I am moving permanently to the UAE, and will be transferring a portion of my savings across (10-100k). What is the best bank/fintech for the transfer? I have looked at TransferWise and Revolut which look appealing.
Thanks
Moving to UAE, Best Bank/Fintech for Transferring Savings?
Seakip on 05/09/2021 - 17:08
Comments
Same thing.
Bitcoin?
Long as you've also got an exchange account in the UAE, then you shouldn't have any issues with a transfer & withdrawal to your bank account
No such thing as a permanent move to the UAE. There's no naturalisation, citizenship or permanent residency offered for non-nationals.
Always have an exit strategy for when things go bad. If you're going for a job offer, read the visa conditions very carefully. Usually a loss of job means you have to leave the country within 30 days unless you find another. Doesn't matter if spouse still working or kids in school.
Use Wise to transfer funds to help you get settled initially but make sure you leave plenty behind. The days of earning high salaries and savings tons of money working in UAE are long gone. The illusion of no taxes is offset by many charges and fees everywhere that will drain you.
Expect to leave the country with nothing in hand. Plan to improve on that and don't let the materialistic lifestyle get the best of you. Good luck.
TIL
Maybe no taxes in uae but australia will still make you pay top up tax if I remember correctly.
As someone who lived and worked in the UAE for 10 years I came here to say pretty much all of this.
Great post.
No such thing as a permanent move to the UAE.
Could be Arab from the Gulf
Go old school.. gold bullion, there is no import duty tax or value added tax on gold bars brought into the UAE
The UAE is a very crypto/digital asset friendly country. There is no income tax nor CGT on crypto/digital assets.
The easiest and cheapest way is to KYC with a local exchange (CEX), onramp fiat into crypto or stablecoins, Tx assets to a wallet, fly to the UAE, KYC with an exchange over there, Tx assets from the wallet to the CEX, and cash out.
Unless you plan to never return to Australia, why would you want o move you cash there?
That's what OP said …
I am moving permanently to the UAE
means no plans to return.
Plans can change
Of course plan can change, nothing is set in stone. But right now OP's plan is to not return.
HSBC Premier can transfer instantly between self-owned accounts in different countries.
The cost is about 2% on currency spread id not mistaken. Wise is a lot cheaper.
I think it is free if the currency is the same type. Tip: change the currency to the preferred currency at preferred exchange rate and then transfer to the overseas account.
Yes you can wait till you get your preferable rate, but you do know that the rate is the same thing for either HSBC or Wise with HSBC do 2% more expensive than whatever the rate will be. Wise fees on the other hand seem to sit between 0.4-0.5% - thus still a lot better than the 2% spreads.
If you're not into crypto, check out Citibank. They have a Plus Account with fee-free withdrawals (i.e. they make their money on the currency spread) but they seem to have beefed up their Global Currency Account recently with interest and without account keeping fees:
https://www1.citibank.com.au/banking/bank-accounts/global-cu…
They seem to have a bigger presence in Abu Dhabi than they do in Australia now.
I think you mean Wise ?