Moving and my bank account

[MK]

Now, i am probably just being stupid here, but I want to check there is no problem moving cities and jobs but keeping the same bank account.

I have an ICBC account with ATM card (with the red/blue/green link symbol in the bottom corner) here in Beijing - I will still be able to access my money in Ningbo, right?

Also, can you leave money in a Chinese account when you temporarily leave the country?

Cheers.

[con's fly is open]

I left 2000 RMB in the Bank of china for 6 months, and it was right here when I got back. A bank's a bank in that respect.

After my Beijing ordeal, which you may recall, I was informed that I could have accessed it from Beijing.

ICBC? The Construction Bank? If they're big enough to be in both cities, no worries, dude.

[George61]

Dunno about ICBC, MK, but my BoC account was originally oppened in Tai'an. I have moved around in Shandong and have always been able to access it....BUT....in places other than Tai'an, a withdrawal always attracted a fee. I finally discovered the reason. It was a Tai'an account. Apparently BoC accounts are homebodies. So I cancelled Tai'an, and opened a Jinan account. No more fees! As I now live in Jinan, this is sensible. I suspect ICBC may work the same way. I suggest you open a new account in NingBo. They will give you a new ATM card. Check it out first, tho.

[Raoul Duke]

Hey MK,

A lot depends on the bank and on the type of account you've set up. You WILL be able to access your money, but you may have to take your bankbook and go in to a "live teller" (this phrase can definitely be a euphemism in China) in order to do so. You may or may not be able to use your ATM card.

For example I have an account with the Bank of Mei-You (aka the Bank of China; I have to use these idiots because my employer does) in Suzhou, Jiangsu. My ATM card only works in Shanghai and in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. My bankbook is good anywhere in China.

Either way, one way or another, you will definitely be able to get to your money.

Also either way, you will want to set up a new account in an ICBC in Ningbo as soon as possible, and have them transfer the Beijing account to the new local account. There are extra fees for accessing your money from a remote location, especially by ATM, and they can be pretty stiff. It's OK for getting started in the new place but you won't want to continue it for long.

Leaving China temporarily and coming back? No worries...your money will still be there.

Let me know when you get down to this area. Perhaps some Monkey Shines can be cooked up.

[MK]

Great, thanks guys.

Never pays to check twice or even thrice where banking in China is concerned though. I knew a foreign teacher who went to 'close' her account at the Construction bank, and the teller did just that - without first releasing the 5000 or so RMB still sitting in there. I am not kidding. It took about a week and several visits to the bank with FAO in tow before she actually got her money.




and, ummm...monkey shine? An 80s horror movie? A cocktail? a euphemism for ‘da fei ji'?

[Raoul Duke]

A monkey shine is a bit like monkey business. American slang for fooling around and getting into trouble.

After a few years of wrestling banks in China, I'm prepared to believe any horror story I hear about them.

[Lotus Eater]

I have used my Xi'an BoC card all over the country - Tibet, Xinjiang, Beijing, Guizhou, Inner Mongolia. Never had any problems. This university will give me a Bank of Communications card (soon ....). Not certain if it will be as flexible, but it is what is used internally within the university to pay for meals, library loans etc etc.

[con's fly is open]

You know, monkey shines: shenanigans, highjinx or is it highjinks?), tomcatting, misadventures.

[Newbs]

It seems to me that monkey shines also means double posts.