International Bank Wire Fees to Colombia

sloopskipper says on Mar 28, 2008, 07:50:

The whores!

My private bank in Panamá charges me $7, and I think that is regardless of the amount.

That alone, is almost enough to reconsider moving to Colombia.

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vicshere says on Mar 28, 2008, 07:56:

surf sound like something is wrong ....you should look into it

listo

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bickerss says on Mar 28, 2008, 08:00:

sloop - do you mind letting me know what bankin Panama? Mine, HSBC, charges 40 usd a transaction (international transfer in) which I think is a rip off, combined with its shitty level of service.

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britabroad says on Mar 28, 2008, 08:12:

HSBC Colombia charge nothing for receiving funds from abroad. The international transfer fee is levied by my UK bank (£10).
$1,000US? That's a 25% tax, on what? And if there's a new "law", how come the other banks aren't obeying it? Sounds very dodgy.

Leave the big stick at home...carry a cannon!

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pedro says on Mar 28, 2008, 08:20:

I find it hard to believe that's legit. I would confirm that it's nothing to do with status of your account (a non-resident account, or something).

If I needed to investigate further, I'd make sure to have the name and calculation method of the tax put in writing on letterhead paper by someone senior at the branch. You can tell them you're going to have your accountant look into it with the defensor del cliente (banking ombudsman). If it's a scam, I'd expect them to quickly back down at that point:
http://www.superfinanciera.gov.co/TramitesyAtencionalUsuario/Defensord...

que nota!

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sloopskipper says on Mar 28, 2008, 08:33:

bickerss says on Friday March 28th, 2008 8:00:

"sloop - do you mind letting me know what bankin Panama? Mine, HSBC, charges 40 usd a transaction (international transfer in) which I think is a rip off, combined with its shitty level of service."

I imagine that you are referring to a wire?

I first used Banco Continental, and hated them (nice people, but really poor banking service). They were bought by Banco General, and they were worse. If I remember they both charged $15 for a wire transfer.

Now I am using a private bank, https://www.stgeorgesbank.com and have a Clave/Visa card with them.

After a bit of a bumpy start, I am quite pleased with the service. I now have a private banker (who speaks pretty good English) who went to the internet and paid my Union Fenosa electric bill each month, until EDEMET began to offer automatic payments. I have an automatic payment for my apartment administration, and with CableOnda accepting credit card payment, I now can travel without worrying about any bills here.

Any bills in the U.S. are paid via Fidelity.

You are aware of Peter Gordon's sequestered account problems with HSBC?
http://householdwatch.com/news/interactive/75 Ignore the links to Okke's noriegaville, he's off the air there.

NO WAY would I go to that bank.

If you call The Bank of Saint George, ask for Leonel Murillo.

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Mononoke28 says on Mar 28, 2008, 09:23:

I'm with everybody, there's no way!!! I've sent up to $8k to Bancolombia and we have never been charged over there. Don't let them fool you.

This stuff makes me so mad >(

Diana

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guacharaca says on Mar 28, 2008, 10:11:

I agree...no way. Such a law would crumble the economy of Colombia. Expats would no longer send money home to mama. It is a con or there is human error. If you sent $998, would they ask you for $2 to pay the rest of the fee?

Colombianos: Las armas os han dado independencia, las leyes os daran libertad. (Santander)

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jonas says on Mar 28, 2008, 10:12:

Also when sending larger amounts to Bancolombia you can negotiate the exchange rate with them. I did this last year (thanks to the friendly bankteller who told me!) and saved maybe US$100 on a $5000 wire. Well worth the 5 minute phonecall!

What I have, I do not want to lose, but Where I am I do not want to stay, but those I love, I do not want to leave, but those I know I no longer want to see, but Where I die, I do not want to go;I want to stay where I have never been

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jack_jason says on Mar 28, 2008, 12:03:

I have a question guys, you as a foreigners have to pay any taxes in Colombia when reciving the money?

This is just spanglish, please do not correct me

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bogotabrian says on Mar 28, 2008, 12:14:

You don't have to pay taxes until you remove it (or transfer it again). There is a goverment tax of 1 peso per 1,000. If you transfer large amounts I would suggest using Alianza.

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tomtom33 says on Mar 28, 2008, 12:43:

I think that is 4 pesos per thousand, cuatro por mil.

But it seems that anytime you make any kind of a transaction with any Colombian bank including a simple deposit, you get hit with a service charge.

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Mononoke28 says on Mar 28, 2008, 13:13:

Yup 4 x 1000.

Diana

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jack_jason says on Mar 28, 2008, 13:41:

then, it is the same for foreigners. I thought I could put my wife to ransfer big amounts of money without paying the 4x1000

This is just spanglish, please do not correct me

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jonas says on Mar 28, 2008, 14:15:

there are ways to avoid the 4x1000

What I have, I do not want to lose, but Where I am I do not want to stay, but those I love, I do not want to leave, but those I know I no longer want to see, but Where I die, I do not want to go;I want to stay where I have never been

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tomtom33 says on Mar 28, 2008, 14:40:

You got that right, Jonas. To bring in US$100,000, you can make 10 trips to Colombia carrying US$10,000 in cash each time. Or you can hit the ATM for around 200 days.

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Frank Rizzo says on Mar 28, 2008, 14:53:

If you work with your bank (and they work with you)....you can pull 5 or 10 million pesos in a day. Possibly more.

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pedro says on Mar 28, 2008, 14:54:

You can file for an 4x1000 exemption on one account only. The first 5 point something million pesos per month of withdrawals has no tax on it.

que nota!

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gringoloid says on Mar 28, 2008, 15:03:

Citibank Sucks!!! On March 8, I sent an international bank wire for $8500 to England and they fokkin lost my money.

I spend every day here now at the computer trying to solve this problem. Citibank is not the least bit helpful and Barclays, where I don't even have an account has been very helpful. This has done wonders for my hypertension.

As of today, Citibank is trying to retract the money but they don't know where they sent it.

I will never send another bank wire again and I am closing all citibank accounts, if and when i get my money back.

Question: why these bank wires? Why can't we send checks if we're going to buy a home in Colombia?

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bickerss says on Mar 28, 2008, 15:42:

Sloop - thanks alot. I will check that out later (its late here and have to get some sleep). Yes, i am aware of the Peter Gordon fiasco and that made me even more wary of this bank HSBC. You would not believe how poor the service is - its a disgrace even for the latin culture. Regards.

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bogotabrian says on Mar 28, 2008, 15:52:

Yeah, I am sorry, it is 4 per mil. I didn't know about the exemption, Pedro. I got to look into that. I wonder why no one at Alianza mentioned it to me?

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darkangel305 says on Mar 28, 2008, 17:35:

so whats the best way to send us100, 000 to colombia from us?
sorry im confused

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sloopskipper says on Mar 28, 2008, 18:53:

bickerss, no problem.

I hope that Leonel is still there, but I have had no reason to contact him for a few weeks.

When I asked about the electric bill, Leonel said "I can take care of that" and he contacted Union Fensosa and got a login for my account, over the phone, and preceeded to check the bill at the beginning of the month, and pay it.

I never had service like that in the U.S.

They had told me that I had to GO THERE to get a login, a typical inefficient Latin American business response.

If you end up doing business with them, I hope that it works as well for you.

But, from what I read here about the banks in Colombia, it seems they are even much worse than the average Panamanian banks, which offer horrible service.

For what it's worth, I am sure you know BanColombia is also here in Panamá. I used their ATMs in Cartagena because they accepted American Express cards.

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nueva york bombero says on Mar 28, 2008, 19:40:

Wamu (Washington Mutual) was offering free International wire transfers for opening a new account.
I took advantage of this because of my business in Mexico and it worked out beautifully.
I don't know if they still offer this, but it's worth a look....
Good luck all!

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jack_jason says on Mar 29, 2008, 00:07:

thanks guys!

This is just spanglish, please do not correct me

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tomtom33 says on Mar 29, 2008, 03:10:

BBVA told me that I could not get an exemption from cuatro por mil. Of course I realize that BBVA could have been wrong.

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gringoloid says on Mar 29, 2008, 08:42:

why doesn't anyone answer my question?: why can't we send checks to colombian banks?

I've deposited checks in dollars to Bancocolombia. Why the wires?

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sloopskipper says on Mar 29, 2008, 09:39:

I would think that you could deposit $ demoninated checks, but If it is anything like here, maybe the float is a problem, and the exchange rate might be less favorable (at the mercy of the Colombian bank). My first bank impossed a full 3 working WEEK hold on all foreign checks, although I could see on the internet that the money generally left my U.S. account the next day.

If I call my brokerage/U.S. bank before noon, I have the money in my bank account here, at the start of the next business day, and I do that at least once per month for ATM and local check writing.

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vicshere says on Mar 29, 2008, 11:02:

about 4/1000
you are only allowed one account in which you do not have to pay 4/1000
if you have accounts at three different banks you can choose to have one of them free from 4/1000 the other 2 accounts you must pay 4/1000
I only have one bank account at a time if I open at a different bank I make sure I closed the account and tell them to clear the (with a letter) 4/1000 so I can use it at my next bank
also if you withdraw more than 5,000,000 ( not sure the exact amount) per month you will have to pay 4/1000 on the excess of 5,000,000

listo

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tomtom33 says on Mar 29, 2008, 11:27:

Thanks, Vic. Maybe I had to pay because I withdrew money to pay for my house. It came to a bit over the 5 million.

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