travellers cheques

The largest bank in Boquete is HSBC.  I would contact one of their offices in the US and see if they tell you what the service charge will be to use travelers checks.  I know they will charge you something.

I tried to deposit a bank certified check, drawn on HSBC in the states, in the HSBC in Boquete, and they wanted $5 to clear the check.  I mean it was a bank certified check which in the US is cash, but here they had to charge me $5.

We don't use travelers checks anymore so I'm not sure why you want to use them.  We just use our debit card, withdraw a daily limit from the bank ATM and we pay cash everywhere we go.  Much easier and it helps to stay on budget.

Thanks Florence,  is there any charge for using the debit card? We live in Canada so I will check the bank here about charges.  We wanted to pay hotel charges or rental car, etc and there may be daily limits on atm withdrawals. That's why I thought of travelers cheques. Roy

Yes, even though they use the American dollar as their currency (that's what comes out of the ATM machines) they charge you a conversion rate for the Panamian balboa.  So we get charged a service fee to get our money out and then a conversion rate fee. Not all places will take your credit or debit card.  And if they do some places in Latin America will now tell you that they are going to have to pass the credit card fee on to you (usually 3%).  So we just pay cash.

Talk to your bank about your daily limit and then tell them that you will be traveling outide of Canada so that they know your transactions are legit.  Nothing worse than being away from home and none of your cards will work. 

We just found it easier to pay cash.  One transaction with converstion rate fees instead of lots of them using a credit card was just easier.  Hotels I would use credit cards, that's where your largest expense is going to come in anyway.  But food and other little items will be cheap enough that your daily limit should be enough to get you through.  We would pull out $500 and that would last us a month so I it wasn't a lot of transaction fees.

Did that help?

Thanks again Florence.  I just checked with our bank and found out that our visa/debit advantage card can be used as a credit card while in Panama and will be debited from our checking account back in Canada. Thus avoiding most charges. When we use it at the atm machine, there will just be a $5.00 fee and conversion fee. So we can use it as visa for big charges and withdraw from the atm for daily items. Roy

HSBC Bank in Panama is NOT the same as HSBC in the US or Canada. Or anywhere else, for that matter. When I started poking around Panama and saw HSBC everywhere I opened an account back home in Florida. When I got to Panama the next time and tried to cash a check it was declined and I was told to use the ATM. There is no reciprocity between HSBC banks in different countries. Not only that, using my U.S. HSBC debit card at the HSBC ATM in Panama I get hit with a $3 fee for the machine and an $18 transfer fee by my HSBC branch in Florida.

You are being gouged by your bank in Florida.  We have never paid anywhere near $18 for a transfer fee.  Are you transfering your whole check into an HSBC in Panama?  That's why we don't have an account in Panama or any other country.  We leave all of our money in the US and only remove what we need.

And you have to be careful now, some of the ATM machines, the first question they are asking is if you want to donate to some charity and its $5.  So many people are not used to the machine collecting donations that they think the machine is telling them about the fees they have to pay and they have to say yes.  Such a scam.

And HSBC in Panama wants you to open bank accounts in Panama which is why they won't honor anything from another HSBC.  The problem is that HSBC in Panama was caught in a money laudering scheme and the reports are that they are being sold to a bank in Costa Rica.  The rumors that the branch in Boquete were getting ready to close happened last October.  They didn't close but they said it was coming. Banking is one of the largest scam artists in the world.  And its the little guy who is paying.

oldsalt_1942 wrote:

HSBC Bank in Panama is NOT the same as HSBC in the US or Canada. Or anywhere else, for that matter. When I started poking around Panama and saw HSBC everywhere I opened an account back home in Florida. When I got to Panama the next time and tried to cash a check it was declined and I was told to use the ATM. There is no reciprocity between HSBC banks in different countries. Not only that, using my U.S. HSBC debit card at the HSBC ATM in Panama I get hit with a $3 fee for the machine and an $18 transfer fee by my HSBC branch in Florida.

HSBC is the worst bank to do business as is Multibank, Global and Banco General and International. In fact all the banks here turn over your information to the IRS for a bounty and still won't open your account. The reason is they are paid a bounty for the info and won't open your account anyway, bcoz it's too many problems with the IRS for reporting cash movements on your accounts. So stay away from Panama banks. I know, been there and done that.

If you have a "Friend" who is Panamanian, have them open an account for you at a credit union. They don't ask any questions from locals. After the account is opened, you can keep the ATM card, if they have them, and then add yourself as "signature rights" then after a few months delete your friend totally. Most times this way works without the IRS knowing your business. Don't dump a load of $$$'s into the account all at once. Keep it under 10K/month and you should have no problems. Expect the bank/union to sit on your xfer's for at least 1 week b4 they credit your account. Standard practice here.

Banksters here are worse than in the USSA. Besides the "Tellers" are pretty much brain dead zombies and really have no clue about banking. Watch them carefully and then read the deposit receipt to make sure they got all the correct info..

Good luck with banking here. Wait'll you try immigration...even a bigger nightmare!!!!

Jim

You all got your wishes.  HSBC Panama has been sold to Bancolombia.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 … 25142.html

True....but that does not mean that the service will be any better. They still will employ the same dummy tellers and "Managers".

No difference I'm sure.  Not just the same people, but the same IT department for those familar with HSBC's online banking. I don't believe Bancolombia has retail banking presently in Panama, just commercial banking.

so Flo, you draw out cash to pay rent and utilities?

Utilities were included in our rent but yes we paid in cash.  Most locals do as well.  Most Panamanians do not have credit cards so they do most things in cash.