Paying for Wedding in Ireland in cash

bigcliff

Hi

I am getting married in ireland in a few weeks and I need to pay cash for the reception etc. As it will be a lot more than I have ever spent abroad before, I wonder if there is a best way of doing it.

I usually exchange at the post office for euros but was going to see what my own bank (rbs) had to offer as it was a fairly large sum. Looking at Martins advice he was suggesting a delivery company might be good way of exchanging cash (although no gurantees as want cash up front!). Now I have just read a bit on pre paid cards which I have never heard of before, but also seem to have conversion fees.

I am a bit lost so any guidance much much appreciated.

aerostar

Just be aware of currency rules.

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From http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/arriving/declaring-cash.htm
When you need to declare cash

You only need to declare cash if you are carrying 10,000 euros or more (or the equivalent value in other currencies) and you are:

• entering the UK from a country outside the EU
• leaving the UK to travel directly to a country outside the EU

If you are entering or leaving the EU through an EU country other than the UK, the declaration is made in that country.

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However, make sure you take documentation that enables you to prove that the cash etc was properly obtained from your bank or whatever. Customs dogs can sniff cash out and if it is over a certain amount (could be £1000) they will ask for details, this is to make sure you are not laundering money.

Gloomendoom

I thought Ireland was in the EU :huh:

bigcliff

thanks aerostar. I'll have a look into how that might affect us.

Also, in case anyone knows, would it be worth transferring money to someone in irelands account and getting them to make a withdrawal or will we still get stung?

Thanks

catokelly

bigcliff wrote: »

Hi

I am getting married in ireland in a few weeks and I need to pay cash for the reception etc. As it will be a lot more than I have ever spent abroad before, I wonder if there is a best way of doing it.

I usually exchange at the post office for euros but was going to see what my own bank (rbs) had to offer as it was a fairly large sum. Looking at Martins advice he was suggesting a delivery company might be good way of exchanging cash (although no gurantees as want cash up front!). Now I have just read a bit on pre paid cards which I have never heard of before, but also seem to have conversion fees.

I am a bit lost so any guidance much much appreciated.

The Post Office's currency rates are not great - but the banks rates are much worse!! You are better off to shop around - many independent bureaus would use their discretion to give you a better rate if you are changing a large amount (and I dont know about using cards to pay a large lump sum of Euros in Ireland, you would likely get hit by extra fees.

However perhaps you are better off to transfer the funds to an Irish bank account to avoid carrying all those Euros over - is there an option to pay for the reception via bank transfer (directly into their account) or perhaps to a relatives bank acc? ).

bigcliff

catokelly wrote: »

The Post Office's currency rates are not great - but the banks rates are much worse!! You are better off to shop around - many independent bureaus would use their discretion to give you a better rate if you are changing a large amount (and I dont know about using cards to pay a large lump sum of Euros in Ireland, you would likely get hit by extra fees.

However perhaps you are better off to transfer the funds to an Irish bank account to avoid carrying all those Euros over - is there an option to pay for the reception via bank transfer (directly into their account) or perhaps to a relatives bank acc? ).

thanks, I can probably arrange a transfer if that is cheapest