What is your experience with TransferWise's multi currency account?

[fixn_junk]

I am looking for people who have experience using the multi currency account with TransferWise and in turn the debit card they are offering.

I am receiving monthly payouts of royalties from the US via PayPal. I then transfer the money to my ANZ account which is automatically exchanged by PayPal using a bad exchange rate. I am trying to get away from that and save me some money.

Here is what I would like to achieve with TransferWise:

• Receive money via PayPal from the US in USD (no other option at this time).
• Transfer USD from PayPal to TransferWise multi currency account
• Exchange USD to NZD via TransferWise
• Use the money in NZ using the TransferWise debit card OR
• Transfer it to my ANZ account

Has anybody done something similar with TransferWise?

Is there a fee to transfer the money from the TransferWise account to the ANZ account?

Are there any fees for the debit card other than the annual $17 ( this is what I could find on the website)?

Is there anything else I should look out for when it comes to TransferWise?

Thanks everyone! I appreciate anything you can add.

EDIT: So I opened a TW Multi Currency account and was able to link the US TW account to my New Zealand PayPal account. I tried transferring money over (USD, no currency exchange needed) and it showed me a fee of about 3% for the transfer which PayPal would take from the amount I was going to send. I cancelled that transfer for now and try again later with a higher amount and see if that 3% sticks.

EDIT 2: One of my friends just messaged me this https://www.businessinsider.com.au/...Wa3qmxvo7vUCox3AEW_hBmlQO8gnVW9z0wpeqIQZZ4LmY

It would fit the 3% fee that I've seen in my account when trying to transfer USD to a USD TW account.

 

[gracielaalexandraa]

@fixn_junk Note that using a Transferwise account to withdraw your money is another 'flag' in PayPals book so it may be a factor in getting your account limited.

As another poster said, don't leave money in your PayPal account otherwise you can get banned(limited). It used to be that you would be banned and 6 months later you can withdraw your money.

Now they limit you, tell you you can withdraw in 6 months. The day before the 6 month mark you'll get a transaction in your PayPal debiting ALL of your money for breaking ToS. (They will never tell you what ToS you broke so there are many many legitimate businesses that get hit with this and you are shit out of luck.)

Hate how most ecommerce runs off the back of PayPal but they do have great consumer protection.

 

[fixn_junk]

@mbrandan I just did it. When I went to link an account, it showed me only the option to add a New Zealand account. But below all that is a small link that says "Link a US account" or something similar. I clicked that and was able to link it by using the ACH routing number for my US TW account.

 

[mbrandan]

@fixn_junk Aah I'm so jealous; I followed the exact steps you did the other day and when I used the ACH number it said that bank is disabled, please try another bank account. Just tried again now and same thing.

Thanks though, since you an do it, I know it's not just their policy, will contact their CS and see if they will sort it for me. Would be nice to liberate my USD from them without converting it.

 

[gracielaalexandraa]

@mbrandan Nope, never tried it. I know that ANY VBA (Virtual Bank Account) is a huge flag for PayPal so I don't bother.

If your volume of sales permits I would suggest flying to the US and opening an account there.

 

[shanrose]

@fixn_junk

Is there a fee to transfer the money from the TransferWise account to the ANZ account?

NZ$1.53 per transaction. ATM withdraw up to NZ$350/month are free though.

the annual $17 ( this is what I could find on the website)?

It's $14 one-off, not annual.

Exchange USD to NZD via TransferWise

There's a fee of around 0.5% whenever you convert currency.

Use the money in NZ using the TransferWise debit card

The TW debit card is processed like a credit card, so you can't use it in small retailers that only take debit cards.

Transfer USD from PayPal to TransferWise

As many people say this is not easy, so good luck.

 

[mbrandan]

@fixn_junk Why would you want to be paid through PayPal rather than simply be paid via a US bank account i.e your TW account? That would be cheaper for whoever is paying you, as well as for you.

What you are describing is theoretically possible but people seem to have varying rates of success in getting PayPal to link properly to their TW. Personally I have never been able to do it - first it pretended the website wasn't working and more recently it told me that bank is "banned".

TW doesn't have an annual fee, btw.

 

[fixn_junk]

@mbrandan Getting paid via PayPal is at this point the only option offered by the place I get my money from. Direct transfer to bank accounts including TW has been suggested many times. So far they don't seem to want to change for whatever reason.

 

[mbrandan]

@fixn_junk Ugh, how annoying. Let us know if you can link the US TW account to PayPal; I'd be interested in how since I can't get mine to link to anything except the NZ TW account which is useless for fx purposes. Good luck with it!

 

[fixn_junk]

@mbrandan I was able to do it. My PayPal is a New Zealand PayPal account. At first when I went to add an account it said it had to be a New Zealand bank account. But in the bottom was a small link that said "Add a US account", which I did. I entered the ACH routing number for the US TW account. Then PayPal sent me a text with a code to verify and that was that.

 

[resjudicata]

@fixn_junk My experience has been good. I've been using it as my only bank account in UK, and as a international exchange service for Sweden, Canada, UK and US. In the US I was able to easily link my US bank account to Transferwise and send at low cost.

Other posters have mentioned that Paypal will not easily let you link to a Transferwise account (for whatever reason). Can't help you there, but good luck - it seems if you solve this linking issue then you will get along fine, Transferwise won't be your problem.

Finally, if all else fails Paypal is adding Bitcoin support. Perhaps you can convert to Bitcoin and sell on a local exchange. (PM me if you are selling any)

GL

 

[satou]

@fixn_junk This used to be my 'go-to' process until Paypal changed their fees/policy. (Not sure when that is) Transferring USD to a US bank account used to be FREE but it isn't now. It's 15USD to transfer your 500USD to a US bank account now, which is nuts.

Is there a fee to transfer the money from the TransferWise account to the ANZ account?

Yes, there is. You can check pricing here: https://transferwise.com/gb/pricing/. As far as I know, there are no fees for the debit card. https://transferwise.com/nz/multi-currency-account/pricing

My suggestion: Open a Transferwise account. They offer better exchange rates than paypal.

• If the amount you are transferring isn't that big (you have to establish this amount yourself). You're better off transferring it from Paypal straight to your bank account. Based on my own calculation, iirc, it's not worth transferring 500USD to Transferwise and then to my ANZ account due to the new Paypal fees.
• If the amount is around let's say 1000+USD. (I haven't done the math at which amount makes the Transferwise process worth). You might get a better yield off transferring your money via Transferwise.

If you're keen to open a Transferwise account, I have a referral code if you want. I can send it via DM.

 

[fixn_junk]

@satou Thanks for that! I would transfer about $1000 USD every month (it depends on the month). I think I would still be better of via TW. I got to get the company to start sending the money directly to TW. Easier said than done though.

 

[shanrose]

@fixn_junk Just brainstorming here, anyone tried to open an US account (from an actual bank, not TW) without leaving NZ?

I've done it before for HK and Aus but not sure about US banks.

 

[judilyn55]

@fixn_junk All good. Get paid in USD through TW (the client treats it as a normal bank account for direct credit, which I think paypal does too), get it converted at good rates and sent to local bank no problemo.

What you DON'T want is to leave money in the account, because paypal is shit and will clean you out if they feel like you're looking at them wrong.