Money Transfer to US

[DAN02006 0]

Hi ! I know there are posts related to this topic. I want to know if one carrys more than $10,000 in currency and Travellers Checks, what are the implications? I understand one has to declare it to customs. Has anyone gone through this? Is it a routine form or an ordeal? request you to share your experiences..please.

thanks

[Jackie&Yosdani 0]

Do you really have to declare?

I've never had a problem.. but $10,000 is alot.

[Kez/JWolf 6]

I transfered more than that through a bank..... you still get checked for anti money laundering so it takes a few days to clear.... I would not try and bring in that amount of money in travelers checks you would have difficulties chashing them.... any bank would be looking for evidence of where the money came from...

Kez

[*julez* 124]

Hi ! I know there are posts related to this topic. I want to know if one carrys more than $10,000 in currency and Travellers Checks, what are the implications? I understand one has to declare it to customs. Has anyone gone through this? Is it a routine form or an ordeal? request you to share your experiences..please.

thanks

If you bring in more than $10,000 in currency to the US you will need to declare the funds and a Currency Transaction Report (CTR) will be completed. This is merely to create a "paper trail" for the money. There are no tax implications. It only takes a few minutes to complete the form. They will gather information that includes your name, address, date of birth and occupation. If you choose to bring in that much money, you really need to declare it because if ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) discovers the funds were not declared, they can and will seize the money.

**Please note I work as an Antimoney Laundering specialist and have attended many lectures presented by ICE. They told us just this March that non-declared funds are being taken very seriously and they are enfiorcing the right to seize these undeclared monies.**

[*julez* 124]

I transfered more than that through a bank..... you still get checked for anti money laundering so it takes a few days to clear.... I would not try and bring in that amount of money in travelers checks you would have difficulties chashing them.... any bank would be looking for evidence of where the money came from...

Kez

Banks typically don't ask for evidence of where the funds came from, however, they might ask the source of funds. Even still, it should interfere with being able to deposit the funds. They will definitely ask you to complete a CTR if the cash totals greater than $10,000.

Not sure why anyone would have trouble cashing travelers cheques. They are legal tender.

[Kez/JWolf 6]

If a customer walked into the bank I work in and wanted to deposit $10,000 in Travelers check we would be starting a investigation as to where the money came from this would not stop them from depositing the money but it would raise red flags to the teller....

Kez

[*julez* 124]

If a customer walked into the bank I work in and wanted to deposit $10,000 in Travelers check we would be starting a investigation as to where the money came from this would not stop them from depositing the money but it would raise red flags to the teller....

Kez

I agree that it is a potential red flag, but if the person is a recent immigrant, for example, that seems to me to be a reasonable explanation for having that amount of Travelers Cheques, and therfore I would not file a Suspicious Activity Report. Its a safe way to travel with large amounts of money. However, if the customer was reluctant to answer questions about the funds, or reduced the amount of the deposit to ensure a CTR was not filed then that's a different story.

[homesick_american 1]

Transporting money using traveller's checks seems to be an expensive and clunky way to do it. I'd do a wire transfer if I were you; if you have a brokerage account in the USA they can usually give you a very good exchange rate. Ours is going to; I don't trust those online companies.