Job Discussion Forums

[getbehindthemule]

Hello everybody,

There is a lot of information online about the difficulty in sending money home via bank transfer.
I went through the following process recently and it worked and was not too stressful:

Got a list of the necessary documentation required from my bank (ICBC):
1. Passport
2. Alien employment permit
3. Tax bill
4. Employment agreement
5. Company's business license
6. Screenshot when the company fills the tax returns online /or/ monthly income declaration (stamped)
7. Personal application

How I obtained the relevant documentation:
1. Self explanatory (2 photocopies required).
2. I got the original FEC (a book smaller than passport size) from my education company.
3. I went to the Tax Bureau in my district to collect this. I was in and out in 15 mins with the assistance of a very helpful security guard. Bring your passport.
4. Your contract.
5. Your school / education company will give you this.
6. My school's accounts department sent two screenshot photos to my phone which covered this requirement.
7. You will need your foreign bank SWIFT information, your bank and account information (IBAN, bank's name, address).

I was able to complete all the paperwork at the bank in English. I went there on a Friday afternoon and the process took an hour.
The money was in my bank account the following Tuesday morning.

The bank informed me that the next time I need to do this that I just need to bring my passport and my tax bill.
Anyway I hope this information may be helpful to somebody stressing out over how to go about this process.

Good luck!

(p.s. on a positive side note: When I was coming home in a taxi from the tax office my phone fell out of my jacket pocket.
I presumed it was gone forever as the taxi drove away long down the road as I relalised! But No, although my phone had little to no battery, the taxi man charged my phone. Later that evening took a call from my girlfriend, drove to her place to give her my phone. He would not accept any money. There are some really good people out there)

[guobaoyobro]

If I were you, I would just get a Chinese friend to convert the money to USD. Grab a buddy in America, Western Union it to them, and have them put it in your account.

So much simpler.

[ord2world]

The process doesn't sound too bad! Have you tried sending the money via Western Union straight to your bank account? I'm trying to think of the most cost effective way of transferring money to my U.S. account (minus trusting people to do it). My loans must be paid back per month, so a high transfer fee won't work.

Some people go to Hong Kong to transfer money, but I'm not exactly sure why.

[guobaoyobro]

Yeah. The fees are nothing extravagant. I think it comes out to like $10 per $1,000 or something like that? A drop in the bucket.

I didn't know you could wire it straight into your bank with WU. Wonder is US BANK does that. I'll check.

[LarssonCrew]

And yet, what happens when the bank teller says 'can't do that'. or panic, or your work doesn't give you the screenshots or says they can't do that?

[Non Sequitur]

[guobaoyobro]

[Non Sequitur]

[getbehindthemule]

I had originally planned on going down the 'easier' Western Union path and getting my brother to collect it and put it in my account. But when I actually put my mind to it (to gather the necessary documentation), it was relatively painless! In saying that, it is definitely worth bringing a Chinese friend with you to the bank.
I am from Europe and tranferred 1500 euros by using the steps described in the OP.
ICBC charged me 200rmb. My bank charged me on top of this (I think it was 23 or 24 euro). So it cost me about 50 euro to send the 1500 to my western bank account.
Anyway, in future all that I need to bring to the bank with me is my passport and tax bill to transfer my taxed income to my western bank account.

[Non Sequitur]

That's a good point.
The documents are only required the 1st time.
In the end given the tiny suburban branch I used, it was way easier to get the FAO to come along and do the tf in his name.
Promise of KFC usually did the trick.

[fchris171]

Very helpful post!

May I ask, did you need to provide any details/documents to the tax bureau other than you passport? Also, did the document you received mention anything about social insurance?

I'm returning to the UK soon and have been told by the UK tax office that I might need to prove that my Chinese income has been taxed..

The problem is I have doubts that my school is paying my tax properly and i'm certain they're not paying my social insurance. If I go and ask for this document I don't want to be landed with a nasty unpaid tax or social insurance bill.

[Non Sequitur]

Others may be able to give you better answers pertaining to UK.
If you get a Chinese associate to do the bank to bank there is no mention of the employer or the fact that it is earned income.
If your employer is deducting tax but not passing it on to the Chinese tax authorities, they may be reluctant to provide a record for you to show to the UK taxman.
I'm unsure if the UK has a double tax agreement with China. If not, they may simply tax you again.

[getbehindthemule]

@fchris171

You will need your passport and your school's tax number.

The tax bill I received mentioned nothing about social insurance. I am not paying social insurance as far as I know.

I had doubts as to whether my school was paying my tax properly also, but it turned out okay

Good luck

[guobaoyobro]

I just figured out an amazingly easy way to do it.

Sign up for a Paypal account via your country. Then sign up for a Chinese Paypal account, and get a UnionPay debit card via whatever bank.

Link banks (China and Your Country) to their respective accounts.

Put the money in your Chinese bank account. Paypal yourself to your Overseas Paypal account (funding from your Chinese bank account.)

Withdraw the transfer to your bank overseas.

Piece of cake, works like a charm, and works with nearly every country.

The best part is there are very low fees when sending money via bank.

Go for it.

[getbehindthemule]

Update:

I thought that I was set up after getting all the documentation and after getting my initial overseas bank transfer processed.
So, this week I go back to my local ICBC branch to make a second transfer. Apparently their system was updated for 2016 and it would not allow me to make my transaction. They recommened that I go to the Bank of China and try there.
Off I go to the Bank of China. Here, I get informed that I cannot make an overseas bank transfer because my work permit and my contract were not an exact match. My work permit is issued by my school but my contract is through my education company (even though the School's name and address is detailed as my place of work on my contract)!
So I will go back on my original post and admit that I was wrong and the process is stressful and convoluted