Expat and tourist guide for local banking

How do you get cash in the Philippines without ATM fees? My experience.

Generally, most ATMs in the Philippines charge around 250 PHP as a provision for cash withdrawal, many also have 10,000 PHP max withdrawal. Because the Philippines is a country where cash is needed it can result in quite high fees for getting money. Below, I will describe ways I have found to avoid high fees (some methods still have some fees but are way lower than those presented above). Additionally, when writing these words from Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago

DeepPocket a new interesting digital wallet in Thailand (with QR PromptPay payments)

Yesterday I was reading the news and noticed a new name – DeepPocket. Around that name, I’ve found that service is available for foreigners and Thai nationals. After seeing that I’ve look on the internet and haven’t found any resources in English. I am happy to provide more information about the service, probably as a first place in English internet. I’ve downloaded the app and passed KYC. It is actually the easiest digital wallet in Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago

You can pay by QR codes in Laos now, digital wallets for Tourist in Laos

Some time ago I saw news that there is a new e-wallet in Laos specially designed for foreigners to use local QR code payments. It got interesting because I know how big the problem is to use local QR code payments for foreigners in Thailand and Cambodia.  At that time I downloaded the app, but I had some problems and wasn’t able to register. A few days ago I decided to recheck it. The first Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago
jamjang

Thai QR payment for foreigners? – testing JamJang app

If you ever travelled to Thailand or read my previous articles (Foreigner’s Guide to Thai QR Code Payments with PromptPay / How to open a bank account in Thailand: a guide for expats and tourists), you know that cash is not a king here. I’ve got information from one of the readers of the blog working on a solution for foreigners to be able to pay by QR codes in Thailand. He was simply tired Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago

How to open a bank account in Vietnam: a guide for expats and tourists

Here we are again, I’ve just gone for a 10-day holiday to Vietnam, a little bit for sport and a little bit for this blog I thought, ok can I open a bank account here? After some research managed to do that. For me, it looks like Vietnamese banking is friendlier than in Thailand, from the second side I’ve noticed that many of the main banks don’t offer websites/apps in English. Below you can read Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago
manila

How to open a bank account in Philippines: a guide for expats and tourists

Why do you need a bank account in the Philippines? If you’re in the Philippines for a brief vacation, a local bank account may not be necessary. However, for long-term stays or if you’re planning to live and work here, a local bank account becomes indispensable. Not only does it save you from hefty international withdrawal fees, but it also facilitates smoother transactions such as paying bills, receiving your salary, or even doing online shopping. Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago

Foreigner’s Guide to Thai QR Code Payments with PromptPay

In Thailand, Cash is the king, but Thai people started to love cashless payments. In opposite to Western countries cards never get that popular here (but their popularity still rises and credit card companies are trying to put a lot of money into the Thai market to be more visible and available for customers). Many Asian countries created QR code system payments that are available for everyone and are easy to use. In this article, Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago
wroclaw

How to open a bank account in Poland: a guide for expats and tourists

I am a Polish citizen, and for a few years, I live and travel abroad. I am especially interested in banking around the world, especially for expats. Below I will try to describe what the Polish banking system looks like and what are the best banks in Poland for foreigners. Why do you need a Polish bank account? If you live in Poland, you are going to need a local bank account for a few Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago
Amsterdam

How to open a bank account in the Netherlands: a guide for expats

When do I need a Dutch bank account? If you live in the Netherlands, you are going to need a local bank account for 2 reasons. First, most Dutch stores don’t accept normal cards (like Visa, and MasterCard), but they accept Maestro cards (sometimes also V-PAY). Additionally, a lot of places don’t accept cash payments, so a Dutch card is a must. Second, if you work for a Dutch employer, you are going to need Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago

What is iDEAL? A guide about Dutch online payments.

The iDEAL is a Dutch online payment system. It is the most popular online payment method in the Netherlands. Not every shop/service in the Netherlands allow to pay by credit card, but almost every service allows to pay by iDEAL. Quite often it is possible to pay for government services (like water or trash tax). Additionally ex. train NS subscription you can pay only this way. How to pay by iDEAL? The iDEAL is mostly Read more…

By Damian Sowa, ago