# Banking Info



## Carlos' Girl (Jan 26, 2016)

I am going to be moving soon to Mexico. We will most likely be in Salvatierra, GTO for a month or so and then will be moving to Queretaro. My question is money related...My money now, of course, is in a US Bank. What do I need to do? ...pretty open ended, but I need all the info! Thanks!!


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## chuck846 (Jan 15, 2016)

Carlos' Girl said:


> I am going to be moving soon to Mexico. We will most likely be in Salvatierra, GTO for a month or so and then will be moving to Queretaro. My question is money related...My money now, of course, is in a US Bank. What do I need to do? ...pretty open ended, but I need all the info! Thanks!!


Good for you ! I guess for starters you should research the tons of posts on sites such as this and ask specific questions. What is it you don't understand ?


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## Carlos' Girl (Jan 26, 2016)

how friendly. thanks.


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## chuck846 (Jan 15, 2016)

Carlos' Girl said:


> how friendly. thanks.


WHAT is your question ?


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## Carlos' Girl (Jan 26, 2016)

Well, what is the best way to set up my banking system? I am assuming that I can not just access my bank that I currently have because it is just a local to my area of my state bank. So, are there a few bigger companies to look into to house my US dollars? Is that best to keep most of my money here and transfer money as we need it? Is it better to just move all of my money to a bank there in Mexico? My husband is a Mexican citizen but has not lived there since he was eleven, so he is not much help in this area either. 

I am sorry for my open ended question, but I have a very short time to do a lot of things by myself with three children also requiring attention and I was just looking for the easy answer this time as I was sure there were plenty of people who have their banking set up having lived there for some time. Was just hoping for some sharing of knowledge to make something a little easier.


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## perropedorro (Mar 19, 2016)

Carlos' Girl said:


> I am going to be moving soon to Mexico. We will most likely be in Salvatierra, GTO for a month or so and then will be moving to Queretaro. My question is money related...My money now, of course, is in a US Bank. What do I need to do? ...pretty open ended, but I need all the info! Thanks!!


Can't really guess what you're looking for, and there are several on the board far more financially savvy than I am, so I'll just tell you what I recently did and why. Opened a peso checking account so I could pay my bills at the bank/ATM and have a national debit card which is accepted in many places where an international card is rejected. Also wanted to set up a connection to transfer funds from my American accounts to my local account as needed and perhaps have direct deposit for my pension. I still don't have a lot of experience with (or trust of) Mexican banks to keep a balance of more than a couple months worth of expenses. The bulk of my money stays in the U.S. What you'll find is that Mexican banks generally have far less favorable terms than what you're used to, especially if you do business at a U.S. credit union. They usually charge maintenance fees for accounts, although mine is a negligible 30 pesos/month. Be careful with the terms for credit cards as they all seem to have annual fees, purchase requirements and interest rates through the roof. As far as your American credit card, be aware of foreign transaction fees, up to 3%, and before you leave find one that doesn't charge them.


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## Carlos' Girl (Jan 26, 2016)

perropedorro said:


> Can't really guess what you're looking for, and there are several on the board far more financially savvy than I am, so I'll just tell you what I recently did and why. Opened a peso checking account so I could pay my bills at the bank/ATM and have a national debit card which is accepted in many places where an international card is rejected. Also wanted to set up a connection to transfer funds from my American accounts to my local account as needed and perhaps have direct deposit for my pension. I still don't have a lot of experience with (or trust of) Mexican banks to keep a balance of more than a couple months worth of expenses. The bulk of my money stays in the U.S. What you'll find is that Mexican banks generally have far less favorable terms than what you're used to, especially if you do business at a U.S. credit union. They usually charge maintenance fees for accounts, although mine is a negligible 30 pesos/month. Be careful with the terms for credit cards as they all seem to have annual fees, purchase requirements and interest rates through the roof. As far as your American credit card, be aware of foreign transaction fees, up to 3%, and before you leave find one that doesn't charge them.


Will your US bank transfer directly to your Mexican bank? or do you have to use an outside website or other company to make that transfer? Thanks for your response.


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## perropedorro (Mar 19, 2016)

Carlos' Girl said:


> Will your US bank transfer directly to your Mexican bank? or do you have to use an outside website or other company to make that transfer? Thanks for your response.


You _should_ be able to arrange it between your banks, and I'm still in the process of making it happen. My U.S. credit union was quite cooperative, but my Mexican bank put up roadblocks. Read my post:
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/mexico-expat-forum-expats-living-mexico/982650-cash-daily-use-7.html#post10176898 Maybe the problem is peculiar to Santander and maybe it really is the law. Hopefully you'll have better luck. I suggest you ask specifically about the issue before you open the account. Good luck.


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## joaquinx (Jul 3, 2010)

If your US bank issued you a debit card, you can use it any ATM that supports the networks that are listed on the back of your card. If not on the back, you can contact your US bank and ask them what networks they support. 

Direct wires from bank to bank can get expensive whereas the ATMs are everywhere and give the better exchange rate. xoom.com offers bank to bank transfer at a better rate and much quicker than bank wire. 

I am assuming that you have, at least, a Residencia Temporal visa and with that you can open an account with a Mexican bank.


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## NCas (Sep 9, 2013)

I have some money in my Wells Fargo account that I wire to myself whenever I need. I've discovered that you get a better exchange rate and there is only a five dollar fee for up to $500. However, I have not done a transfer in a while so I'm a little fuzzy on the details. When I set this up in Wells Fargo I gave them the name of three Mexican banks that I might be using to receive the money. I send it to myself as cash so that way I do not need to have an account with the Mexican back when getting the transfer. I do know if you might want to check out that option with the bigger banks, but I'm sure they'll answer all your questions. Another this you may want to check out is maybe opening an account with Charles Schwab. I don't actually have an account with them, but I hear that they do have some great benefits and ease for getting money abroad. It's an investment bank so you may want to do some research. I hope I was able to help a bit and good luck. I'm also living in Queretaro almost four years now. So if you have some questions about this area let me know.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

I agree with Joaquinx. In the short term, the easiest thing to do is just use an ATM to take money out of your US bank. Mexico is largely a cash society anyway and it will be easy to pay all your bills in cash. Buying a house or car is a big expense not easily done with cash from ATMs, but for most everything else you could get by just taking cash from an ATM. After you get here and have some time, you could think about whether you also need a Mexican bank and debit card.


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## perropedorro (Mar 19, 2016)

TundraGreen said:


> I agree with Joaquinx. In the short term, the easiest thing to do is just use an ATM to take money out of your US bank. Mexico is largely a cash society anyway and it will be easy to pay all your bills in cash. Buying a house or car is a big expense not easily done with cash from ATMs, but for most everything else you could get by just taking cash from an ATM. After you get here and have some time, you could think about whether you also need a Mexican bank and debit card.


I'll agree....for the short term, as you and Joaquín correctly suggested. Been there and done that. It even worked well for decades before we moved here, for sending money to relatives, my wife having contributed remesas for her parents' retirement and putting a couple of younger siblings through college. Just give an ATM card and PIN for an American account set up for that purpose, to a trusted relative and instruct them to withdraw cash. Lots cheaper, easier and faster than Western Union. But now that we're here for the long run it's better not to have lots of cash on hand. I also like to reserve bus passage, fútbol or concert tickets; pay bills and make online purchases.....which may require a Mexican credit/debit card. With an American card there's rarely a problem with big-box store, hotels or Uber, but bus lines and many local stores won't accept them. It's also nice to have a local account to which money from your American bank can be transferred should you need a to make a major purchase like a vehicle or real estate. Eventually Carlos' Girl (and Carlos) will need a local bank.


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## chuck846 (Jan 15, 2016)

Carlos' Girl said:


> Well, what is the best way to set up my banking system? I am assuming that I can not just access my bank that I currently have because it is just a local to my area of my state bank. So, are there a few bigger companies to look into to house my US dollars? Is that best to keep most of my money here and transfer money as we need it? Is it better to just move all of my money to a bank there in Mexico? My husband is a Mexican citizen but has not lived there since he was eleven, so he is not much help in this area either.
> 
> I am sorry for my open ended question, but I have a very short time to do a lot of things by myself with three children also requiring attention and I was just looking for the easy answer this time as I was sure there were plenty of people who have their banking set up having lived there for some time. Was just hoping for some sharing of knowledge to make something a little easier.


It depends a lot on how much money you are talking about. If you deposit enough money with a financial firm for a 'premium' level - you may find you get better service.

- We opened our HSBC Mexico (peso-based) checking account while we sat in Florida - before we ever visited INM in Mexico. You could do the same in Nashville or Memphis or ?. It was just a checking account (with checks and a dongle for online access) and received no interest. We still have that account and it is the method we use to pay our Mexican bills and to pull pesos out of an ATM. NOTE : you do NOT want to use HSBC to transfer large amounts of money into Mexico.

- Unlike some on this forum - we have embraced the Mexican banking/investment system. I think our money in Mexico is every bit as safe as that we have in the US - and it is already here. This past Tuesday I purchased a 1 year CETE which will earn (before taxes) 4.47% interest. How's that compare to a US bank CD ?

- We have experimented a bit with what is the best way to move money from the US to Mexico. Sure at the moment using a BofA Visa credit card is a good way to pay for something (given the exchange rate). For larger amounts of money (like for the car we just purchased) I use our Schwab account. We have standing orders with them. When I call them I tell them how much I want to move - they tell me the exchange rate at that moment - they place a trade which is instantaneous but takes 3 days to settle and then they wire the pesos to my Mexican account. There are no fees involved. For example - for the car the spot rate was 18.75 and I received 18.64 deposited into Mexico. NOTE - I wouldn't use this method to transfer small amounts - but I would aggregate the transactions - even a 1 month CETE is paying 3.90% interest.

As I said - it all depends. We are here for good. This is our new home. We have a house, 2 cars, Mexican wills,... - Just waiting for the 5 year milestone.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Some two decades ago, many expats had done as Chuck has now done. Many lost everything in nationalization and currency exchange fluctuations. 
I suggest keeping a US account with a larger US bank with full online banking services. You can manage it from your own computer anywhere in the world. Mexico is still a cash society for the average person and ATMs are everywhere. Your bank can set your daily limit higher than the usual default, so ask them to do that. You can then avoid frequent visits to the ATM and can also reduce the fees, if your bank does not reimburse them. If you have a military connection through your service or someone in your family to refer you; use USAA.
We managed to live in Mexico for over 13 years without a Mexican bank. Our funds stayed in the USA with protections in place, which are not available in Mexico.


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## chuck846 (Jan 15, 2016)

RVGRINGO said:


> Some two decades ago, many expats had done as Chuck has now done. Many lost everything in nationalization and currency exchange fluctuations.
> I suggest keeping a US account with a larger US bank with full online banking services. You can manage it from your own computer anywhere in the world. Mexico is still a cash society for the average person and ATMs are everywhere. Your bank can set your daily limit higher than the usual default, so ask them to do that. You can then avoid frequent visits to the ATM and can also reduce the fees, if your bank does not reimburse them. If you have a military connection through your service or someone in your family to refer you; use USAA.
> We managed to live in Mexico for over 13 years without a Mexican bank. Our funds stayed in the USA with protections in place, which are not available in Mexico.


Can a person who is not a US resident have a USAA account ? I don't think so.

I know a non US-resident can have an account with Citi - they only require a minimum investment of 1 million USD and a two month vetting period which includes a professional resume and an accounting of just about every dollar acquired over a 30+ year working career.

Was it you who was the banker ? Is it possible that your experiences were prior to FATCA implementation ?

Finally - you are certainly entitled to your opinion - as am I. Do you see a lot of parallels between the Mexico of 1982 or 1994 and the Mexico of today ?


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

USAA serves military and ex-military, as well as their children and even ex-spouses as members all over the world. I have been a member since 1959 and USAA Federal Savings Bank was my only bank while living in Mexico. We did everything online, but did have a mail service address in Laredo, as well as our residence address in Chapala. It was never questioned. However, it would be wise for anyone, now, to establish their banking arrangements, no matter which bank, well before moving to another country. Some investment fund accounts do require actual residence, but not simple banking. When it came to buying a home or a car, wire transfers or other methods were easily arranged by phone. 
As a retiree with limited resources, we found this to work for us. However, I do understand your need for more services for your much greater resources, which may be far above those of the average poster on this forum, who simply wants to keep life as simple as possible.


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## chuck846 (Jan 15, 2016)

RVGRINGO said:


> USAA serves military and ex-military, as well as their children and even ex-spouses as members all over the world. I have been a member since 1959 and USAA Federal Savings Bank was my only bank while living in Mexico. We did everything online, but did have a mail service address in Laredo, as well as our residence address in Chapala. It was never questioned. However, it would be wise for anyone, now, to establish their banking arrangements, no matter which bank, well before moving to another country. Some investment fund accounts do require actual residence, but not simple banking. When it came to buying a home or a car, wire transfers or other methods were easily arranged by phone.
> As a retiree with limited resources, we found this to work for us. However, I do understand your need for more services for your much greater resources, which may be far above those of the average poster on this forum, who simply wants to keep life as simple as possible.


The amount of my resources is immaterial - and you are certainly not privy to - whether they be great or small. What is important is to make intelligent use of one's resources - and not just throw one's hard earned monies away.

I'm sorry - I abhor having to lie to a bank simply to get services. I'll make a simple prediction - when things do get tougher (and that day IS coming) - it is those untruths which will come to haunt.

I do not know - but I'd bet that if I were to pick up my Vonage phone (954 area code) and call Wells Fargo in Miami and tell them I was a US citizen - Mexican resident - they would tell me to get lost.

To be fair - the IRS paperwork required to maintain Mexican accounts can be very imposing.

Edit : What is an average poster on this forum ?


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Of course, opening a new account does require you to be resident in the same country as the bank, but it does not prohibit you from traveling or from residing for some time in another country. Perhaps it comes down to the difference in citizenship, domicile and residency definitions. Darned if I know. But you are probably quite right in assuming that you cannot call, as you described, and open a new account without being there. However, once you have the account, you can keep it.


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## chuck846 (Jan 15, 2016)

RVGRINGO said:


> Of course, opening a new account does require you to be resident in the same country as the bank, but it does not prohibit you from traveling or from residing for some time in another country. Perhaps it comes down to the difference in citizenship, domicile and residency definitions. Darned if I know. But you are probably quite right in assuming that you cannot call, as you described, and open a new account without being there. However, once you have the account, you can keep it.


As I said earlier in this thread - we opened our HSBC Mexico checking account in Miami (while we resided in Florida alone) - through something like this :

https://www.us.hsbc.com/1/2/home/personal-banking/global-banking/open-account

For 29+ years we had a 'brokerage' account with a large Boston based investment house (think green). With them we had annuities, 401k's, SEPs, regular IRAs, regular investment accounts etc. Just the sort of things a couple accumulates over 30 years. When we were honest with them and told them we were now retired and living full-time in Mexico - they wanted nothing to do with us. (Thus Schwab).

Last point - did you read this (sorry for the source) ?

Bad News For Canadians: "You Have 30 Days To Close Your Account" | Zero Hedge

And that is a 'brokerage'.

You can comment if you like - and I will read it - but I'm not going to beat this horse any more myself...


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