Cagsy Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Hi everyone, I am hoping to move to australia in 2017. We have the 189 visa and it is all activated. The question I have is what to do with my money now. I cannot open a bank account over there as I do not have an address over there yet. So I am wondering what to do. I am considering this could be the best time to exchange money but I am not sure where and how. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheers guys Danny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benj1980 Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 I have a NAB account and no address, I haven't activated yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supercow Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 I have a Westpac account, including online banking which took me all of15 minutes to set up. I can transfer money to it, but won't be able to withdraw from it until I go and provide proof of ID. I can do that either by visiting the London branch, or when I land in Aus. Got them to price match money transfer fees from transferwise too, simples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicF Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Pretty much all the main banks will allow you to set up a bank account from overseas and transfer money in to it but will not allow you to access the money until you have verified your identity on arrival in Australia. I wouldn't bother transferring money now as your plans could change or you could need it for something and you wouldn't have access to it. The current exchange rate is in line with long term averages so could be considered the normal rate and the rate of two to three years ago was unusual. It's even possible the dollar may fall even further before you move over. I can remember when the exchange rate was well over $2.5 to £1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Hi everyone, I am hoping to move to australia in 2017. We have the 189 visa and it is all activated. The question I have is what to do with my money now. I cannot open a bank account over there as I do not have an address over there yet. So I am wondering what to do. I am considering this could be the best time to exchange money but I am not sure where and how. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheers guys Danny The Australian dollar is very likely to fall a lot further before then, so I would suggest being patient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainC Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Have a chat with @John from Moneycorp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Hi everyone, I am hoping to move to australia in 2017. We have the 189 visa and it is all activated. The question I have is what to do with my money now. I cannot open a bank account over there as I do not have an address over there yet. So I am wondering what to do. I am considering this could be the best time to exchange money but I am not sure where and how. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheers guys Danny Hi @Danny for your bank account NAB don't need an address over here, once you get here they are happy to accept the address of the hostel, hotel etc where you will be staying http://migrant.nabgroup.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 @Cagsy I forgot to mention, make sure you sign up to a fx company before you move as it can be difficult when you don't have proof of a UK address, there is nothing stopping you opening an account now there is no charge to do so http://moneytransfer.pomsinoz.com and you could even tell them what rate you want them to deal at, sorry I can't remember the technical terms but if you say you want to transfer when the rate hits 2.5 they will trade for you as soon as it hits that amount. Like CaptainC mentioned John can tell you what that is called and how it works. Remember as well if you have a NAB and moneycorp account you won't pay any fees at all, not even bank fees for receiving money in to your account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagsy Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 Ok brilliant thanks for the help guys. I am still as much research as I can. Some banks would take our money if we were moving say in twelve months. However, we will be longer than 12 months. I see what you mean by the aussie rate, it is all over the place at the moment. It looks like it is going more in our favour at present. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagsy Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 To both supercow and benji1980, would that still apply for me if I was not moving until 2017 if for arguments sake I put it in now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagsy Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 This is what I am not sure about, yes, I remember when I was a kid it was 2.5 - 1. I keep reading that it is going to get even better and I thinking if it went to 2.25-2.3 then that would be a good time. I feel like a gambler at the casino. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srh82 Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 @Cagsy look at the 1 year trend for the pound vs the Aussie dollar, then you will be more inclined to wait Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagsy Posted September 4, 2015 Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 as an update. Spoke to a guy from commenwealth bank and he said I could transfer money now even if I wasn't moving until 2017. We can't access the money unless we were in Aussie, however. As long as I make a payment every few months it would be fine. Even suggested a few third party exchangers. So at least that is a worry off my mind. Although I was not sure at first because there own website said upto three months of moving but he was happy with Christmas 2017. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bungo Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 as an update. Spoke to a guy from commenwealth bank and he said I could transfer money now even if I wasn't moving until 2017. We can't access the money unless we were in Aussie, however. As long as I make a payment every few months it would be fine. Even suggested a few third party exchangers. So at least that is a worry off my mind. Although I was not sure at first because there own website said upto three months of moving but he was happy with Christmas 2017. I would think a man from the Commonwealth would encourage you too transfer sooner rather than later. I wouldn't be moving money this early, not unless the rate extraordinarily high anyway, like near 3:1. It looks high at the moment but in fact it is just at long term averages and it looks high because it follows a period of an unusually strong AUD. It feels far too soon to send money for a 2017 move to me, it could get stuck there and you might need it or have a change of plans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 as an update. Spoke to a guy from commenwealth bank and he said I could transfer money now even if I wasn't moving until 2017. We can't access the money unless we were in Aussie, however. As long as I make a payment every few months it would be fine. Even suggested a few third party exchangers. So at least that is a worry off my mind. Although I was not sure at first because there own website said upto three months of moving but he was happy with Christmas 2017. We opened a bank account (with ANZ) two years before moving. No problem at all. Did have to visit a branch in Australia to fully activate it (i.e. allowing withdrawals as well as deposits) but we were visiting anyway in order to activate our visa. While it may make sense to wait for the exchange rate to improve you needn't worry about your money being trapped in Oz. Once the account is fully open you can transfer it via the internet wherever you want (although use a third party FX specialist as it'll be a lot more expensive if you use the bank FX rate). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagsy Posted September 4, 2015 Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 To be fair he was not pushing it at all. He said not to send all of it in case things improve. Probably the least pushy person I have ever spoken to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bungo Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 To be fair he was not pushing it at all. He said not to send all of it in case things improve. Probably the least pushy person I have ever spoken to Is there any particular reason you want to transfer money so far in advance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagsy Posted September 4, 2015 Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 I am not neccessarily looking to transfer it right this second. I just want to be able to have that option when we feel it is the right time because of the rates. I would hate it if we waited for 2017 and it went down below $2 again. I just wanted to make sure I was armed with all the information possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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