US Dollars transfer

I'm aware of dealing with international banking procedures. My request for info was reference the gov't (tax) getting involved. I'm transferring a savings, not earned income. So if something like US$ 50,000 is transferred to a US$ account in an Indonesian bank, would it be subject to tax payments?

I'm having my wife check with the staff at the bank for info, just wondering if anyone has had experience with this type of situation.

afaik, no it wouldn't
but put down reason is for property purchase or car purchase or investment
 
I think one of the big issues is that there are two standards (SWIFT vs BIC/IBAN, even when SIFT=BIC). And many online banking apps or systems don't support the other standard so well.

If you have countries (as Indonesia or Australia) where they use branch or location codes, a transfer becomes even more complex; some require you to put it in front of the account number, others have an additional field for that etc.

In an international transfer, I always put a telephone number in the description. And have the receiver (often myself) contact the bank after a few days. Otherwise it sometimes gets stuck in the 'hold' queue.

can always put xxx for the branch at the end of the swift

and for tracking u need request mt103 from the sending bank
 
Any problems with the feds for that?


If you are a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident (green card) and keep over $10,000 in a foreign financial institution you need to file a Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR FinCEN form 114). If combined with other offshore assets your offshore assets exceeds $50,000, you need to file a form 8938.

If the transfer is to a non-compliant FATCA foreign financial institution, there will be a 30% withholding.

"Unless otherwise exempt, FFIs that do not both register and agree to report face a 30% withholding tax on certain U.S.-source payments made to them."

 
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i recently used TransferWise to transfer from my debit card to my permata bank. started the transfer at 10am and the money was in permata by 2 pm...noice
 
My transfer from the US to my USD account in Indonesia cleared on Friday, April 26. (Remember, I originated the transfer on the 18th.) The TransferWise fee was $4.53 and my receiving bank tacked on a fee of $26.00. I understand the Transferwise fee varies a bit depending on the amount of the transfer although it seems to always be less that the flat fee of $45 per transfer charged by my local US bank. I also presume, but have not confirmed, that the $26 receiving bank fee is a flat fee per transaction that will be tacked on regardless of whether I use my local US bank employing the Swift system or TransferWise.
 
my receiving bank tacked on a fee of $26.00
What Indonesian bank? I haven't done USD to USD transfers, but both BNI and BCA haven't charged me any fee to transfer money in (Transferwise, USD to IDR).
 
What Indonesian bank? I haven't done USD to USD transfers, but both BNI and BCA haven't charged me any fee to transfer money in (Transferwise, USD to IDR).

Panin Bank. We have not confirmed where the $26 went, but I am guessing Panin. The follow-up discussion with Panin starts Monday. It is also possible that TransferWise used a corresponding international bank to effect the transfer through the Swift system and that institution exacted the fee. I have emailed TransferWise for an explanation, as well.
 
I just used Transferwise using the fastest method for which the charge was $9.50 Aus and it arrived in my BCA account in 5 minutes.
 
Panin Bank. We have not confirmed where the $26 went, but I am guessing Panin. The follow-up discussion with Panin starts Monday. It is also possible that TransferWise used a corresponding international bank to effect the transfer through the Swift system and that institution exacted the fee. I have emailed TransferWise for an explanation, as well.

A bit more information. Panin bank confirmed that they charge $6 to receive a transfer from abroad via the SWIFT system. I got a return email from TransferWise, as well. TransferWise explained that when the transfer is from a USD account to a USD account, they process the the transaction through the SWIFT system where the corresponding bank they use (as yet still unnamed) tacks on a $20 charge. Both Panin bank and TransferWise stated that the fees are flat fees, meaning they remain the same regardless of the amount transferred.

Bottom line is that my USD to USD transfer cost $4.50 (TransferWise fee) + $20.00 (SWIFT Fee) + $6.00 (Panin Bank receiving fee) = a total of $30.50. My local bank in the USA quoted me a rate of $45.00 per SWIFT transfer to which must be added the Panin Bank fee of $6.00 or $51.00 in all. TransferWise saves me approximately 30% over the traditional SWIFT system.

ps. That is assuming that the TransferWise fee does not markedly increase when I scale up from a "test" amount to some real money.
 
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I'm aware of dealing with international banking procedures. My request for info was reference the gov't (tax) getting involved. I'm transferring a savings, not earned income. So if something like US$ 50,000 is transferred to a US$ account in an Indonesian bank, would it be subject to tax payments?

I'm having my wife check with the staff at the bank for info, just wondering if anyone has had experience with this type of situation.

Regarding tax implications, I would advise you to speak with an US based accountant.
 
There are supposed to be some US based services that have much lower transaction fees. I recall less than $10, but I don’t recall the company’s name.
 
My experience is that the lower transfer fees apply when there is a conversion involved; don't expect any bargains when transferring from USD accounts to USD accounts in Indonesia.

Regarding taxes; transfers are not income events and thus not subject to income tax in either the USA or Indonesia. Transferring a large amount has other Perils, related namely to an expectation that there is the possibility of money laundering involved.
 
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There are supposed to be some US based services that have much lower transaction fees. I recall less than $10, but I don’t recall the company’s name.

You're probably referring to WorldRemit. Like others, the transaction fee is tagged to the amount you're remitting. I've not sent USD through them, but use them regularly sending SGD to Indonesia where I'm living now, and transfer usually gets deposited within 12 hours.
 
My experience with the Swift system and TransferWise -- transferring USD from the USA to an Indonesian USD account -- is that the costs are fixed regardless of the amount. (Perhaps I simply have not transferred a large enough amount to trigger a bump up in the fees.)
 
From their website:



USD is sent to bank accounts outside the US via the SWIFT payment network. This is different than a regular TransferWise transfer and might take a day or two longer. It also costs a bit more but still cheaper than more traditional methods.

How it works

  1. Set up your transfer on the TransferWise website. You’ll need to add a new recipient. We’re working hard to bring this feature to the mobile app soon.
  2. Select the recipient bank account country. Even though the account’s in USD, choose the country you’re sending money to.
  3. Add the account number and SWIFT code of the recipient’s bank account. Transferring to an email address isn't supported yet.
  4. Pay for your transfer. We’ll send the USD to your recipient as usual.
Your recipient may have to pay a fee to their bank when the money arrives — it’s a part of using SWIFT.

How much it costs

TransferWise supports sending USD to people outside of the US, but to do this we need to send your transfer via the SWIFT network.

Because SWIFT incurs additional costs, we will add a fee of 3.20 USD to your transfer to pay for this. We’re working hard to keep this additional fee as low as possible for you and hope to drop this further over time.

Your bank or other banks the money passes through on the way may also charge you a fee, so your recipient might get less. Unfortunately, there's no way for TransferWise to know what this will be in advance.

Where you can send USD

You can’t send USD to every country yet. Here's a list of the countries you can send USD to.
 
So perhaps SWIFT or the banks increase their costs on higher amounts? Which is obvious since they are often % based and thus increasing anyway?
 
From their website:
USD is sent to bank accounts outside the US via the SWIFT payment network. This is different than a regular TransferWise transfer and might take a day or two longer. It also costs a bit more but still cheaper than more traditional methods.

That is my experience, as well. When Transferring USD to USD the TransferWise fees approach the cost of a traditional Swift transfer and take a few days longer. Note as well, that my bank in Indonesia charges a "receiving" fee that is not reflected in TransferWise quotes, and I gather that most banks do also, although I have no direct experience to confirm that.
 
Transferwise = Transferring Aus $ for household expenses to my BCA account. It arrived in 5 minutes'
 
I've had a foreign based savings/investment account for a number of years. It is a bit stagnant no so planning to shift it all over to an account here. Any problems with the feds for that? It is savings, not income. Cheers

Why are you letting your money sits stale and depreciate? Saving is not an investment.

There’s no gov taxation involved if it’s only $50k. Try money order from your bank to Indonesian dollar account. I transferred US$100k x 2 a couple months back and money order only cost me $30buck/transfer. The money sits in BCA dollar and then once I arrived in Indonesia I cashed out the USD went to the best money changer and got a deal for almost IDR 15,000/US$1. If you let the bank convert your $ to IDR, you aren’t gonna get the best rate.
 
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