Need Advise-Looking for Bank Best Rates For Receiving Funds in €

[Deleted User]

HSBC UK, Barclays UK and Starling all have Euro accounts (with IBANS) that are FOC and FSCS protected.

Use one of these or a reputable EU/EEA bank with the equivalent protection. 

I would suggest using Wise (or HSBC GMA) to convert EUR to GBP and would not recommend using Revolut for anything remotely important.

Gypsy_Tart

MasterplanC said:

No experience with France, but I have used my German bank account to send money to my UK Revolut account, where you can exchange up to £1000/month for free, and then transferred it to a UK bank account.

Does your German account charge you fees for sending money to the UK? I have looked up the terms and conditions and all UK banks require proof of residence to open an account, which I do not currently have.

friolento

Bea63 said:

I use HSBC for German Pension payments and yes the rates were dismal but there was no exchange fee UNTIL Jan 2024 and now HSBC charge 5pounds from the payment...am also looking elsewhere and finding this difficult so maybe one of the Gurus on here will advise further

Have you tried Starling Bank? They are the best in my experience 

2nd best Wise

3rd best HSBC Global Money 

I wouldn’t touch Revolut.

Gypsy_Tart

friolento said:

Bea63 said:

I use HSBC for German Pension payments and yes the rates were dismal but there was no exchange fee UNTIL Jan 2024 and now HSBC charge 5pounds from the payment...am also looking elsewhere and finding this difficult so maybe one of the Gurus on here will advise further

Have you tried Starling Bank? They are the best in my experience 

2nd best Wise

3rd best HSBC Global Money 

I wouldn’t touch Revolut.

If I rightly remember Starling is an app only bank which I don't wish to use. I'm not sure whether Wise is also a bank or just a money transfer online company? What are the reasons why you wouldn't recommend Revolut as many says it's one of the cheapest online banks?

Would you also know how you are able to open a bank account if you don't have proof of residence in the UK i.e. a utility bill in your name. I'll will not be able to have such a document as I will have to either stay in a friend's spare room or sadly rent a room in an air bnb.

I must admit that it's an awful feeling not to feel on tops of things. This is certainly not the case where I'm currently living! LOL

Thank you.

MasterplanC

Gypsy_Tart said:

MasterplanC said:

No experience with France, but I have used my German bank account to send money to my UK Revolut account, where you can exchange up to £1000/month for free, and then transferred it to a UK bank account.

Does your German account charge you fees for sending money to the UK? I have looked up the terms and conditions and all UK banks require proof of residence to open an account, which I do not currently have.

No, Revolut gives you an IBAN and it's a simple SEPA transfer in EUR, they have a European banking license and I think the seat is in Lithuania. I see your problem about opening a UK bank account while not living here, but from your original post it sounded like you might have an account. I think you can open Revolut account from other countries (like France), but not sure about the differences. 

friolento

Gypsy_Tart said:

friolento said:

Bea63 said:

I use HSBC for German Pension payments and yes the rates were dismal but there was no exchange fee UNTIL Jan 2024 and now HSBC charge 5pounds from the payment...am also looking elsewhere and finding this difficult so maybe one of the Gurus on here will advise further

Have you tried Starling Bank? They are the best in my experience 

2nd best Wise

3rd best HSBC Global Money 

I wouldn’t touch Revolut.

If I rightly remember Starling is an app only bank which I don't wish to use. I'm not sure whether Wise is also a bank or just a money transfer online company? What are the reasons why you wouldn't recommend Revolut as many says it's one of the cheapest online banks?

Would you also know how you are able to open a bank account if you don't have proof of residence in the UK i.e. a utility bill in your name. I'll will not be able to have such a document as I will have to either stay in a friend's spare room or sadly rent a room in an air bnb.

I must admit that it's an awful feeling not to feel on tops of things. This is certainly not the case where I'm currently living! LOL

Thank you.

Starling has a web interface, too. 

Wise is not a bank but has bank-like facilities (faster payments, SOs, DDs). No FSCS

Revolut is also not a bank in the UK. They have tried to get a banking licence for over 2 years, so far without success. They have a rotten reputation for CS.

You will need proof of UK address to open a UK account

Gypsy_Tart

MasterplanC said:

Gypsy_Tart said:

MasterplanC said:

No experience with France, but I have used my German bank account to send money to my UK Revolut account, where you can exchange up to £1000/month for free, and then transferred it to a UK bank account.

Does your German account charge you fees for sending money to the UK? I have looked up the terms and conditions and all UK banks require proof of residence to open an account, which I do not currently have.

No, Revolut gives you an IBAN and it's a simple SEPA transfer in EUR, they have a European banking license and I think the seat is in Lithuania. I see your problem about opening a UK bank account while not living here, but from your original post it sounded like you might have an account. I think you can open Revolut account from other countries (like France), but not sure about the differences. 

Which means that your money is not safe.

BTW I do have 2 bank accounts in France; an online one and a classic one. However, both of them will charge horrendous fees for any international transfers. I'm going to investigate and see whether it's possible to open an account with Boursobank as apparently there are no fees and you can also use a UK mobile.

I still have the issue of opening a UK bank account without having proof of residency. I'm sure there must be ways around this. Surely, I'm not the only person coming back home to the UK who hasn't first purchased a home before coming back?!

Gypsy_Tart

friolento said:

Gypsy_Tart said:

friolento said:

Bea63 said:

I use HSBC for German Pension payments and yes the rates were dismal but there was no exchange fee UNTIL Jan 2024 and now HSBC charge 5pounds from the payment...am also looking elsewhere and finding this difficult so maybe one of the Gurus on here will advise further

Have you tried Starling Bank? They are the best in my experience 

2nd best Wise

3rd best HSBC Global Money 

I wouldn’t touch Revolut.

If I rightly remember Starling is an app only bank which I don't wish to use. I'm not sure whether Wise is also a bank or just a money transfer online company? What are the reasons why you wouldn't recommend Revolut as many says it's one of the cheapest online banks?

Would you also know how you are able to open a bank account if you don't have proof of residence in the UK i.e. a utility bill in your name. I'll will not be able to have such a document as I will have to either stay in a friend's spare room or sadly rent a room in an air bnb.

I must admit that it's an awful feeling not to feel on tops of things. This is certainly not the case where I'm currently living! LOL

Thank you.

Starling has a web interface, too. 

Wise is not a bank but has bank-like facilities (faster payments, SOs, DDs). No FSCS

Revolut is also not a bank in the UK. They have tried to get a banking licence for over 2 years, so far without success. They have a rotten reputation for CS.

You will need proof of UK address to open a UK account

friolento said:

Gypsy_Tart said:

friolento said:

Bea63 said:

I use HSBC for German Pension payments and yes the rates were dismal but there was no exchange fee UNTIL Jan 2024 and now HSBC charge 5pounds from the payment...am also looking elsewhere and finding this difficult so maybe one of the Gurus on here will advise further

Have you tried Starling Bank? They are the best in my experience 

2nd best Wise

3rd best HSBC Global Money 

I wouldn’t touch Revolut.

If I rightly remember Starling is an app only bank which I don't wish to use. I'm not sure whether Wise is also a bank or just a money transfer online company? What are the reasons why you wouldn't recommend Revolut as many says it's one of the cheapest online banks?

Would you also know how you are able to open a bank account if you don't have proof of residence in the UK i.e. a utility bill in your name. I'll will not be able to have such a document as I will have to either stay in a friend's spare room or sadly rent a room in an air bnb.

I must admit that it's an awful feeling not to feel on tops of things. This is certainly not the case where I'm currently living! LOL

Thank you.

Starling has a web interface, too. 

Wise is not a bank but has bank-like facilities (faster payments, SOs, DDs). No FSCS

Revolut is also not a bank in the UK. They have tried to get a banking licence for over 2 years, so far without success. They have a rotten reputation for CS.

You will need proof of UK address to open a UK account

In that case, I'll have to contact them.

Indeed I cannot prove my residency as I will be staying with a friend or renting  out a room not an entire flat.

wmb194

Gypsy_Tart said:

MasterplanC said:

Gypsy_Tart said:

MasterplanC said:

No experience with France, but I have used my German bank account to send money to my UK Revolut account, where you can exchange up to £1000/month for free, and then transferred it to a UK bank account.

Does your German account charge you fees for sending money to the UK? I have looked up the terms and conditions and all UK banks require proof of residence to open an account, which I do not currently have.

No, Revolut gives you an IBAN and it's a simple SEPA transfer in EUR, they have a European banking license and I think the seat is in Lithuania. I see your problem about opening a UK bank account while not living here, but from your original post it sounded like you might have an account. I think you can open Revolut account from other countries (like France), but not sure about the differences. 

Which means that your money is not safe.

BTW I do have 2 bank accounts in France; an online one and a classic one. However, both of them will charge horrendous fees for any international transfers. I'm going to investigate and see whether it's possible to open an account with Boursobank as apparently there are no fees and you can also use a UK mobile.

I still have the issue of opening a UK bank account without having proof of residency. I'm sure there must be ways around this. Surely, I'm not the only person coming back home to the UK who hasn't first purchased a home before coming back?!

Sepa transfers aren't free with them? To the banks they shouldn't look like international transfers e.g., if you use a Wise euro account they'll look like an intra-EU transfer to Belgium. In my experience with EU banks these are usually free.

I wouldn't worry too much about sending money to Wise. It should only be there for a moment before you transfer it out again and it's a profitable London listed company that's easy to research.

Gypsy_Tart

wmb194 said:

Gypsy_Tart said:

MasterplanC said:

Gypsy_Tart said:

MasterplanC said:

No experience with France, but I have used my German bank account to send money to my UK Revolut account, where you can exchange up to £1000/month for free, and then transferred it to a UK bank account.

Does your German account charge you fees for sending money to the UK? I have looked up the terms and conditions and all UK banks require proof of residence to open an account, which I do not currently have.

No, Revolut gives you an IBAN and it's a simple SEPA transfer in EUR, they have a European banking license and I think the seat is in Lithuania. I see your problem about opening a UK bank account while not living here, but from your original post it sounded like you might have an account. I think you can open Revolut account from other countries (like France), but not sure about the differences. 

Which means that your money is not safe.

BTW I do have 2 bank accounts in France; an online one and a classic one. However, both of them will charge horrendous fees for any international transfers. I'm going to investigate and see whether it's possible to open an account with Boursobank as apparently there are no fees and you can also use a UK mobile.

I still have the issue of opening a UK bank account without having proof of residency. I'm sure there must be ways around this. Surely, I'm not the only person coming back home to the UK who hasn't first purchased a home before coming back?!

Sepa transfers aren't free with them? To the banks they shouldn't look like international transfers e.g., if you use a Wise euro account they'll look like an intra-EU transfer to Belgium. In my experience with EU banks these are usually free.

I wouldn't worry too much about sending money to Wise. It should only be there for a moment before you transfer it out again and it's a profitable London listed company that's easy to research.

I'm not worried about Wise as they are regulated. However, I will not be able to use them with my current online French bank as I won't have a mobile to do the transfer. They require a French one and not an UK one.