrant banking (opening an a/c from the UK I mean) which is a shame. So from my list, I seem to have been left with Commonwealth, who have confirmed I can open an a/c from the UK without a TFN. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I've contacted them [citibank] but the response was "call us and we'll see what we can do. I just got a reply from a robot (apparently) at Citibank Aus, responding to my question about PR. I note that they didn't actually answer my question at all (do you have to actually have PR or is just being resident sufficient to open an account). At this stage I have no idea how long it would take to get a medicare card, or if it's even possible on a temp visa. Thank you for your email. For your reference, below are the requirements needed to open a Citibank Australian account: - must be over 18 years old - need to have a valid email and Australian residential address - if applying for a joint account, you'll need your joint applicant's details as well - the account can only be used as a personal account (not as a business account) - a Tax File Number (TFN), while it is not mandatory to provide your TFN, without this we are required to deduct tax at the top marginal rate - at least two of the following forms of identification - Australian drivers licence, Medicare card or Passport, so we can verify your identity electronically. You may apply online through www.citibank.com.au if you can comply with the above requirements. If you require further assistance, please contact us on 13 24 84, or if overseas on +61 2 8225 0615. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Meant to also say that ING Direct don't seem to be able to handle migrant banking (opening an a/c from the UK I mean) which is a shame. So from my list, I seem to have been left with Commonwealth, who have confirmed I can open an a/c from the UK without a TFN. Seems like Commonwealth are a good idea, you can always change bank accounts easy enough If you want to on arrival. I actually moved a few times to get better deals. I make a lot of paywave purchases and getting 2% back on each with ING made it worth the hassle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 @mungbean yes they (in general) seem to be good at not answering a very specific question... Sounds like if you have the correct ID, you might be ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vickyplum Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Seems like Commonwealth are a good idea, you can always change bank accounts easy enough If you want to on arrival. I actually moved a few times to get better deals. I make a lot of paywave purchases and getting 2% back on each with ING made it worth the hassle Yes you're right. I can easily change accounts after I've settled in a bit. Will go for CBA for now and then see where the fancy takes me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cez Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I opened my citibank account on a working holiday visa. This was a few years ago though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I opened my citibank account on a working holiday visa. This was a few years ago though. Thanks @Cez, that's useful to know. I actually just opened a NAB account online for the time being... will go into a Citibank branch when I get there and see what I can do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 We ended up going with Nab. Reviews are largely positive but a few not so good ones. We exchanged money through moneycorp - because we wanted to ensure we had outer start up cash in place (otherwise it might have been used elsewhere!) I'm sure there slightly better rates, but we got so many people recommending moneycorp we just went with that (life is short). Once our transfer went through I tried to register for online banking but it didn't work. This was just to check the money was there ok. They were supposed to send an activation code to my phone, but it never came (maybe because we are in the UK at the moment). I ended up thinking thinking that if it's anything like the UK, banks are much of muchness. A few people I know who moved over switched to another bank after a year or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I just set up a transfer from my Citi UK account to the NAB one to check the rate/fees... (And then cancelled it.) They were offering a rate of 1 GBP to 1.8680004 AUD + £25 transaction fee. This was for £2k. (Whereas there is much lower fee if transferring to another Citi account worldwide, and it gets there in about 2 minutes, hence the attraction for me.) So I just registered on MoneyCorp and they're doing fee-free transfers; I was quoted a rate of 1 GBP = 1.8936 AUD. (For £1k) (by comparison the rate showing on BBC and my Mac's dashboard is about $1.96 today.) My MoneyCorp registration page froze with a spinner at the bottom of the page, but an agent called me 10 mins later and when I mentioned this to him he pressed a few buttons and a fresh registration link got emailed to me. The agent told me that bigger transfers would attract better exchange rates. One thing that wasn't clear to me before initiating the MoneyCorp transfer is that adding funds by debit card takes a day to clear, whereas if you initiate a "faster payment" transfer to them from your online banking it can be there in 2 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aster Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 No brainer - get an HSBC account asap. It makes Citi look like something out of the Tarzan era, in each and every aspect Plus you get very tight currency spreads when converting funds due to the GetRate feature. Plus if you have status (Premier) you can send money between your international account instantaneously... and free of charge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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