Charges for Putting US cheque in Halifax

hubballi

I have a Halifax current account and have just been paid via cheque from the US for royalties earned. Does anyone know if I will be charged for this currency conversion when it goes into my acount and if so, is there any other way I can get it cashed for free?

skyrider007

There will certainly be a charge if your account is in £. Processing time could take up to two weeks.

The only way to avoid being charged fees is to have a US$ account.

stubbsini

I have a similar issue. I have three cheques waiting to be deposited (I was waiting for the exchange rate to move in my favour a little more!), but I gather it will cost me about £10-£15 to process each one, which is about 25% of the total value of the cheques.

I have requested IBAN payments, which are in the process of being set up, though I understand there is a one-off charge for doing this - again, quite a high percentage.

The US account looks like an attractive option as some of my royalties are now being withheld because sales were made to US clients, meaning I get even less now, though I would bet that there is a charge for keeping a US account running.

There are a wealth of forms I could fill out and get verified by one of the recommended Accounting firms to obtain this money, but one of my fellow freelance types went to London for the service and was told it would cost him £2000! Why bother...you end up getting screwed by someone whichever road you take!

mrposhman

skyrider007 wrote: »

There will certainly be a charge if your account is in £. Processing time could take up to two weeks.

The only way to avoid being charged fees is to have a US$ account.

2 weeks!! A little optimistic there. I was quoted 6 weeks by Natwest and 3 weeks later I'm still waiting so it probably will be more like the 6 weeks they said.

skyrider007

mrposhman wrote: »

2 weeks!! A little optimistic there. I was quoted 6 weeks by Natwest and 3 weeks later I'm still waiting so it probably will be more like the 6 weeks they said.

Fair enough. The last US$ cheque I received was issued by HSBC North America and deposited into my £ HSBC UK account. This may explain why it only took two weeks.

hubballi

I do have the option of Paypal.

bevrob

hi,banks should charge you a lot less than building societies. my bank charge £3.oo to change a foreign chk, but it can take up to 5 weeks. Although to be fair they credit your account immediately and it only becomes a problem if the cheque is returned unpaid for some reason, they then debit your account. bev

stubbsini

bevrob - which bank do you use?