# Paying bills in home country & banking



## CEgypt04 (May 30, 2010)

Hi everyone, 

Does anyone have any advice around paying bills in your home country, specifically the US, and banking out of Egypt? My income is given to me in Egyptian LE, and I'm trying to find a way to pay bills I have in the US (credit card, mainly) without having to do wire transfers. 

I don't have a bank account set up in Egypt, but I am thinking of opening an account. I've heard lots of great things about the Arab African International Bank. Similarly I thought about opening an account at HSBC because they are international, so it might be easy to transfer money for bills - but I've heard that the Egyptian HSBC branches aren't linked to American ones, so it's no different than transferring from two completely different banks. I'd also prefer to open an account somewhere with a low minimum balance (I think AAIB requires 3000 LE).

Does anyone know the visa regulations (resident, six month tourist, etc) necessary for opening an account?

Finally - I know banks offer the ability to have accounts in USD or EGP. If I'm paying bills in USD, would it make more sense to hold an account in USD rather than EGP? Would it matter?



Any and all advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

CEgypt04 said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> Does anyone have any advice around paying bills in your home country, specifically the US, and banking out of Egypt? My income is given to me in Egyptian LE, and I'm trying to find a way to pay bills I have in the US (credit card, mainly) without having to do wire transfers.
> 
> ...


If I understood correctly, you don't have a bank account in USA? or did you close your account before moving here? if so, why??? 

Wire transfers out of Egypt are currently very restricted, as far as I know the only way to transfer money out of the country is by going to your bank branch and requesting it in person. Not sure what limits you would have with Western Union and the like but I should think is pretty much the same for all money transfer institutions.

If you are getting paid in LE you will need a bank account in Egypt in LE. If all your income is in LE that means you will need to get the money converted to US$ before transferring out. It doesn't make much sense to convert your entire salary to dollars. How would you pay for your groceries? Plus the fx rate is very volatile at the moment!

Which bank you choose will depend on your circumstances, that you can work out by doing a bit of online research and checking out the rates, fees and services of each provider. If you had accounts with them in USA I would definitely recommend HSBC, but this I believe is not your case. 

re Visa requirements, the regulations are currently changing by the minute, so you may need to approach the bank to confirm, but I found this online. Just one warning, not sure how up to date this website is so use for guidance only

How to Open a Bank Account in Egypt | eHow.com

Good luck with the paperwork


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## CEgypt04 (May 30, 2010)

aykalam said:


> If I understood correctly, you don't have a bank account in USA? or did you close your account before moving here? if so, why???
> 
> Wire transfers out of Egypt are currently very restricted, as far as I know the only way to transfer money out of the country is by going to your bank branch and requesting it in person. Not sure what limits you would have with Western Union and the like but I should think is pretty much the same for all money transfer institutions.
> 
> ...


Thanks! I do have an account in the US but taking money I have and then sending it to a relative to deposit in to the bank isn't really the most efficient way to keep this up.


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

CEgypt04 said:


> Thanks! I do have an account in the US but taking money I have and then sending it to a relative to deposit in to the bank isn't really the most efficient way to keep this up.


My point was if you have an account in US you should be able to pay your US bills via online banking, from your US account to whatever third party you need to pay. I don't understand why a relative would need to get involved.


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## CEgypt04 (May 30, 2010)

aykalam said:


> My point was if you have an account in US you should be able to pay your US bills via online banking, from your US account to whatever third party you need to pay. I don't understand why a relative would need to get involved.


Yes, I understand, and I've done that in the past. The issue is that I make money here in Egypt, so getting the LE that I have in hand to my bank in the US requires a transfer (in the past I'd wire money to a relative who would then put it in my bank. I bank at a small credit union in the US). I'm just trying to find an easier way then having to go through all that!


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

CEgypt04 said:


> Yes, I understand, and I've done that in the past. The issue is that I make money here in Egypt, so getting the LE that I have in hand to my bank in the US requires a transfer (in the past I'd wire money to a relative who would then put it in my bank. I bank at a small credit union in the US). I'm just trying to find an easier way then having to go through all that!


Well, yes, if your only income is in Egypt then you will need to make a transfer but is it not possible for you to transfer money from your account here (once it's set up) to your account in US directly?


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## CEgypt04 (May 30, 2010)

aykalam said:


> Well, yes, if your only income is in Egypt then you will need to make a transfer but is it not possible for you to transfer money from your account here (once it's set up) to your account in US directly?


I think it would be. So now I'm back to square one  figuring out what bank to go to! lol, thanks for your advice I appreciate it.


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