Transfer $USD from US to Canada

[Derek Sutton]

Hi all, looking for any experience or advice in transferring money from my cousin in Virginia to me here in Alberta. Long story short we have a "Family Account" that we need to transfer to CDN funds. When my cousin monitored the account, he would accept via PayPal. He could transfer to me via PayPal but the fees are high and they would conduct the US to CDN exchange I believe and an sure I can get much better exchange rates a few different ways. Simple Etransfer does not look to be an option as it looks like they don't have Etransfer down there.

When I did this previously (2009?) my (different) cousin just sent a bank draft via Fed Ex, is still the best possible solution? I have a US account with BMO that I believe will accept a wire transfer but there are fees with this to, I will check with my bank but won't be able to get in there for a bit.

[Bill Bumface]

I'm not sure on the actual transferring between accounts, but keep it in USD since you already have an account, then use this to convert it for minimal fees:

https://www.finiki.org/wiki/Norbert%27s_gambit

[calumniate]

I'm using an app / service called 'wise', aka wise.com. Right now doing CAD to US. It takes some setup and verification, but there doesn't seem to be many other good options. The rates are transparent and seems best if you just go bank to bank.

Hope this helps

[Leondros]

Originally Posted by calumniate

I'm using an app / service called 'wise', aka wise.com. Right now doing CAD to US. It takes some setup and verification, but there doesn't seem to be many other good options. The rates are transparent and seems best if you just go bank to bank.

Hope this helps

+1 for Wise. It is the best I have found and a lot of people actually trade FX on it. Its well worth it. I travel a lot for work and am able to keep multiple currencies. I also got their prepaid Visa where I can charge in any country and if I have the local funds it will take it directly from there.

Fees end up being roughly 1% - 1.5% off of the stated FX rate (ie. the rate you would find on the Oanda or BOC) plus a 5 - 25 bps fee for transferring money to and from the account.

[bizaro86]

It depends a bit on the amount of money we're talking about and the frequency. If you want the very cheapest method and are willing to put up with some hassle you can do the following.

1) set up a US domiciled bank account with the US subsidiary of a Canadian bank. I have mine with RBC but I know TD and BMO offer this as well. Important that this isn't just a USD account, but is actually an account with the US subsidiary bank.

2) transfer the money to your US bank account. This should be free. Lots of ways to do it. PayPal friends and family, venmo, have him write a check, email you pictures and then mobile deposit it, etc.

3) convert the money to CAD. The very cheapest way to do this will be in the financial markets. Interactive Brokers offer forex trading to retail clients, or you can use Norbert's Gambit linked above. Norberts Gambit generally gets the exact wholesale rate and costs two stock commissions. (Ie $20 or less all in)

If that doesn't seem worth it to you wise (formerly transferwise) is your best bet. It will cost 1-1.5%, so it sort of depends if 1% is $5 then I'd do it through wise. If 1% is hundreds or thousands of dollars in fees then I'd take the time to do it the more complicated/cheaper way.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

It depends a bit on the amount of money we're talking about and the frequency. If you want the very cheapest method and are willing to put up with some hassle you can do the following.

1) set up a US domiciled bank account with the US subsidiary of a Canadian bank. I have mine with RBC but I know TD and BMO offer this as well. Important that this isn't just a USD account, but is actually an account with the US subsidiary bank.

2) transfer the money to your US bank account. This should be free. Lots of ways to do it. PayPal friends and family, venmo, have him write a check, email you pictures and then mobile deposit it, etc.

3) convert the money to CAD. The very cheapest way to do this will be in the financial markets. Interactive Brokers offer forex trading to retail clients, or you can use Norbert's Gambit linked above. Norberts Gambit generally gets the exact wholesale rate and costs two stock commissions. (Ie $20 or less all in)

If that doesn't seem worth it to you wise (formerly transferwise) is your best bet. It will cost 1-1.5%, so it sort of depends if 1% is $5 then I'd do it through wise. If 1% is hundreds or thousands of dollars in fees then I'd take the time to do it the more complicated/cheaper way.

I will endorse this post.

I get this is the opposite of the direction the OP was going with but I will post what I do in case anyone sees this thread in my situation. I live in the US as an ex-pat and get paid by my Canadian company in CAD funds, so I'm doing at least one FX a month to cover USD expenses.

I opened up a Canadian domiciled USD account with my bank (RBC). I also opened up a United States domiciled USD account with that same bank (RBC). When I want to transfer from CAD to USD I will either do Norbit's gambit as discussed above (Caution - you need to understand how this can blow up on you and watch the cross-listed stock you use for the transaction ensuring it's liquid, watch the ex-dividend dates - especially for high yielding stocks, know holidays differences between US exchanges and Canadian exchanges, etc.) or book an FX trade with Knightsbridge exchange (costs between 15-75 pips, banks take between 250-300 pips).

I pay Knightsbridge CAD in the form of a bill payment from my RBC CAD account and have Knightsbridge send the USD funds to my Canadian domiciled USD account and then transfer the USD funds to my US domiciled USD bank account and then there is no fees. I made the mistake of skipping the Canadian domiciled USD account part and had Knightsbridge directly send the USD funds to my US domiciled account and it incurred a $15 wire fee (Still much cheaper than standard bank fees, but annoying).

[nfotiu]

We do this as well with RBC.

https://www.rbcbank.com/dms/cross-bo...campaign=MHP21

[Shazam]

Once again the Picard Maneuver wins against the Ferengi.

[lazypucker]

Check out Knightsbridge FX for exchanging between USD and CAD. They have pretty good rates, but it does take 5 business days for you to see the money though.

https://www.knightsbridgefx.com/

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by lazypucker

Check out Knightsbridge FX for exchanging between USD and CAD. They have pretty good rates, but it does take 5 business days for you to see the money though.

https://www.knightsbridgefx.com/

Not true, usually it's 2-3 days for me on USD / CAD trades

[Mr.Coffee]

Dunbridge is the best one, in my experience. It’s cheaper than Knightsbridge and Shift and faster.

Not sure about Wise, though. Dunbridge will get you cash potentially same day depending on your bank if not next day. It’s usually a little cheaper on conversion too. I would never convert using a big bank, they’d be the most expensive.

[Ryan Coke]

Sounds similar to some above, but I’ve always used XE currency exchange. Can transfer between my US and Canadian accounts, and to/from other people. Good rates.

[Derek Sutton]

Originally Posted by Ryan Coke

Sounds similar to some above, but I’ve always used XE currency exchange. Can transfer between my US and Canadian accounts, and to/from other people. Good rates.

Thank you all, the major issue is not so much the US to CAN exchange but physically getting the money from my cousin's account in the US to my account in Canada. ITs good to know there looks to be a couple of digital options. Exploring both Wise and XE Currency Exchange

[Mr.Coffee]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

Thank you all, the major issue is not so much the US to CAN exchange but physically getting the money from my cousin's account in the US to my account in Canada. ITs good to know there looks to be a couple of digital options. Exploring both Wise and XE Currency Exchange

And again I would check out Dunbridge for this.

Dunbridge literally sets you up with a new bank account that is either NY or UK based and then connects automatically to your bank account. I literally use it on a monthly basis and it is perfect for what you’re describing.

Your cousin just wires USD to the Dunbridge account and they will convert and send to you same day / next morning. It’s pretty awesome actually.

[Strange Brew]

We transfer funds directly from Scotiabank accounts in Canada to Wells Fargo accounts in the US. Takes 30 seconds on Scotiabank’s online banking website.

[Mr.Coffee]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

We transfer funds directly from Scotiabank accounts in Canada to Wells Fargo accounts in the US. Takes 30 seconds on Scotiabank’s online banking website.

Definitely. It’s just the fees might be a bit higher, so if you are changing larger sums you might want to avoid big banks.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by lazypucker

Check out Knightsbridge FX for exchanging between USD and CAD. They have pretty good rates, but it does take 5 business days for you to see the money though.

https://www.knightsbridgefx.com/

I work in the US and use this one often...better rates than the banks

usually 2 or 3 days for me but I am a long time customer so maybe that's why

[calgarywinning]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Definitely. It’s just the fees might be a bit higher, so if you are changing larger sums you might want to avoid big banks.

Banks charge at least 2% fee + 1.10 when exchange is around 1.10% of real dollar value.

Wise is not accepted by Canadian banks, which is a form of monopoly. So You can't Wise US funds into your CDN bank US acct.

[Jimmy Stang]

Originally Posted by calgarywinning

Banks charge at least 2% fee + 1.10 when exchange is around 1.10% of real dollar value.

Wise is not accepted by Canadian banks, which is a form of monopoly. So You can't Wise US funds into your CDN bank US acct.

The don't make it easy, but it is possible. I provided my Wise CAD banking details to Tangerine and Simplii, and I now have my Wise account set up as an external account on both. I can move money to and from Wise without any fees at all, as long as I keep it in CAD. It is basically a bank to bank transfer between my bank and Wise's Canadian partner bank (which was People's Trust or something like that).

Tangerine was easy - I just put the Wise account details in and had to verify two transactions of a few cents each. Done.

Simplii was more of a hassle. I had to get an original, signed, stamped letter from a "teller" at Wise. They happily obliged and mailed it to me, which I sent on to Simplii. They eventually added my Wise account as an external account as well.

You mention that yours is a USD account at a Canadian bank, so that might complicate things.

[Jimmy Stang]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

Hi all, looking for any experience or advice in transferring money from my cousin in Virginia to me here in Alberta. Long story short we have a "Family Account" that we need to transfer to CDN funds. When my cousin monitored the account, he would accept via PayPal. He could transfer to me via PayPal but the fees are high and they would conduct the US to CDN exchange I believe and an sure I can get much better exchange rates a few different ways. Simple Etransfer does not look to be an option as it looks like they don't have Etransfer down there.

When I did this previously (2009?) my (different) cousin just sent a bank draft via Fed Ex, is still the best possible solution? I have a US account with BMO that I believe will accept a wire transfer but there are fees with this to, I will check with my bank but won't be able to get in there for a bit.

I'm a pretty happy customer of Wise. If your cousin is willing, if you both have a Wise account set up, you can actually send money in the same currency for free between Wise accounts. You only pay the exchange, which is lower than the banks, when you change currencies.

Of course, Wise is just a middle man between your two banks. You'll still need to create a link between each bank (you and your cousin) and Wise to get money in and out. But they are a much more affordable middle man than PayPal, and comes with a bunch of other benefits.

Wise also provides you with banking details in different currencies. Bank account number, Swift, IBAN, etc. So suppose someone wanted to pay you in a different currency - you could provide them with your Wise account details in that currency and you get paid by direct deposit. No fees to receive money like that.

Some added benefits of Wise is that they issue you a Visa debit card. If you are travelling abroad, you can spend in the local currency (or let Wise do the conversion on the fly for you). You'll get a better exchange rate than the credits cards and banks. And no word of a lie, I went to Scotland and Ireland recently and took ZERO cash with me in Euros or Pounds, and relied entirely on Wise. Granted, I was in a group with other family members, so I had a backup. But my Wise debit card was accepted in every single place that needed it.

It also came in handy when splitting bills with the others in our group. If I owed someone some GBP or EUR, I could transfer it to them instantly using Wise for free (they also had Wise accounts). Much easier than converting to CAD while sitting in a pub somewhere. Here's £15. Done.