Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Seoul_Star]

You think Korea's banks and rules are sparkling? Check this out; I've been in Korea for 1.8 years. I've never wired money home before because I don't have any bills or debt, and therefor had no real reason to go through the trouble. I recently found out that my employer is going under, and that we are all pretty much out of a job in about 30 days.

I've been saving all this money up, in addition to the savings that I brought with me when I came. I've accumulated over 60million won. Some from working, some from previous savings. Last week upon finding out the news about our job, I went to my bank and inquired about sending my money out of here, as due to the new visa regulations, I'm looking at being out of Korea for at least a few months minimum before I can re-enter and work again. I was told that within every 30 day period, they would not allow me to wire home more than my monthly salary. I mentioned that I had never wired money home before, and thus had been accumulating it all since I started working here back in 2006.

Surely, having never wired money home, my limit should have snowballed and carried over with each passing month....

Didn't matter, they weren't letting me send home more than my monthly salary this month. Seeing as how I have about ~40million in my KB account, and another ~$20,000 in cash (US Currency), I have yet to find any way to get my own money OUT of this country in the next 30 days. I have records showing that my company deposited the money each month faithfully, it's all in my passbook showing where the majority of the money came from. "Tough luck!"

I thought, no big deal, I'll just give the money to my girlfriend, and she can wire it out for me while I'm gone. Her bank told her that Koreans cannot wire out more than 1mil per day, so she would essentially have to go to the bank for 60+days straight, and it would cost me around $1200 in fees associated with receiving the money. That's not really convenient, or dynamic, or sparkling at all!

I called the Korean Customs Office and inquired about taking money out of the country, to which I was told, "If you take more than $10,000 out of Korea in any currency, you must declare it, or it will be seized". I asked what would happen if I declared it all, and the lady said "You need to prove where it all came from". I asked if my banking passbook showing deposits from my employer would be sufficient, and she said "Maybe...." which doesn't really fill me with the necessary confidence.

Should I convert it all to USD and tape it all around my body like a drug mule, and try to walk out without declaring it?

Should I declare it all at the airport, and then hope and pray that having my passbook and employer's phone number on hand is enough to satisfy Korean customs?

Since my employer is going under, will they still be able to answer questions about my income from banking or customs officials? Will their phone number even work in 30 days? Who knows.

Should I just leave it all in Korea, despite the fact that it will take me months to get a new visa under the current regulations, and really, I'm not even sure how to jump through all the new hoops yet? Plus my Korean cash card (though international) may not work overseas after all.

Should I ask for travelers checks, and then mail them out of here?

Is my bank mistaken in that since I've never wired money home before, I should actually be able to wire as much as I have earned up until this point in time? And not my monthly salary?

Am I going to have to resort to an illegal means to get my legal earnings out of this country, because it is so backwards and screwed up with new rules being invented all the time that not even my bank or the customs office truly knows the answers to any of my questions?

I never thought that saving money would be such a headache in the end.

[crazylemongirl]

Go to another branch. Ones that deal with foreigners (Itaewon and Gwanghwamun) usually are the best for dealing with transfers. You can wire out as much money as you want but you do need to declare anything over $10,000US

[creesschaef]

If I was you I would talk to someone higher up in the bank. It sounds like you are being jerked around by the minions on the floor.

As long as you have a paper trail you will be fine. Who knows, it may be the first time they are dealing with such an event and they didn't know what to do. We all know how great that is. Koreans handle these situations oh so well.

As far as Customs is concerned, just make sure you are carrying less than 10k on your person. Did you enter the country with that 20k? Did you declare it at that point? On the off chance that they do decide to strip/cavity search you, I'd hate to be in your shoes.

If everything is legal, it will work out in the end.

Now call the bank, dude.

[boyne11]

Buy 500 Euro notes.

[ceesgetdegrees]

60 mill in 1.8 years! WOWAWEEWAH!

[Typhoon]

I have been trying to get answers on this from mutliple banks for the past month and a half and I have gotten no where. All banks told my wife told she could apply for a one time transfer of up to 200 000 000 Won within a year before leaving. They told her I could only send 1 million Won a month. She told them that I made more than that a month and they said 1 million is the most a foreigner can send a month. I laughed as I know this is untrue. Anyways, a lot of banks have their heads up their asses. If you have any luck figuring out who to wire it out post it here. I would love to know how. I have pretty much given up as it is too much of a headache to send it myself and it appears my wife will be able to send most of our savings out in one shot. Let us know if you figure out how to do it.

[articulate_ink]

OP: Your post raised some red flags, as every new banking thread does, but it also left me with a couple of questions. You sound determined to come back to Korea. In that case, why are you trying to move all of your money out of the country? If you close your account here (as it sounds like you're planning to do), when you come back, you may have trouble getting an ATM card on any new account that you open.

Also, how long are you planning to be away? You ought to be able to get the documentation you need for a new work visa from here. Or, at the very least, you can get the ball rolling. Take time to read the threads on the new documentation requirements. I'll admit I've stopped paying attention to them, but the impression I got is that it can be done if you've got friends or family in the States who'll help. Unless there's an urgent need for you to return to the US (you mentioned US dollars so I assume you're American) for an extended length of time, you may not need that much cash when you go. Your bank account(s) here will still be open when you get back. Plenty of university professors who have long breaks between semesters leave for a couple of months at a time and come back without trouble. I've done it.

You brought a lot of savings with you when you came to Korea. How? Did you declare it on departure from the US and arrival here? If so, what did you need to show? Others have posted on here about travelling with large amounts of legal cash. From that, it sounds as if it wouldn't be a problem, provided you can show where it came from.

It sounds like you need get your paperwork together for Immigration and look for another job, more than you need to worry about getting your money out of the country... for now. If you want to make the jump into a uni job and have the qualifications, this is a good time to do it. Your hagwon's going to close, anyway. Get a release letter from your boss and leave on your own terms, if you can.

Two other things you ought to consider: get an international ATM card. Don't leave that to chance. In other words, go to Standard Chartered. If you're near Seoul, go to the one at COEX. Also, you may want to open an offshore account somewhere other than the US. If you're going to be in Asia for a while, you've got enough savings that wiring it back to the US is going to cause you to lose money as the dollar continues its decline. Plus, American banks charge ridiculous fees... for everything. HSBC is one of a number of banks that will enable you to set up an offshore account, and you can choose the territory where you'd like it to be registered. You can also go to Singapore and open an account there. That's what I did. Whatever you decide to do, it would be a good idea to come up with a long-term plan for getting your money out of Korea. But you need to start working on everything now. It sounds as if you have more time than you think.

[Seoul_Star]

Well, I brought about $8000 USD with me, of which I exchanged about $500 to get me through the first month in Korea back in 2006. So that left me with $7500 in USD. While I was here, I had my stuff in storage in Japan (had worked there for 2 years prior), so when summer vacation rolled around, I flew back to Osaka, and sold my car, and some other things I had my from old place in Japan, and I came back to Korea with about $12500 in USD, which I declared, but the customs people just waived me through and didn't even ask me anything. At the time, the Japanese weren't selling Korean won at any reasonable rate, so I had exchanged the YEN into USD directly, because that was the best rate at the time, and USD is quite versatile. Korean WON is worth almost nothing if you try to exchange it outside of Korea. Banks I've been to in China would not even exchange it.

I don't teach privates or do anything illegal, I just had some cash and small assets that I sold prior to coming to Korea. Since being in Korea, I haven't really spent a ton of money. My salary is towards the upper end of the scale, but it's not obscene, and I've seen other teachers earning the same.


why are you trying to move all of your money out of the country? If you close your account here (as it sounds like you're planning to do), when you come back, you may have trouble getting an ATM card on any new account that you open.

Because I am uncertain of the new regulations, and seeing as how I don't even have a Korean consulate in my home state, I'm a little weary to leave my money here until I know exactly what I need to do, and how long it will take to get a new visa. I don't need to close my account, but I don't want to leave all the money in there ether.

I'll admit I've stopped paying attention to them, but the impression I got is that it can be done if you've got friends or family in the States who'll help. Unless there's an urgent need for you to return to the US (you mentioned US dollars so I assume you're American)

I've also stopped paying attention to the threads, they give me a headache and they change every day. Further more I have been told different things by two different embassies in the USA, neither of which is in my home state. I don't have any close family in the USA, my parents retired outside of the USA.

[Oreovictim]

Okay, which bank should I be avoiding in the future?

I really don't know what to say to you. You can always try to scare your bank and say, "Well, I'd like to transfer my funds to another bank, thank you." You might still have trouble.

So you said this also has to do with the new visa rules? I get frustrated that Korea makes us do all kinds of things, (i.e. consulate visits, AIDS tests, etc.) but god forbid that they pass laws that could make our lives a little easier.

Man, even though you brought some money over, you sure saved a hell of a lot in 1.8 years.

[RyanInKorea]

60 million in 1.8 years? I wonder why the company is going under... jesus.

Ryan

[jangsalgida]

Here is the best article I've read on this matter...

'Banks cite non-existent law on expat cards'

http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2885625

[jeffkim1972]

Go to another branch, what you have been told isn't true, they are outright lying to you.

You can send up to but less than US10,000 each time you enter this country.
At least that was the old law, but i doubt that was even a law. If anything, you can send more.

Koreans sending one thousand a day? that is also a lie.

Just go to a different bank, don't tell them you are moving back home, or how much money you have.

Or just withdraw everything, convert to the biggest bills at the airport and just carry it out.

you might have to file a report, but if everything is legal, they won't take any of it.

[huffdaddy]

Try KEB. They set me up with an EasyOne account that allows me to transfer up to US$20,000 a year from an ATM. I believe I can do it all in one transfer as well. If you can prove your income, you should be able to have that limit increased. You might have to try several different tellers or banks before finding someone who will set you up though. I believe a couple of other banks have the same ATM transfer account deal.

[Join Me]

I am really not surprised at this experience. For starters, it is a bank employee's job to bring in deposits and keep them in the bank. In addition, Korean banks must know by now that a lot of foreign English instructors are leaving. Just look at all the moving out of Korea sales showing up on this site. Combine these two facts with the total lack of knowledge on the part of the average Korean bank employee and you have a real mess.

I am in the same situation for trying to decide to leave money here or take it out. The Korean government is really creating a mess, but Koreans will be the ones who suffer most in the end. Nobody is coming to a country that makes something as simple as controlling your own money so difficult. When the hell will these people learn?

As long as your money is legal they can't stop you from taking it home with you. Good luck sorting through all of Korea's BS...Korea Sparkling!!!!

[bassexpander]

I want to post this again in this thread, just because it pertains:


Woori bank is the worst for this.

I have a very recent story for you all....

One of my coworkers quit at the end of this past year. She left on good terms with the uni here, and took a job teaching back in Australia. This being Korea, however, she was nervous to just leave it up to our school to get her final paychecks back home (and rightfully so). She asked me to send her the money using her bank (Shinhan). Knowing the current difficulties of sending money out of Korea, I was happy to do it, although she needed it on a certain date, and we both knew that a family situation of mine might get in the way. I was her only choice really -- and she knew she could trust me to get her her money somehow. I agreed to do it, in part, because it was also a way for me to "get even" with the asshats here by helping as much money leave this country as I can.

As luck would have it, I had a family situation arise, and I arranged for the school to transfer her money to get it to her as quickly as possible. They agreed to transfer it, but when the date came and went, they couldn't do it.

Why?

Because WOORI BANK said they couldn't due to "laws about money leaving Korea."

It didn't matter that this was her paycheck from a university, and the university was transferring it back home! In fact, this bank is on the doorstep of our uni, and works very closely with administration here.

It didn't matter that a big institution like a university was sending the money using their own Woori account. The problem was that they were attempting to send it to a foreigner overseas, according to this bank manager. Also, it had something to do with our school's payroll deposits going to her Shinhan account monthly -- not the Woori branch next to our school. Still, that didn't matter, because the school was not sending the money to my former coworker's Shinhan account. They were simply planning a transfer of their own money.

This puzzled me, until my Korean wife told me that Woori (not sure about other banks) now has restrictions on Koreans sending money overseas, too. She is not allowed to send more than 1 million won per day to anyone overseas!

I was uncomfortable with transferring a wad of cash out of the Shinhan branch here, because they didn't know me, and I would have no proof of how I made the money. My coworker insisted that she's always been able to show up with a wad of cash, and they just transfer it no-questions asked. I just couldn't trust it.

So I ended up transferring my coworker's money out of Shinhan with her bank card (which she left me) to my personal Woori account. I then send it out of Woori using an International Bank Transfer. I knew it would pass, because I hadn't sent money out of here in a long time, and I had record of all my uni deposits (and a lot of money in there).

This wasn't my first brush with Woori Bank. I personally stopped using that bank because the bank manager at this branch is such an ass. I tried to send money home from there 1 1/2 years ago, and succeeded, only after the bank manager called my uni to warn them, "Hey, did you know this foriegner is sending about 8 million won home to the USA?" He did it right there in front of me! After sending it, and putting me through everything but a blood test, he told me, "The next time you send money to your country, it's going to be very hard."

I'd like to get another bank, but personally, I have vowed to use Woori Bank to send the maximum amount of money home that I possibly can, just because it really pisses the manager off here, so I'm going to enjoy pissing them off as much as possible. I'm going to transfer another 7 million later this year, just to irk the hell out of the guy and come in just below my 10 million won "limit" for the year that Korean banks like Woori now impose.

After he is an asshat about it, I'm going in there the next day with my wife and have her transfer a million more won -- just to piss him off.

Imagine the ludicrousy of this. The money was legally earned by a foreinger working a legal job here in Korea. She was simply trying to get HER money back home. She couldn't take the pay with her when she left, because the school wouldn't pay her early.