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Moving money internationally is never easy. At this signal you probably already know that. Then as you research options to go money into China, it helps to know what has worked in the past and which methods are the cheapest for transferring money internationally.

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When it comes to getting money into People's republic of china, especially as an expat, I've institute that Wise (formerly Transferwise) is the best cheap and convenient option.

You can create a gratuitous account easily, ship money to your China depository financial institution or but hold 1 of 50+ currencies in your Wise account.

It doesn't affair whether you're a broke traveler who needs money quickly or you lot're trying to pay for something in China using funds stored outside of Prc. In both cases, information technology is essential to sympathize the cheapest and fastest means to send money to China (or perchance get coin to you in China).

Note: If you're looking for ideas on how to transport coinout of Mainland china, cheque out our Guide to Sending Money to China and out.

The practiced news is that Cathay is full of banks at virtually every street corner. That ways ATM's, quick greenbacks and convenience.

The bad news is that it comes at a cost. Whether that's time standing in line, fourth dimension waiting for a wire transfer, or bank fees, yous're going to have to pay somehow.

So based on my years of experience, here'south a quick rundown of the 5 Cheapest Ways to get money into Communist china.

• Walk the Cash Across the Border (risky and express)
  • How much cash can yous legally deport?
• Employ an ATM to Go Cash (easy but high fees)
• Wire Transfer Money into China (recommended)
• Write an Old-Fashioned Cheque (very slow)
• Utilize an International Credit Menu (limited usage)

Allow's dive in!

Note: Some links in this commodity are affiliate links, which means that at no extra cost to you, I may exist compensated if y'all choose to use ane of the services listed. I but recommend what I've personally used, and I capeesh your support!

Walk the Money Beyond the People's republic of china Border

The absolute cheapest way to go coin to Mainland china is to walk it through. That means i of two things for you:

• Risking it with a bunch of cash (not easy)
• Using traveler's cheques (non a good thought)

No doubt you should always have a footling greenbacks on hand (United states of america dollars are still the easiest to convert), it'due south merely a thing of how much. I've walked through Chinese customs with a couple hundred dollars and I've also walked across with a couple thousand.

Both worked groovy, the latter was just harder on the nerves.

How Much Cash Can You Bring into Communist china?

According to China's customs office, a traveler can carry with them 20,000 RMB in cash or a foreign currency equivalent of US $v,000 without declaring information technology.

Anything over these amounts must be processed by China Customs.

A more secure, albeit antiquated option, is traveler'southward checks. For decades this used to be the method of choice for international travelers. At that place's no a limit to how much you can carry in traveler's checks since they aren't considered currency, but they're not nigh equally pop every bit they used to be.

Not only is it difficult to discover a place to buy traveler's checks nowadays, it'southward cumbersome to cash them. In Mainland china, I've waiting in line for ii hours but to get a check cashed!

The problem with both of these options is that although they are very cheap, getting the money converted to Chinese Renminbi is frequently a nightmare.

Exchange rates at the airport are horrendous and the attempt to go a fair shake at a depository financial institution could cost yous an entire half of your mean solar day.

MY Advice

Use greenbacks walked across the edge every bit a backup programme in case something goes wrong. Don't apply information technology as your primary way to go coin.

Apply an ATM in Mainland china to Get Cash

A bulk of the ATM'southward all throughout Red china accept Visa and MasterCard as well as UnionPay, Diner'southward Club and others.

It's incredibly convenient to use the ATM in Communist china, which is why and so many people prefer this method, but there are two singled-out disadvantages:

• Withdrawal Limits: There is a withdrawal limit, commonly somewhere around 2,000-3,000RMB per 24-hour interval. Interestingly, this limit is often imposed by your personal banking company, not by the Chinese ATM (you tin can withdrawal multiple times from the same ATM). I manner to become around this is to use multiple accounts or, if you're traveling with your spouse who has his/her own debit menu, you can utilize both cards to withdrawal from the same business relationship in a single day.
• Bank Fees: Information technology's a rare bank that doesn't charge ATM fees, so await somewhere between United states$5-10 to prove up on your argumentevery time yous use the ATM. On top of that, you're also getting an commutation rate that isn't as expert as if yous were to walk into the bank with cash.

My advice: ATM's are a bang-up choice but when you use one to pull cash, take out the max withdrawal limit and then you don't take to do information technology more than in one case.

Tip #2: Make certain you know your debit carte Pivot number! Nosotros don't oft use our debit cards dorsum home, so it'due south easy to forget our PIN numbers, and notwithstanding you tin can't pull money from a Chinese ATM without information technology.

Wire Transfer Money to China

Wire transfers may not exist the most efficient fashion for travelers to get their money to Cathay, just it does let for larger sums of money to be transfered.

There are three primary ways that I've wired money in and out of China:

• Best Option: Wise – One of the fastest and easiest ways to initiate a wire transfer to China is through a service like Wise (formerly Transferwise). The money is guaranteed within 82 hours (my experience has been faster) and although the fees may look slightly higher than your bank, what y'all may not realize is that Wise gives yous a better exchange rate. The only downside? Wire transfers from services like these are capped at about US$5,000 (or 31,000 RMB in some cases) per transaction.

• Bank Wire Transfers: Dorsum in the US I banking company with Chase. In less than 15 minutes I was able to log into my account online, set up up a new "wire recipient" and then make the transfer. Information technology price me about $xl for each transfer regardless of the amount, but it's hassle gratuitous. The 2 big issues with this method are that i) y'all accept to have all the information for the China banking company exactly right (and often in Chinese) in guild for the wire to be accepted and 2) the whole process takes near a week. For transfers over The states$v,000, this is likely your only option. If this interests you lot, you should consider opening a Chinese bank business relationship for yourself.

• Fastest: MoneyGram – There are companies like MoneyGram (for Great britain residents, visit MoneyGram's UK site), however, that charge about the same fee as your bank only can have your coin available in less than a solar day. In my feel, it works well but has been a hassle on the China cease. I accessed the money apace but had to stand up in line at the bank to retrieve the money and and so stand in line again to convert it to Renminbi (you can't transport Renminbi, you lot have to ship your dwelling currency).

My Advice: Check with your bank to run into what they charge. If yous need to make transfers regularly information technology's just as well convenient not to use something like Wise. If information technology's a 1-time deal consider a service like MoneyGram.

Write an Old Fashioned Check

Believe it or not, writing yourself a check from your home banking company is a perfectly viable mode to get money into a China bank account. Your Communist china bank volition probably charge you an insignificant fee (around US$15) and your abode bank will charge you aught.

There is a Large take hold of, though.

The check takes anywhere between 30-threescore days to clear. YIKES! I don't similar waiting that long, and then I've never personally used this method, just I take one friend who did.

My Advice: if you tin program far enough ahead, writing a cheque to yourself might not exist a bad pick.

Use an International Credit Menu

This is a newer pick that works well for purchases inside China if yous're a loftier-end traveler (non an option for transferring money, though). In bigger Chinese cities you tin use a credit card to pay for your hotel stays and some restaurants.

In that location are some credit cards that boast no fees for international purchases. You have to bank check how they calculate exchange rates, but usually this tin can exist a pretty good deal.

The just downwardly side is that annihilation less than a major department shop or 5-star hotel will not accept Visa/MasterCard credit cards. Information technology is possible to get a pre-paid UnionPay card similar ECARD (costless to use and top upwards with a US bank account).

UnionPay is accustomed everywhere in China, dissimilar Visa and MasterCard, and can be used to avoid high fees when pulling cash at an ATM.

Final Thoughts: Become Coin to China

There are two things you need to consider when planning to transfer money into Mainland china:

1. How much money do you need to transfer?
2. How fast practise you need the coin?

For annihilation under United states $5,000, the pick that I use most oftentimes and has the everyman fees is to wire to a Chinese banking concern account using a service like Wise.

Anything in a higher place $5,000 and visiting your local bank is actually your only choice.

If speed is of importance, MoneyGram can get the money overseas within a couple hours. All other options take anywhere from a couple days to more a week.

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Source: https://www.travelchinacheaper.com/5-cheapest-ways-get-money-china

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