Korean Job Discussion Forums

Freakstar · Joined: 29 Jun 2007

Best place to open up a standard checking account at? Do you need an ARC to open an account? Paystubs? Will they issue me a Visa/MC check card that I can use at any ATM? Thanks.

ttompatz · Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Location: Kwangju, South Korea

articulate_ink · Posted: Tue Oct 02, 2007 8:50 pm Post subject:

You will probably not be issued an ATM card that will work everywhere. There has already been a long thread about the ongoing denial of international ATM cards to foreigners. Unless you're lucky or well-connected, your card will only work for cash withdrawals in Korea.

Hana and Standard Chartered are supposedly your best bets for unrestricted ATM cards. On these threads, Nonghyup's a mixed bag: sometimes the cards work abroad, and sometimes they don't. I opened an account with them after KEB denied me a card, was told I'd be able to access cash while travelling in Thailand, and couldn't. I no longer use my Nonghyup account.

My account is with KEB. Despite the bullsh!t with ATM access (I travel a lot so it's a bit of a problem, even more so since the number of my American debit MasterCard was stolen last week and someone ran up about $1000 in charges... the card's now closed, love the irony), KEB has the best English-language services, including a customer support line staffed by people who not only speak English but are generally very pleasant and helpful. KEB offers Visa check cards if you ask for them. Be aware that they will not work outside of Korea, though.

I also have an account with Shinhan but I only use it as a savings account. The card they issued was only a cash card, not even useful (as far as I know) for general transactions at stores and so on, so it's all pretty useless.

Freakstar · Joined: 29 Jun 2007

Thanks for the info. Very helpful.

Young FRANKenstein · Posted: Thu Oct 04, 2007 7:29 am Post subject:

I've got 4 accounts.

I use KEB for most of my banking needs, auto bill payments, forex, money orders, and credit cards.

Shinhan is used only when I leave Korea, as they are the only bank willing to give me an international ATM card.

Post Office is used for receiving my salary, only because that's the only choice of bank I was given by my school. Money is immediately transferred over to KEB.

KB is used for nothing. They are useless. I have the accountm but I just let it sit there because I was tired of hearing I can't do anything "because foreigners are n't allowed to do (whatever)". Screw them. KEB gets my business.

tzechuk · Joined: 20 Dec 2004

KEB - I have a foreign ATM card. So I have a little bit of money in there that I let sit and put loads in when I go abroad so I can use the ATM card. I've been a customer for as long as I have been here, so they know me and I don't need to pay any admin fee when taking out money when I am o/s, which is nice.

Nonghyup- there is a branch in my *dong*, so it's convenient. Plus the uni I work at sends money there.

Woori... this is where I have my savings. Hubby banks there for all his business needs... so I just open one there. Same as KEB.. no admin fee for anything!

SPINOZA · Joined: 10 Jun 2005 Location: $eoul

KB have been fine with me. International ATM card, nice service, over 10,000,000 sent home with no questions asked.......

ajgeddes · Joined: 28 Apr 2004 Location: Yongsan

I have 3 accounts.

Woori bank - my original account when I first came. I still get my pay deposited into it. I have had an international ATM card for 3 years and never had a problem. I have also sent lots of money home from that account.

Hana bank - Had to get an account there or at Shinhan because of my apartment building. I use it as my day to day account as they gave me an international BC cheque card without me even asking, so they have always been good to me.

KEB - Just opened it up a couple of months ago, but it is under my GF's name so we could get a VISA card for me. Don't really use the account much.

SeoulShakin · Joined: 05 Jan 2006 Location: Seoul

Freakstar · Joined: 29 Jun 2007

Alright, so today at work, I was informed that I would need to open up one account at Woori Bank and another one at Citibank - one for monthly paychecks to be directed deposited into and the other solely for per diem allowances for business travel. If you bank at either of these banks, how has your experience been with them? Did they issue you an international check card with no hassle?

MarionG · Joined: 14 Sep 2006

My first account was at Nonghyup and they've been very nice and it's very convenient. I've recently opened a second account at Post Office but don't have enough experience with them to comment.

Interestingly, both of those banks required a chop (name stamp) but most of the other teachers I know don't have chops.

Freakstar · Joined: 29 Jun 2007

PGF · Joined: 27 Nov 2006

Hana Bank
ShinHam
and Nonghyup

I have a standard ATM card from each one and a Visa type check card from Nonghyup. In order to get the check type card--the one I can use on the internet...etc; I opened a separate savings account. When I opened the savings account, I had to sign a contract stipulating that I would deposit the same (pre-agreed to) amount of money each and every month for 12 consecutive months. I think the savings account bears like 4% or a little less.

The only things I needed to open these accounts were my passport and my ARC card.

Nonghyup is one of the oldest and largest banks in korea. And, they usually have at least one employee who speaks English-e, at least at the three or four branches I've dealt with....

good luck

LateBloomer · Joined: 06 May 2006

The only thing that's certain is that service varies dramatically from branch to branch of the same bank in Korea.

I could write a book about the trouble I've had with KB near my school in Incheon. Only one teller speaks English and he doesn't speak it very well. They act like I'm the only foreigner they've every dealt with.

It's been one screw-up after another and I don't think I've ever spent less than an hour in that bank. Too long a story to go into ....but my average bank visit takes more than two hours (has happened four times) and I usually end up speaking to someone at head office after the teller has spoken to them several times. What I can and can't do and the "solution" changed three times during my last session there.

I also have an account at Nonghup and despite the fact that no one speaks English well enough that I can have a conversation with them, after I did a transfer home (with the help of my co-teacher) now I just take in the documents from my previous transfer and they do the same thing every time.