Bank Accounts

Nov 5, 2004
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I would like some opinions on what would be the best course of action regarding my bank accounts.

I have one in Canada, and one in the DR at la Banca Reserva (or something like that)

When I come down to the DR for this period of 6months- 1 year..would it be wise to keep all my Canadian money in my Canadian account, and just keep withdrawing it from there? Or withdraw as much of it as I can per day, and put it in my Dominican bank account?

I am not sure what rate I have, but I hear Dominican banks give very high intrest rates...?
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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Keep in mind that Scotia Bank in DR is ruled by Dominican laws and not Canadian.

It's been written before to keep your money at home. Find out what your bank will ding you for when making a withdrawal and take out only what you need a month at a time.
 
Nov 5, 2004
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My DR bank account is in pesos...I opened it by putting pesos into and have a Dominican address listed, and used my Canadian passport for ID.

The thing about taking money out once a month is that I cannot take out more then $500 a day...and most ATM's will not allow you to withdraw such a large amount at once....Then I have to withdraw it several times, and get service charges everytime...
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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Peachez this is only my personal opinion, ;)

you should only take out the money from your Canadian account to pay the rent and live on what you and Carlos make at your jobs for food ect. If you have all your money in a DR account you will spend it for sure.

That's just my two cents. :nervous:
 

Snuffy

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May 3, 2002
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This is a problem for everybody. I determined that I would pay $800 USD in fees and exchange slippage per year. It adds up.

You can bring in what you think you will spend during the time you are here. Deposit it in a bank. Your money will be fine. There should be no problems with the banks for any time in the near future.

I think the figure you are allowed to carry into the DR is $10K per person. So, if you are coming with someone else they can carry $10K for you. I "think" the rule is no more than $10K.

When you are here you should try and find a bank or money exchange house that will accept your checks.
 
Nov 5, 2004
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Snuffy said:
This is a problem for everybody. I determined that I would pay $800 USD in fees and exchange slippage per year. It adds up.

You can bring in what you think you will spend during the time you are here. Deposit it in a bank. Your money will be fine. There should be no problems with the banks for any time in the near future.

I think the figure you are allowed to carry into the DR is $10K per person. So, if you are coming with someone else they can carry $10K for you. I "think" the rule is no more than $10K.

When you are here you should try and find a bank or money exchange house that will accept your checks.

I will be in the DR for sometime between 6months - 1 year.

I don't have cheques....I just have cash and an interac card.

I do not have more then $10K...so that is not a problem.

And Anna...you know your "2 cents" are way more valuable then...2 cents. ;) lol
 

carina

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Mar 13, 2005
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Why can you only take out 500 pesos? Or you mean dollars??
I have accounts at Popular, Scotia, and also my Swedish bank.
I can take out more from those accounts, at the banks and at the ATMs.
For Scotia and Popular I have both US and pesos accounts.
 
Nov 5, 2004
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carina said:
Why can you only take out 500 pesos? Or you mean dollars??
I have accounts at Popular, Scotia, and also my Swedish bank.
I can take out more from those accounts, at the banks and at the ATMs.
For Scotia and Popular I have both US and pesos accounts.

no more then $500cdn a day from my Canadian bank account.
 

la_barbie

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May 6, 2004
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PeachezNcream84 said:
no more then $500cdn a day from my Canadian bank account.

get your withdrawl limit raised... just takes a second... go to your bank and they'll do it ..
 

AnnaC

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Jan 2, 2002
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You could always bring all your money in the form of traveler's checks and deposit them in a dollar account. If you have CAA it won't cost you anything.

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: ok barbie don't kill me :laugh:
 

DianaC

New member
Jan 8, 2005
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la_barbie said:
get your withdrawl limit raised... just takes a second... go to your bank and they'll do it ..


Actually, any Canadian bank will raise your limit via telephone or internet banking... it only takes a minute from the comfort of your own home... if it is Scotiabank, the number is 1-800-267-1234.

I agree with the above suggestion... raise your limit to what you think that you will need per month. Take it all out at once and only pay the one service charge (by the way, Scotia has the lowest overseas ATM withdrawl charge of all the Canadian banks).

That is how I did it when I lived down there, and I never had a problem... I think that several of the ATMs in Sosua and POP let you take out up to your daily limit... especially the ones at the Scotiabank or the Supermercado Messon.... they do not limit you to a certain amount of pesos.
 
Oct 13, 2003
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I agree.. get your withdrawal limit raised and take it out at once.. pay your bills directly so you don't spend it on something else and live on your DR-jobs for the rest..

Make sure you have a secure place to make the withdrawal at!
 
Nov 5, 2004
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Thanks for all the info so far.

I believe the areas I use to withdraw money are secure...When I'm in Luperon..I usualy have to go to Cofresi to take out money..cuz the Imbert one isn't working half the time. Actually I just learned that Luperon has an ATM on my last trip..it just has never worked. lol

When I am in POP I will use either an ATM downtown (Sorry don't know the street just know it's across from a biig shoe store, and close to a really nice park) or the ones in the Playa Dorada Plaza.

And if thoes aren't safe enough..I always got my bodyguard with me.

Thanks for the advice everyone.

I will check about getting my limit upgraded.
 

rendul

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Feb 24, 2002
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$500.00 Canadian works out to (as of today) a little more than $12,000. pesos. You can withdraw every day if necessary. I have accounts in the D.R., both peso and US dollar but I never bring extra cash or cheques. The best interbank exchange rate occurs when you make an ATM withdrawal. There have been no deductions for commission just the one time transaction charge that your bank in Canada will charge.

I have made multiple withdrawals over several days when it has been necessary. No problem but I do suggest you keep all your transaction receipts. :cool:
 

rellosk

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Mar 18, 2002
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rendul said:
There have been no deductions for commission just the one time transaction charge that your bank in Canada will charge.
There's no charge for using the machine in the DR? I would have thought there would be a charge on both ends.
 
Nov 5, 2004
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rellosk said:
There's no charge for using the machine in the DR? I would have thought there would be a charge on both ends.

There is a withdraw fee. That is why I don't want to me taking out a little bit of money everyday. I want to get it all out at once, so I am not charged a service fee everytime.
 

Tamborista

hasta la tambora
Apr 4, 2005
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Some banks will credit back the Foreign ATM fees if you ask.
Most people do not ask.
I have a few dollars in Bank of America, and they rebate their own $5/transaction fees. You do need to be a Premier customer. I do not like walking around with more than I need for a day or 2.