<p>Two weeks ago I helped my son make a down payment on his tuition at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium by wiring $150 to the bank account designated in his acceptance packet. I was shocked when the bank charged $45 to wire the money.....almost 30% of the amount wired.</p>
<p>Needless to say, we need to be smarter about things in the future. Does anyone here have experience with going to school in Europe (specifically Belgium) as to how to get their student organized financially? What are the ins and outs of getting an overseas checking account? Is there a way to deposit money here (maybe in a Belgium bank that has a USA branch?) that can be accessed easily over there? </p>
<p>I am utterly in the dark about the specifics and my son is busy working two jobs in Chicago (10 hours from home) this summer supporting himself and trying to save money for grad school expenses - so not only are we trying to do things from a great distance from his future school but also from a big distance here with disparate schedules. I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has done this - do you have advice to help us avoid pitfalls and ease the transition from USA to Belgium student?</p>
<p>The fee for wiring funds is indeed shocking.</p>
<p>I don't have experience with Belgian banks. When S went to Australia, he opened an account near his uni. He had to learn the bank code (Swift code) as well as his own account number, the street address of the bank, etc... I then went to my bank and asked for money to be transferred to his account, using the information above. Foreign banks may take a bit longer to process the paperwork involved in opening new accounts. I only made a couple of transfers while S was away for a semester, to reduce the amount I paid in fees (and they were not so high then).
Belgium is an extremely cosmopolitan country, so the banks should be able to handle funds tranfers easily; there should also be ATMs where one can draw out money from one's credit card account, so make sure that your son's credit account is kept topped up.</p>
<p>The $45 fee has probably nothing to do with the bank in Belgium; it is probably a fixed charge by the remitting bank. </p>
<p>Once your son will be abroad, the problem will vanish. One of the best solutions will be to arm your son with a debit card associated with your bank (or his) US bank account. The use of debit cards is extremely widespread in Belgium and finding an ATM for cash withdrawals is extremely easy. The debit cards should have smaller fees than the credit cards as banks might not impose the typical 3% or 4% for cash withdrawals and purchases. Check with your bank and especially check the fees for student accounts.</p>
<p>I don't think that it will be necessary to open a bank account in Belgium, but if you do you may check Fortis at <a href="http://www.fortis.com%5B/url%5D">http://www.fortis.com</a>. Unless I am mistaken, they have an association with the Belgian Postal Service that should offer the lowest fees for financial transactions. </p>
<p>BTW, did you know that KUL was founded in 1425 by Pope Martin V.<br>
K.U.Leuven has the double honor of being the oldest Catholic university in the world and the oldest university in the Low Countries. Of course, the founding of the university trails the start of commercial brewing in the city of Leuven by a few generations. The city's tax records dated 1366 mentions the existence of a local brewpub. That is the same date that adorns the Stella Artois beer. </p>
<p>
[quote]
The city of Leuven, capital of the province of Flemish-Brabant, is perhaps best known throughout the world for its magnificent architecture, its internationally renowned University and last but far from being least, its world famous beer.</p>
<p>Although Leuven suffered heavily under the two World Wars it is now a very modern city with a very rich past, which charms visitors throughout the world.</p>
<p>There’s plenty to keep a visitor busy for days in Leuven. It's architectural wonders, museums, city parks, art exhibitions, raving student parties, marketplaces, diversity of little shops, galleries, restaurants, pubs and bars bring the history of the city and her people to vibrant life.
<p>Xiggi - You are absolutely right....the $45 fee was what our bank charged to wire the funds. The fee to wire funds to a domestic bank are $14.98 and that is what the bank personnel told me the fee would be to wire funds to Belgium. However, when all the paperwork was done, I was hit with the $45 fee, and at that point I wasn't going to stop the transfer. </p>
<p>Thanks too for the information on banks, the university (I knew the founding date) and brewery founding date (I didn't know that little gem!) Apparently Belgium beer is world reknown. I just saw something recently about a Belgium Beer festival to be held in Chicago next month!</p>
<p>As mentioned above--Citibank is a pretty strong option. They have a big
presence in Europe and if you open an account here and in Belgium, you have the abiblity to transfer money quickly and cheaply.</p>
<p>We specifically opened a Citi online account. Although we do not have a retail CitiBank in our state, we did open an online account during one of their gift promotions (didn't get the gift because of a their definition of paying a bill-cheap bank) but their debit and credit cards are amazingly accepted at virtually all ATM's throughout the World. We thought he took enough cash and of course checkbook with him to establish local bank presence, but the clearing of a check takes more time than we originally thought. He could open an local bank account but the funds would be frozen until check cleared and he found a nice apartment that he need cash to hold. We couldn't send a check to Citi and have it cleared in time for his immediate cash needs, so I had my brother (NYC) deposit cash at a Citi in his building in my son's account. That afternoon, Son was able to use local ATM and withdraw local cash to establish local bank account and pay deposit on a nice apartment. This was only for Toronto. But he has found that Citi can work in Europe and China.</p>
<p>Thanks, Thisoldman - Do you know if Citibank charges a fee or percentage to change funds from US dollars to Canadian or Euros? Was your son able to take the funds deposited by his uncle out in Canadian equivalents in Toronto? I guess what I'm asking is....is the exchange from one currency to another automatic when funds are deposited in one country and withdrawn in another country?</p>
<p>Yes, the currency change is automatic. I loved being in Thailand, taking out money with my debit card and seeing my USA balance in Thai baht. However, this feature is not always available. When my D was on a Czech exchange, with her debit card in place, I wondered why she was overdrawing the account. Turned out none of the Czech ATMs would show her balance. Now had she chosen to keep better track of the money...or had her mom emphasized the importance of keeping a balance book...We used our local credit union authorized debit card for all our overseas travel. It used to be quite cheap, and the exchange rate was better, as it was the bank rate. In recent years, they have imposed a per transaction fee, so have emphasized to the kids that larger, more infrequent transactions are in their best interests. Check with various banks, as fees can vary for international transactions. Get an extra copy of the card for him to take, in case a machine eats a card. And have a credit card and some traveler's checks in case of emergency. My D and I have a reserve credit card, in both our names for the purposes of her travel only, so if stolen, could cancel the card without having problems with my accounts. </p>
<p>Those fees for wiring money make my blood boil, in this electronic age. Only once was I asked to wire money for an expense, and was able to talk them into using a credit card number instead. </p>
<p>My D was gone for a year, my son has been on semester long college exchanges in S America and Spain, and debit cards have been sufficient for all their trips.</p>
<p>The sad part is that the US Dollar is weak against nearly if not all currencies, Deficit spending by our Government and Public. The good part is that son's stipend in Canada is now worth 10% more than just 10 months ago, and increasing.</p>
<p>Since D will be overseas next year, we went to Bank of America to see what to do. Don't want those fees, either. They have sister banks where they can make ATM withdrawals for free, so we will keep her account here, and she will make and deposits and/or withdrawals via ATM. Check with your bank, and if they don't do this, find one that does.</p>