Opening a foreign currency account...

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

No deposit fees.

Since it's a Euro account, it only recognizes Euros. Nothing gets converted automatically. If you deposit $1,000 and try to buy something online, the system won't recognize the funds—it'll be like the money isn't even there.

You can check your balance through online banking; there are several different service tiers, and they all have fees. Or you can just hit an ATM with your card to check.

Annual fees are about $7. They pull it from the account twice a year, at the end of June and December, for $3.50 each time.

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

Nope.

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

They don't convert; you just have both currencies sitting in the same account now.

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

Online works (for all currencies), or you can use an ATM (but only for USD).

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

Somewhere around $4-$6 every six months.
EDIT: Someone beat me to it, but the answers are the same! 🙂👍

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

I think they charge maybe five bucks or so a month for online banking, $2.75 depending on how things go, I guess.

analogowl7 said:Hey there, so I went ahead and set up a foreign currency account at Bank of America today, specifically in Euros. My main goal here is just to handle some online payments using my debit card, but I have a few lingering questions about how this all works.

First off, if I were to deposit, say, $5 into the account, am I going to get hit with some sort of transaction fee just for making that deposit?

Also, if I happen to deposit funds in U.S. dollars, does the system just automatically convert those over to Euros, and if so, what kind of conversion fees should I be expecting to see?

I was also wondering about the easiest way to check my balance—is there a specific fee for checking it, and can I just manage everything through their online banking portal?

Lastly, could someone clarify what the annual maintenance fees look like for holding an account like this?

If you actually use the account during the month, like at JPMorgan Chase where it might be $1.75 monthly, then you pay, but if there isn't any activity, I suppose there wouldn't be any fees that month.

Does anyone happen to know the minimum deposit required to open a numbered account here?

I'm a minor—is it actually possible to open a foreign currency account at Bank of America if my parents give the okay?

Anyone here dealt with this before?

I guess you definitely can, though your parents would probably be in charge of the account until you hit 18.
Basically, you could always deposit money into it, but I think you wouldn't be able to withdraw anything without their okay—unless the laws have changed recently and I'm just out of the loop.

vividcrane122 said:Does anyone happen to know the minimum deposit required to open a numbered account here?

They don't offer those kinds of accounts anymore.

I’m looking to open a foreign currency account so I can receive regular monthly transfers from abroad. What kind of impact does this have on me personally? Am I going to run into any tax obligations with the IRS or the government? (Just to clarify, I don't have a job and I don't have any other income—I'm currently a full-time college student.) Basically, it would be my father's salary being deposited into my account every month. Thanks in advance for any insight

When I was opening a foreign currency account, I was wondering—do you actually have to dump some cash into it right away just to get it up and running?

If there’s a monthly maintenance fee on the account, you could just go ahead and deposit enough to cover that first one...

Is it possible to open multiple foreign currency accounts at the same bank? For instance, I already have one foreign currency account over at JPMorgan Chase, but I’m looking to open another one. I don't really care which currency it is; I just want to have an additional foreign currency account available.

Nah, you can really only hold one of each type of account at a bank—like just one checking, one savings, and one foreign currency account...

I have a quick question for you all.
I’m looking to start setting aside money every single month—basically forcing myself to save at least $133 by setting up an automatic transfer right when my paycheck hits, so I don't even see the money and can't be tempted to touch it.
My first thought was to just open a high-yield savings account or maybe a CD, but honestly, interest rates feel pretty lackluster right now, and with these new tax laws regarding interest income, it feels like I wouldn't actually see much of a gain for the first few years while I'm still building up the principal.

So, what I really want is a specific account where I can funnel this amount into monthly (ideally via a standing order) and then just... forget it exists. No dipping into it, ever.
Right now, I use my checking and basic accounts over at JPMorgan Chase quite a bit, and I’m worried that if I leave the extra cash sitting in those same accounts, I’ll just end up spending it out of habit.

The only other option I can think of is opening a foreign currency account.
Would you guys recommend doing that and setting up an automatic transfer to move funds into it?
Also, does anyone know how the tax situation works if I'm constantly depositing money into one? Could the IRS come sniffing around those transfers? (I’m asking because I heard some rumor somewhere about the government being able to audit transaction histories on your accounts.)

A foreign currency checking account (unlike a foreign currency savings account) doesn't trigger any IRS reporting issues, so you're clear there.
I'm just not sure if they even offer a standing order for automatic currency purchases—might be worth checking with Chase.
Plus, you're looking at about $1.75 a month in maintenance fees, not to mention the sting of the conversion spread when switching from dollars to another currency!