Opening a bank account? Anyone declared over $5000 at the airport?

Try and get a friend to bring half the money in. Airport officials are very corrupt.

Sam, you will also need to consider the limitation of being able to get all that cash back to your country of origin once you are done. It's a hassle as what most people say and many expat say Vietnam has a Money In Only and they are not supportive of MONEY OUT.

I am sure that Coca-cola has a way to get money out.  The system is set up to squeeze the little guy.  As far as the number $5000 it is worth noting that is set by international convention.  However when exiting other countries it is not a limit.  It is simply a limit to what you can carry undeclared.

Question:  If the OP had a corporate structure, would that make things easier?

Try and get a friend to bring half the money in. Airport officials are very corrupt.

 

welcome to asia 

TimHortonMuffin wrote:

Sam, you will also need to consider the limitation of being able to get all that cash back to your country of origin once you are done. It's a hassle as what most people say and many expat say Vietnam has a Money In Only and they are not supportive of MONEY OUT.

Hi Tim,

Well, I won't bring more money than what I need. I'll leave just with $5000 if there's any left. Once I arrive & meet the suppliers then I'll know exactly how much for the order and I'll transfer the exact amount to my bank account in VN if it's possible to open one.

jazzy851 wrote:

Try and get a friend to bring half the money in. Airport officials are very corrupt.

 

welcome to asia 

Unfortunately I'm on my own. So it seems nobody has an idea what happens when u declare that u have over $5000 & my question regarding the bank account.

sam4d wrote:

Unfortunately I'm on my own. So it seems nobody has an idea what happens when u declare that u have over $5000 & my question regarding the bank account.

I think part of why you got no response on the question of opening a bank account is that everyone has a different experience.  There have been near feuds over whether opening an account is possible.  For every guy who says you can't do it without a work permit or other documents, there is someone else who says he just walked in to the bank with cash in hand.  You may just have to go to a few banks until you find one that lets you open an account, or can at least tell you what you need to do to open one.

I left the country with more than $5000 but I left with a wife too.  If you get married you can bump your limit to $10,000. 

THIGV wrote:

sam4d wrote:

Unfortunately I'm on my own. So it seems nobody has an idea what happens when u declare that u have over $5000 & my question regarding the bank account.

I think part of why you got no response on the question of opening a bank account is that everyone has a different experience.  There have been near feuds over whether opening an account is possible.  For every guy who says you can't do it without a work permit or other documents, there is someone else who says he just walked in to the bank with cash in hand.  You may just have to go to a few banks until you find one that lets you open an account, or can at least tell you what you need to do to open one.

I left the country with more than $5000 but I left with a wife too.  If you get married you can bump your limit to $10,000. 

Thanks for ur reply. I searched for a while regarding these 2 inquiries and like u just mentioned that everyone has a different reply. I read on some posts that it's impossible to open an account with a tourist/biz visa and others have said that they opened an account after checking a few banks and some accept. So that's why I was a little confused about this matter.
Regarding the airport matter,  u left with $10000 plus a wife, well u were lucky, congrats!! maybe I will leave with $0 & no wife haha.

Simpler options
1. Someone said that they opened a HSBC account in the states and funded it before they arrived. Then they opened an HSBC account in Vietnam, linked the accounts, and could easily transfer into it. As long as you only transfer here the amount you are spending, then your local account will be empty when you leave, and you won't have over $5k in customs.
You can search this forum for 'HSBC' or 'banking'.

2. What I and many expats do here, since I don't want to open a local account, is withdraw money from my US account via local ATM. Paying bills in cash. Citibank ATMs allow 8M withdrawals, that is $US350. You can carry in your undeclared $5k, then visit the ATM every day to accumulate what you need. (Have 2 US checking accounts, withdraw double daily...)

gobot wrote:

Simpler options
1. Someone said that they opened a HSBC account in the states and funded it before they arrived. Then they opened an HSBC account in Vietnam, linked the accounts, and could easily transfer into it. As long as you only transfer here the amount you are spending, then your local account will be empty when you leave, and you won't have over $5k in customs.
You can search this forum for 'HSBC' or 'banking'.

2. What I and many expats do here, since I don't want to open a local account, is withdraw money from my US account via local ATM. Paying bills in cash. Citibank ATMs allow 8M withdrawals, that is $US350. You can carry in your undeclared $5k, then visit the ATM every day to accumulate what you need. (Have 2 US checking accounts, withdraw double daily...)

Hi Gobot,

thx for your msg. Well I was also thinking of opening an account in an international bank and not a local bank. But my worry is that I can't open an account if I don't have a work/residence visa. Anyway, I'll check 3-4 international banks and see who can accept to open 1 for me so that I can receive USD from abroad.
Regarding your second point, going to the ATM on a daily basis to withdraw money won't work for me, because the amount i'm talking about will be minimum $50,000 for the order and I need to pay soon after my arrival to receive the goods, inspect & load the containers.

sam4d wrote:

will be minimum $50,000 for the order

Doh, thought you said "maybe $7,000 to $10,000"!
Maybe you just wire from your US bank to the vendors bank like the big boys, like Coca Cola.

gobot wrote:

sam4d wrote:

will be minimum $50,000 for the order

Doh, thought you said "maybe $7,000 to $10,000"!
Maybe you just wire from your US bank to the vendors bank like the big boys, like Coca Cola.

I guess I didn't explain myself clearly. I had 2 questions. First was regarding opening a personal bank account and I want to receive big amounts on it so I wanted to know if it's possible to open an account without having a residence/work permit in VN
Secondly, I wanted to know what happens if I bring over $5000 and that will be money for my expenses and deposits to suppliers.
I guess I'll find my answers once I try myself and then I'll have my answers lol

Dear SAM,
You can open your personal account with your visa which it is still validated. When you withdraw your money you will be charged or you can change into VND, it won't be charged
If you need more information, contact me, I can help you. I'm working in local bank

Bring in the 5000usd, open a bank account here then wire the rest to your VN account. I don't trust the airport officials as they are generally not a nice bunch.

Hi Sam, I have a Vietcombank account opened since 2010 without any form of paperwork except my passport. But that was in the past. Nowadays you need to have a legal status for needing a bank account in Vietnam. From my understanding if correct you just need a form a of payment to your China party. Can you pay through local agents who charge about 3% per transaction and amount will be in the bank account of your seller within 5-10min? Alternatively you  can pay through Bitcoin. Purchasing of Bitcoin in Saigon is very easy. Just go to backpacker district and look for the big BTC cafe opposite crazy buffalo and you can buy BTC on the spot.

colinoscapee wrote:

Bring in the 5000usd, open a bank account here then wire the rest to your VN account. I don't trust the airport officials as they are generally not a nice bunch.

I'm arriving next week so I'll just bring with me $5000 cash so that I don't have to declare anything in the airport & I'll visit a few banks regarding opening a bank account.

lifeissimple wrote:

Hi Sam, I have a Vietcombank account opened since 2010 without any form of paperwork except my passport. But that was in the past. Nowadays you need to have a legal status for needing a bank account in Vietnam. From my understanding if correct you just need a form a of payment to your China party. Can you pay through local agents who charge about 3% per transaction and amount will be in the bank account of your seller within 5-10min? Alternatively you  can pay through Bitcoin. Purchasing of Bitcoin in Saigon is very easy. Just go to backpacker district and look for the big BTC cafe opposite crazy buffalo and you can buy BTC on the spot.

Hey,
thx for ur help. I doubt I can open a bank account on a tourist visa but I'll check a few banks to confirm that. You mentioned local agents who charge %3 per transaction, these are like trading companies or what? Is it safe? legal?

HSBC is very good

Hi Sonia
I would appreciate your help in regards to opening an account in your bank, both saving and Term Deposit

1. I am aus citizen but i love travel and possibly settle in VN in future.
2. How much TD interest rate does your bank provide, say on 2 year fixed.

3. I can show address of my VN friend in vietnam.

Thanks for your help
Peter

Hello Sam

You should rent a place once you get back to Vietnam and then ask them, owner, to make your paper from the local police, also you can bring any documents which can prove your permanent address in your country. with this documents you are able to open an account. P/S Do not open account in Vietcombank or Sacombank both of them make you harder in the future.

Hi Sam, 
I'm planning on moving to Vietnam soon and had similar questions.  I'd appreciate it if you could let us know how it went when you got there!
Thanks,
Chris

Coll-wing wrote:

Hello Sam

You should rent a place once you get back to Vietnam and then ask them, owner, to make your paper from the local police, also you can bring any documents which can prove your permanent address in your country. with this documents you are able to open an account. P/S Do not open account in Vietcombank or Sacombank both of them make you harder in the future.

Hi,

thx for the info. But why shouldn't I open an account in these 2 banks? i was thinking of Vietcom bank, u said it'll be harder in the future? what do u mean exactly?
And I checked their website now, wanted to know more info about the bank but there are missing info when i change the language into English so that sucks. Online banking is important for me so which banks do u recommend?

Chris_Darkhat wrote:

Hi Sam, 
I'm planning on moving to Vietnam soon and had similar questions.  I'd appreciate it if you could let us know how it went when you got there!
Thanks,
Chris

Hi chris,

I arrived a few days ago on a tourist visa. I didn't want any hassle at the airport so I just brought with me exactly $5000 which is the allowed amount to bring in the country. Regarding transferring big amounts here, I still didn't open an account and looking for a solution to this.

I use HD Bank part owned by the richest woman in Viet Nam. I find them way easier to deal with than Vietcommie bank. Vietcombank can be very difficult to deal with face to face.

colinoscapee wrote:

I use HD Bank part owned by the richest woman in Viet Nam. I find them way easier to deal with than Vietcommie bank. Vietcombank can be very difficult to deal with face to face.

Hey, thx for ur msg. I'll ask around about HD bank.

sam4d wrote:

Coll-wing wrote:

Hello Sam

You should rent a place once you get back to Vietnam and then ask them, owner, to make your paper from the local police, also you can bring any documents which can prove your permanent address in your country. with this documents you are able to open an account. P/S Do not open account in Vietcombank or Sacombank both of them make you harder in the future.

Hi,

thx for the info. But why shouldn't I open an account in these 2 banks? i was thinking of Vietcom bank, u said it'll be harder in the future? what do u mean exactly?
And I checked their website now, wanted to know more info about the bank but there are missing info when i change the language into English so that sucks. Online banking is important for me so which banks do u recommend?

Hi There

This two bank belong to the government and they exactly follow the Government rule, But other banks also same but somehow they will be fixable for you. If you withdraw some big amount then Vicom & Sacom will try to monitoring on your money. for you as a Foreigner, I will recommend  HSBC or ANZ because you won't stick with the language. Anyway, i think now you have seen lots comments and you can decide what you want.

Sonia Nguyen wrote:

Dear SAM,
You can open your personal account with your visa which it is still validated. When you withdraw your money you will be charged or you can change into VND, it won't be charged
If you need more information, contact me, I can help you. I'm working in local bank

Is this true? Banks charge you if you withdraw in USD?

I need to transfer $ into Vietnam as well.

vinh1 wrote:

Is this true? Banks charge you if you withdraw in USD?

Citibank is the only bank that we have used to keep USD, and they do charge a slight fee for withdrawal.  Alternatively you can change your USD to your VND account and then withdraw free, but the last time my wife said that their exchange rate was so bad that it was better to pay the fee and transfer at the gold shop.  I don't know what the fees were.  I just know that when it comes to money, all Vietnamese women carry around super powerful financial calculators in their heads.   

thanks for the info

Yes, it's right. At MSB fee is 0,2 % for USD and 0,6% for another currency. If you change into it VND. It is no fee

Sonia Nguyen wrote:

Yes, it's right. At MSB fee is 0,2 % for USD and 0,6% for another currency. If you change into it VND. It is no fee

Thanks for the detail.

Hi There
Have you solved anything ?

I'd like to share my experience to . I am a chinese citizen .  Government now only allow me to remit 10k USD per time after july. 

1 I have remitted 45k USD before JULY for purchasing 1st apartment here for 1st installment .From my China account to my account in VCB vietnam . (under same name). Successfully.

2 After july . i purchased another apartment in hcm. but i can only bring cash back to saigon through the customs, the way i did is separately money into separate bags and wallet . Customs didn;t check coz i feel they 'd like to get tips only some merchandise like you are doing business here .

about point 1 .   I opened account at VCB coz they need USD only with Passport and visa (tourise visa also accept) .  they charge 0.165% per transaction if the money use within 10days .   Or you can choose from USD to VND. but the exchange rate is too low.  that;s the last way i will choose change with them.
VIETCOMBANK is lowest fee and easier to handle.

also i asked HSBC. STANDARD CHARTTED bank. they require a higher fee around 0.2% or something and WITH LOTS OF DOCUMENT . like labor contract or ect.  i don;t have it .


my idea is you can bring more than 5k USD but separately in different bags. coz each time i bring more than that without any issue.. But most safest way is come here setting up an account under your name and withdraw it ,change at gold store at ben thanh market with better rate. 

hope it helps~cheers!

Carter Lim wrote:

Hi There
Have you solved anything ?

I'd like to share my experience to . I am a chinese citizen .  Government now only allow me to remit 10k USD per time after july. 

1 I have remitted 45k USD before JULY for purchasing 1st apartment here for 1st installment .From my China account to my account in VCB vietnam . (under same name). Successfully.

2 After july . i purchased another apartment in hcm. but i can only bring cash back to saigon through the customs, the way i did is separately money into separate bags and wallet . Customs didn;t check coz i feel they 'd like to get tips only some merchandise like you are doing business here .

about point 1 .   I opened account at VCB coz they need USD only with Passport and visa (tourise visa also accept) .  they charge 0.165% per transaction if the money use within 10days .   Or you can choose from USD to VND. but the exchange rate is too low.  that;s the last way i will choose change with them.
VIETCOMBANK is lowest fee and easier to handle.

also i asked HSBC. STANDARD CHARTTED bank. they require a higher fee around 0.2% or something and WITH LOTS OF DOCUMENT . like labor contract or ect.  i don;t have it .


my idea is you can bring more than 5k USD but separately in different bags. coz each time i bring more than that without any issue.. But most safest way is come here setting up an account under your name and withdraw it ,change at gold store at ben thanh market with better rate. 

hope it helps~cheers!

Hi Carter,

Thank you very much for the detailed explanation. Well my solution was to transfer directly to the supplier whom I'll buy goods from. We made a deal that I pay him %30 as deposit and the balance %70 only after I have inspected the goods in the warehouse and I make sure container is on board the ship. Once I have confirmed everything then I pay the balance & he will give me the Bill of Lading for the container.
As for the bank issue, the same supplier also recommended VCB as you have said as well because he said less hassle. I'll go have a look in the next few days.
Regarding bringing cash through airport customs, I have noticed in my 2 trips here that they never inspect you well and I heard too many ppl bring in lots of money and they don't get caught. But it's better if I open a bank account and transfer to my bank account directly. I don't want to start getting nervous & sweat as I enter the airport haha.
By the way, I lived in China "Yiwu & Shanghai" from 2005 to 2015, I had a  very good business there but less profits in the last few years so that's why I started to visit Vietnam from early 2017 & planning to move my business here.