Bringing Euros back into the UK?

lovewela

Hi All,

I am trying to find the best way to get some savings back from Belgium that my relatives have built up over the years. The relatives are still alive, the bank account is in my name, but I now require the money in the UK as part of a housing deposit.

The problem is, I want to get it back into the UK as Sterling without losing too much of it. The easiest way is to have the banks perform a BACS transfer, but how much will this cost, or how much will I lose in the exchange rate? The alternative is to bring it back in Euros and try to exchange it here, but then the buy back rates are never as good.

I have thought about transferring some Sterling into Euros before I leave and purchasing the 'Buy Back Guarantee' to secure the lowest possible exchange rate for when I come back, this would mean less money on the way out, but more on the way in. However, I am sure they will have something in their terms and conditions that states you cannot bring more money back than what you left with?

The amount is around 7500 euros, so not massive, but still enough to want to find the best way to bring it back.

Any advice / help / suggestions / experiences would be greatly appreciated.

ESKIMO

Caution on bringing it back to the UK 'in cash'. 7500 might grab the attention of customs especially if you got stopped either at the airport or ferry terminal. They will be concerned about the possibilities of money laundering. Also if you were to a 'substantial' amount into a bank, you might arrouse suspicion for the same reason. They may have to 'pass it on' and 'do relevant checks' so the serial nos on the notes. It's all a matter of security really.

In theory you should get a better rate of exchange of Euro - Pound in the eurozone as you are already there.

Think of it as if you had brought the Euros back to the UK, tried to exchange them for the appropriate currency in which you were already located in. Your exchange rate will be marginally lower. - Emphasis on 'marginally'.

Avoid Bureau de change at major airports and ferry terminals - you will incurr further 'loses' on your exchange rate.

I would have a look at Nationwide exchanges (and quite quickly too) as i heard on the news the other day they are in the process of pulling the plug on their free atm withdrawalls from outside the Eurozone. This can imply and indicate the 'possibility' of a similar incurcian inside the Eurozone that may subsequently follow suit. I understand that they are redressing many of their foreign charges.

Hope this enlightens you?

Dokimos

Hi I was looking for some advice for a relative in similar situation. He got some Euros in cash - not that much as the OP but still a lot.

I helped him by asking the usual Martin's exchange agencies but the ammount of sterling quoted was lower than he was quoted by HSBC.

Does anyone have more experiance?

dzug1

lovewela wrote: »

Hi All,

I am trying to find the best way to get some savings back from Belgium that my relatives have built up over the years. The relatives are still alive, the bank account is in my name, but I now require the money in the UK as part of a housing deposit.

The problem is, I want to get it back into the UK as Sterling without losing too much of it. The easiest way is to have the banks perform a BACS transfer, but how much will this cost, or how much will I lose in the exchange rate? The alternative is to bring it back in Euros and try to exchange it here, but then the buy back rates are never as good.

I have thought about transferring some Sterling into Euros before I leave and purchasing the 'Buy Back Guarantee' to secure the lowest possible exchange rate for when I come back, this would mean less money on the way out, but more on the way in. However, I am sure they will have something in their terms and conditions that states you cannot bring more money back than what you left with?

The amount is around 7500 euros, so not massive, but still enough to want to find the best way to bring it back.

Any advice / help / suggestions / experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Doing it in cash guarantees a poor exchange rate - and yes having a buy back guarantee is for a maximum of the amount originally exchanged, less with many outlets. And there's normally a fee for it.

Your choice is between the bank transfer (check what it actually will cost - it's often a fixed sum so more effective for larger sums) and using a currency broker. The latter is likely to be cheaper if you can find a good one.

rdwarrior

The short answer is to get the euros into an Argenta account. The Argenta ATM card enables you to draw the cash out of a foreign ATM, and pay no ATM fee to either bank, and no forex fee. It's a straight market rate exchange. AFAIK, Argenta is the only bank that has no fees on that.

The Belgian banking "shoutwiki" is a great resource for seeing all the banks fees, but I don't have the account privileges to post the URL to it, and google doesn't index it.

jimjames

It might sound like I work for HL as I'm always suggesting them but I've been very happy with their ISA & SIPP service. They also do currency but I've no idea how competitive this is

http://www.h-l.co.uk/investment-services/currency-service