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Master Shake
Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 1202 Location: Colorado, USA
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2015 9:10 pm Post subject: Changing PLN to USD and transferring it abroad |
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Hi All,
I hope everyone is having happy holidays.
I'm probably going to be living in Colorado, USA for at least a few years. I've got some savings in zloty in my Polish bank account which I'd like to convert and relocate to a US bank.
Anyone have any advice on doing this? My plan is to use an online kantor, like https://cinkciarz.pl/eng, to convert the PLN into USD (my Polish bank has crappy exchange rates) first. After that, I can just wire the USD to my US account with a bank transfer.
Any predictions on whether the zloty will strengthen/weaken in the coming months? It hasn't been very strong for a while now. |
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ccoll
Joined: 16 Oct 2014 Posts: 19
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 3:54 am Post subject: |
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TransferWise might be a good option in your situation.
https://transferwise.com/ |
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sparks
Joined: 20 Feb 2008 Posts: 632
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 11:01 am Post subject: |
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As far as the złoty going up or down. I wish anyone knew. Consider PiS the Fed raising rates the winter. Who knows:) |
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sparks
Joined: 20 Feb 2008 Posts: 632
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 11:33 am Post subject: |
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As far as the złoty going up or down. I wish anyone knew. Consider PiS the Fed raising rates the winter. Who knows:) |
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Master Shake
Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 1202 Location: Colorado, USA
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 7:31 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for the replies, guys.
I've looked into Transferwise. They offer the best currency exchange rates out there. However, the fee they charge for their services is about 0.5% of the amount transferred. In comparison, my Polish bank (ING) will make the transfer for 40zl (flat rate) regardless of the amount transferred.
So, unless you're sending a large amount, say in excess of 75,000zl/$20,000, Transferwise is a good option. In fact, they may be the only option for US citizens.
I tried to use https://cinkciarz.pl/eng and they 'don't currently offer services to American citizens', though they plan to in Q1 2016. Don't know what's up with that. Seems to be no such restriction for any other nationality.
Hopefully there's no such restriction on Transferwise. |
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dragonpiwo
Joined: 04 Mar 2013 Posts: 1650 Location: Berlin
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Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2015 8:01 am Post subject: erm |
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Do it in cash and take it with you. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2015 9:26 am Post subject: |
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If taking large sums of cash you must declare it at Customs. I think it is over 10,000 Euros or US$10,000 Failure to declare can lead to confiscation. |
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dragonpiwo
Joined: 04 Mar 2013 Posts: 1650 Location: Berlin
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Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2015 12:31 pm Post subject: ha |
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Most people don't earn that a year. |
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Master Shake
Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 1202 Location: Colorado, USA
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Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2015 6:01 pm Post subject: Re: erm |
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dragonpiwo wrote: |
Do it in cash and take it with you. |
I don't need the stress and hassle of shuttling a bunch of cash like some Colombian drug mule. The amount is over 10k USD anyway, so I'd have to declare it.
Some teachers do actually make well over 10k USD in a year in crummy ol' TEFL Poland, dp. I saved about the same percentage of my salary working in Warsaw as I did in Tokyo, even though I made quite a bit more in Japan. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2015 7:38 pm Post subject: |
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Make a bank transfer. Only George Soros and Multinationals moving millions worry about saving a few groszy on transfers.
Personally I like handling cash - preferably in a hard currency ! |
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Infinite
Joined: 05 Jan 2013 Posts: 235
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Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2016 12:12 pm Post subject: Re: Changing PLN to USD and transferring it abroad |
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Master Shake wrote: |
Hi All,
I hope everyone is having happy holidays.
I'm probably going to be living in Colorado, USA for at least a few years. |
uhmm.... good choice hahaha... for many o reasons |
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Infinite
Joined: 05 Jan 2013 Posts: 235
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Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2016 12:16 pm Post subject: |
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You could try paypal... but also, you might want to trade currency. Find something that's more stable and not as strong against the dollar, observe the market for a month or so, then trade them to whatever currency you've chosen and then to dollars. Yes, it does require a bit of work but if it means making a thousand or two... then I'd say it's worth it. |
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Master Shake
Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 1202 Location: Colorado, USA
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Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2016 5:21 pm Post subject: |
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Infinite wrote: |
You could try paypal... but also, you might want to trade currency. Find something that's more stable and not as strong against the dollar, observe the market for a month or so, then trade them to whatever currency you've chosen and then to dollars. Yes, it does require a bit of work but if it means making a thousand or two... then I'd say it's worth it. |
Yes, would definitely take some work and might mean a loss if I bet on the wrong currency. You also have to consider all the fees involved with changing money. Still, with the zloty as weak as it is is now...
I just did a small test transfer (PLN - USD) using Transferwise. I received exactly what I expected. Transferwise offers a really novel way to avoid international transfer fees and get the best possible exchange rates. Check it out before it disappears - I don't see how it's possible for the company to turn a profit under it's business model. |
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