Identify theft? Credit reports? Um… What is that? I’m clicking around for the section for sending money overseas.
I just called Western Union and they told me that I can transfer money to myself over there, but only in US dollars, i.e. I give Western Union AUD’s here, go over to Taiwan and collect my US dollars. They are doing it at a very good rate of 0.87USD per AUD (the offical rate today is 0.89) so I won’t lose much money there, but the actual transaction will cost me about 500USD.
So basically I’m paying 500USD to not risk my money at the airport.
Oh, and then I’ll have to exchange my USD for TWD when I’m there, lol.
[quote=“bumclouds”]I just called Western Union and they told me that I can transfer money to myself over there, but only in US dollars, i.e. I give Western Union AUD’s here, go over to Taiwan and collect my US dollars. They are doing it at a very good rate of 0.87USD per AUD (the offical rate today is 0.89) so I won’t lose much money there, but the actual transaction will cost me about 500USD.
So basically I’m paying 500USD to not risk my money at the airport.
Oh, and then I’ll have to exchange my USD for TWD when I’m there, lol.[/quote]
Jesus, Mary and Joseph! You’ll be fine carrying 10K into Taipei unless you get hammered and start flashing it around. Actually, I came with 12K stashed in my backpack and walked through customs easy-squeezy. (Oops, maybe I shouldn’t admit that). Think about it, bumclouds. Get second, third, twelfth opinions on this.
Ok I’ll carry the money. But only 10k and I’ll leave the rest at home and figure that out later. Maybe I wont even need it.
What is carnegies?
[quote=“bumclouds”]Ok I’ll carry the money. But only 10k and I’ll leave the rest at home and figure that out later. Maybe I wont even need it.
What is carnegies?[/quote]
Carnegie’s is the poor man’s Taipei version of Hard Rock Cafe, frequented by a certain set of foreigners intent on picking up – um, local girls – especially on Wednesday night (Ladies Night), and the type of place you really only need to visit once…unless that’s your thing. Yes, the food is actually delicious (particularly the Indian selections) and not everyone that goes there is completely retarded. To say “all people who patronize Carnegie’s are of sub-human intelligence” would be a very hasty generalization and I’m certain to get called out on saying it but… You’ll see. It’s one of the first stops on the foreigner gauntlet.
[quote=“bumclouds”]Ok I’ll carry the money. But only 10k and I’ll leave the rest at home and figure that out later. Maybe I wont even need it.
What is carnegies?[/quote]
10K (USD) is probably enough for 6 months. That’s more than I spend on a monthly basis but I scored a 42 on the cheapskate quiz in the epically awful thread on forumosa.
I haven’t studied up on this too much but I’ll be looking for some way to get my money out of Taiwan and avoid the same charges. But at the same time you’re only talking about a 0.5% charge. I’m not familiar with international bank transfer rates but that doesn’t sound too bad.
Also to be honest, I would be less concerned about getting jacked at the airport and more concerned about where you’re going to stash 10K while you are here. I believe that you need an ARC to open a bank account to safely keep the money in.
Could you not work it round in paypal? Bring a huge chunk (whatever you’re allowed) then put the rest in Paypal, once you get your TW account set up you can then transfer it into the Taiwan account.
Or bring a chunk and leave the rest with your parents to wire over once you have your Taiwan account set up.
Yep I just called my local bank and the lady recommended that to me. However my bank account doesn’t allow me to wire money overseas in Taiwanese dollars. Only major currencies. Hmmmm…
that exchange rate is crap. just come here. Open a local account and send yourself a wire transfer.
Whoa, whoa, whoa…am I missing something here? Leave the money in US or AUS dollars at home. Don’t exchange a single dollar of AUS dollars into NT. Bring 10K. Change money on arrival. Open a bank account in Taiwan. When you need to wire money you can (A) call your bank at home and make a wire transfer to your new TW account and/or have your folks do it for you, or (B) withdraw from an ATM here. There’s a real danger of nickel and diming yourself over one or two fees. And Abacus is right. 10K will be plenty of money. That’s almost NT300,000. Figure: NT15,000 per month rent x 6 months = 90,000. Even if you spend NT1000 a day (NT180,000 for six months) on food and entertainment, you may not need any more cash.
I would just carry the maximum legal cash amount in a money belt – separate from a couple hundred Aus dollars you change for convenience to get you started. The basic rule of thumb is never convert NT dollars outside of Taiwan if you can help it.
You could also buy US dollar denominated traveler’s checks. The exchange rate for TCs is (was always?) higher than the cash rate.
Or just open a bank account…and have mom wire it to you, apart from a small amount to eat and sleep on the first week.
[quote=“ironlady”]
Or just open a bank account…and have mom wire it to you, apart from a small amount to eat and sleep on the first week.[/quote]That would be my recommendation.
10k from down under is worth nearly 300,000NT. I think it’s too much to carry on you. You won’t be able to open a bank account until you have an ARC, I think. Keep that in mind.
[quote=“RobinTaiwan”][quote=“ironlady”]
Or just open a bank account…and have mom wire it to you, apart from a small amount to eat and sleep on the first week.[/quote]That would be my recommendation.
10k from down under is worth nearly 300,000NT. I think it’s too much to carry on you. You won’t be able to open a bank account until you have an ARC, I think. Keep that in mind.[/quote]
This is the part of the equation that everyone is overlooking. He’s only going to be here for 6 months which means that he won’t get an ARC (I think). And that means no bank account (I think). I wouldn’t want to carry and more importantly stash that kind of money in my apt just to avoid the fees.
[quote=“Abacus”]
This is the part of the equation that everyone is overlooking. He’s only going to be here for 6 months which means that he won’t get an ARC (I think). And that means no bank account (I think). I wouldn’t want to carry and more importantly stash that kind of money in my apt just to avoid the fees.[/quote]
Ah-ha. You are at a minimum half correct: no ARC, no bank account.
On the other hand, depending upon where he lives, keeping it stashed in the joint is no problem. I dunno. Maybe it’s just living in Da’an. I left my bicycle unlocked parked in front of the building for almost a year before someone got wise. Is breaking and entering really an issue here?
Huh?
[quote=“http://www.independenttraveler.com/resources/article.cfm?AID=41&category=8”]
Whether you need euros, shekels, pesos or pounds, making a withdrawal from an ATM is generally the easiest and cheapest way to get cash abroad. The biggest advantage of exchanging money with your ATM card is that all cash withdrawals, regardless of size, are exchanged based on the wholesale exchange rate, which is usually reserved only for very large interbank exchanges.
This rate is often significantly better than what you can get from exchanging traveler’s checks at a local exchange counter. In addition, local banks or money change bureaus will add on transaction fees, which can easily eat up another 2 percent of your money.
That’s not to say there aren’t any fees associated with international ATM withdrawals – see below – but if you need cash, you will still almost always get the best exchange rate at the lowest possible cost by using your ATM card.[/quote]
Can’t you just put it in your shoe? It will pad your foot when you kick people in the nuts.
Seriously, why don’t you just have someone wire it to you after you set up a bank account here? You won’t lose much in wiring fees that way. The only question is whether or not you can get an account that will hold foreign currencies. We have one because we get paid by various clients in different currencies. It was easy to set up.
And the only fear I would have is the wild fluctuation in the AUD. That, and that someone might kick me in the nuts if I drink a beer outside of a 7-11 
.
[quote=“super_lucky”][quote=“Abacus”]
This is the part of the equation that everyone is overlooking. He’s only going to be here for 6 months which means that he won’t get an ARC (I think). And that means no bank account (I think). I wouldn’t want to carry and more importantly stash that kind of money in my apt just to avoid the fees.[/quote]
Ah-ha. You are at a minimum half correct: no ARC, no bank account.
On the other hand, depending upon where he lives, keeping it stashed in the joint is no problem. I dunno. Maybe it’s just living in Da’an. I left my bicycle unlocked parked in front of the building for almost a year before someone got wise. Is breaking and entering really an issue here?[/quote]
I wouldn’t say breaking and entering but roommates and anyone else that you have in your apartment ever. Most people are pretty honest but you’re talking about stashing ALOT of money (for Taiwan). And it won’t be difficult for people to figure out that you have a lot of money in your apartment when you always need to go to the bank with aussie dollars instead of an ATM. Not too mention that you can keep part of the money in an interest bearing account. Even the low % rate paid right now will probably pay the ATM fees. I just think that there are a few things that could go tragically wrong while not offering much of a benefit in the end.
And the article above makes a good point. For what you lose in ATM fees you’ll probably make up in getting a better exchange rate which should be a factor.
Of course, you can open a bank account in Taipei eventhough you don’t have ARC. You need to go to the office for foreigner, which I think it is in XiMending. I can give you the address later if you’d like to. I need to ask my friend first.
I remember the office will give you a piece of paper containing a specific number. With that number and your passport, you can go ahead to choose any banks to open an account. Perhaps it’s good to choose somewhere closed to either your school or where you will be most of time.
I read the school suggested students to bring travel checks. I don’t know if it’ll be a better deal than bringing cash, but if you are not familiar living abroad, perhaps it’s safer thAt way.
Good luck and hv a pleasant stay in Taipei.