Have you been working in China? Whether working as a teacher, copywriter or in some other business capacity, you’ll probably need to move some of your earnings home from time to time.
Firstly, let’s establish that moving Yuan (Renminbi) out of China is not as straightforward as transferring money from other countries. The Chinese Government imposes controls and processes for moving money from Chinese bank accounts to overseas accounts.
Secondly, think twice before travelling with Renminbi cash amounts. You can leave China with 20,000 Yuan in cash. There is a dollar limit of $5,000. In addition, check your destination country’s government website to learn about arrival limitations. For example, a UK citizen can return home carrying up to £10,000 in cash. If they plan on travelling with more, they must apply online for a permit within three days of travelling.
The most legitimate transfer method, and possibly the one with the lowest fees and risk is through bank transfer.
The protocol that follows must be strictly adhered to:
- Ask your employer to print out the pay slips that coordinate with the amount you wish to transfer. This is key, as is ensuring that the pay slip contains a tax column conveying that the amount has been taxed correctly
- Have the payslips stamped by your employer, i.e., so that they are official. Red stamps speak fathoms in China.
- Take your original copy of your work contract, i.e., the red-stamped version. Ask your employer for their Tax Registration Number. 税务登记号 – Circa 18 digits.
- Get your recipient (home country) bank account’s IBAN (International bank account number) and BIC (Branch Identifier Code). The sender can suffice with your bank’s head office for the BIC.
- Passport! As with almost anything official in China, as a foreigner, we’ll need our passports.
Top tips:
- Don’t leave it too long between transfers, as you have to demonstrate proof of pay and the corresponding tax in order to receive authorisation
- Therefore, if you leave it for several years, your chances of finding or requesting valid payslips that convey the relevant code and tax decrease. There are some other less-reliable ways to send money outside of China. These feature in a complementary post.
Stating the obvious: this entire process is to prove legitimately-earned and correctly-taxed funds - Allow up to 3 hours at your bank to process your transfer. Also, it is possible there may be missing tax information or non-coordinating dates on your payslip, thus requiring you to query your employer and request new slips. Therefore, plan this all comfortably in advance of your return flight.
Once you’ve completed the aforementioned steps, allow up to four days for the funds to transfer. However, it may be faster. You should receive a text from your bank when your funds leave China.
Keep up the good work! Xin ku le!
