I’ve seen several posts along these lines, but never any that mirrored my situation closely enough for me to follow the advice provided. I also subscribe to the philosophy that “simple is best”, which may just be my excuse for being a procrastinator and technophobe, so whenever possible please keep things in layman’s terms.
I’m a long term (permanent) resident of Japan, married to a Japanese national. I have 3 separate bank accounts here, and another with a major bank in Canada. I use all 4 fairly regularly, although the Canadian account is mostly for keeping cash and a CC for use while I’m there every second year or so, and for term investments (GICs) which I’ve decided to let mature without reinvesting as the rates have been so chronically low. (However, interest on short term GICs seems to have risen since I last re-upped, so I’m rethinking things.) I do not hold property or have an income in Canada aside from the small gains on maturing GICs, nor do I file income tax there, but I do have some RSP mutual funds with a large NA financial institution which I cannot add to or withdraw from without tax implications until I’m of retirement age. I do do not plan to return to Canada to live, and won’t likely be visiting much in the near future, except in case of emergencies, and/or the occasional visit. Which is not to say I don’t love Canada, I just have fewer and fewer ties there, while I make more and more here as time progresses. I will be there this summer for a memorial service, however, and I’m hoping the funds will be available by then; I’ll have less than a week to sort things out, though, and will have to do whatever else remotely from Japan once I return.
So all that said, the crux here is that my father passed away recently and has left my siblings and I each a significant inheritance, relatively speaking I’m sure. I would very much like to get most of that money, possibly all, over to Japan with the least amount of fees, currency exchange BS, muss, fuss, stress, and all the rest. So considering my permanency in Japan with no intention of permanently returning to Canada, what would be the path path of least resistance that helps me retain the most of that money, re: (borderline criminal) transfer fees, bank exchange rates, etc., while getting it over here to Japan. I’ve asked for advice and these options have been suggested:
1. Opening an FX account. This was suggested by my father’s accountant back home, but he didn’t go into detail on how it might be done. This does seem like a good option, but I can’t fathom the logistics of it, and frankly it seems a bit scary to me: I don’t want to be floating so much money online to sites I don’t know while being a complete novice. If I deposit money from my CDN account, how do I access/withdraw that money in Japan? Am I not expected to do some transactions on such a site? If it’s so easy, wouldn’t money laundering, criminal proceeds, and so on, be running through such sites unchecked?
2. Using WISE or Sony online banking. A friend of mine has been using Sony Bank for years, but has said that recently things have become more complicated. Wise has come up often during online searches. But from my understanding, both Sony and Wise are for smaller fund transfers.
3. Doing a simple (CDN) bank to (JP) bank transfer and taking the hit on fees and exchange rates.
4. This is my idea, but I found that my Canadian bank has a branch in Tokyo – I’m in Osaka – so in theory could I possibly open a branch account here, transfer the money from my Canada branch to the one in Tokyo, and only take the hit for the currency exchange rate? I think the latter would mostly be mitigated by the recently underperforming Yen. But it can’t be that easy, right?
5. Open an HSBC or similar strictly online account, possibly do FX through them…This one was suggested only briefly, over many beers, so I haven’t looked into its feasibility.
So, what are my best options? Has anyone else gone through a similar process? My intention for the money once it reaches Japan is to invest it, as I have an online investment account. (I wonder…is it possible to transfer money from Canada directly into that investment account?) I’d appreciate any and all advice, but like I said, please keep it simple. I’m leery of doing too much financial stuff online, largely due to my own ineptitude, but I’ll consider all options.
This is my first Reddit post, so apologies if I’ve mess anything up.
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by 3Qberrymatch