How
do I send money home to pay my bills?
I have student loans
and debts to pay back home!
This is
getting easier all the time.
Many people
head to Japan, Korea, Taiwan and the Middle East to pay
off student loans or other debts. Sending money home is
not difficult. But, you need to set up a few things
back home first.
Set up your
Bank Account
You probably
already have a bank account in your home country. If
not, set one up. Before you go, ask the bank for their
routing number, routing address or ABA routing
number. The routing number - and your bank account
number - are the numbers an overseas bank needs to send
money to your account back home. Some people will call
this "wiring money home" and it is one of several
options for sending money home. It usually costs about
US$25-50, so don't send small amounts or the charges
will eat up too much of your money. Ask your bank if
they charge to receive money. You don't want to be
charged on both ends if you can avoid it.
You'll need
to find a major bank in the town where you work - or
sometimes you'll need to go to the capital city or a
large regional center and find a bank that does foreign
exchange.
Foreign
banks will want to see your passport (of course) and
often would like to see your working papers - take
everything to the bank with your - the first time -
until you know exactly what they want. Different
banks, even in the same country, will often have
different requirements. And don't be surprised if
a different branch of the same bank has different
requirements.
International Money Orders - or International Bank
Checks (Cheques)
To save some
money on the charges, some people will get an
international bank check as they often cost as little as
US$3-10. But then you still have to mail the check home
to someone you trust - or your bank - and hope it gets
there okay. There can also be delays while the
check clears on your home side as well.
Korea and
Japan have excellent postal systems - so no worry
there. But, many other countries have unreliable postal
systems and you will need to gauge the risk of losing
the check and getting it replaced. That can take a long
time - perhaps as long as two or three months - or more.
Sending Cash
Home
Not
recommended, but I have, at one time or another, for
one reason or another, just gotten cash and mailed it
home to a relative to have it deposited in my account.
If you do this, conceal it well and don't register it -
it needs to look as inconspicuous as possible to make
sure it gets there. Though many people are
obsessed with registering mail - in some countries it
cries out: "Steal me!"
Mail the
money only to someone you trust, of course. I sent the
money to my mother. If you can't trust your mom . . .
