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Posts: 99

Governor

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Q: If there is a crisis can the Chinese government take bank accounts away from foreigners

I am worried if there is some kind of crisis can the Chinese government take away our bank accounts and money?

11 years 40 weeks ago in  Money & Banking - China

 
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Posts: 3025

Emperor

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You are raising a concern of many in China today.  It is impossible to give you a valid and sound answer,  in many ways Chinese are somewhat unpredictable.  

 

Yet, we can "assume" a few things, that we do know to be true : 

1.- when you make the rules, you enforce them, and on top control the Court system, you can do anything your little heart desires.

2.- but must also keep in mind that "foreigners" can retaliate and confiscate Chinese bank accounts abroad, that may help cooler heads to prevail.  Many regular Chinese individuals and also government officials do have accounts in countries abroad.  Wonder why ?.

3.- What "events" could trigger this reaction ?  Of course, one that comes to mind right away is a war.  Another one could be illegal money, and a third could be a claim that you owe money to China., among other possibilities.

 

Your question was one of my specific concerns to be resolved prior to moving to China a few years back.  I can, in general terms, give you a brief summary in how I achieved piece of mind and minimized my exposure.

I set up a main account back home.  Basically it is an investment account, where some funds are liquid playing the money market.  Then I set up an account in China, and later and last set up another in HKG.  From the main account back home, I do wire transfers to China as needed, mostly at $ 10,000 US dollars level, and I make about 2 per year.  That gives me enough to cover living expenses here.  When my local account hits 5,000 Rmb level, I ask for another wire transfer.   If my local account shows a balance in excess of 30K yuan, I send the excess to HKG for a few months.

In HKG I keep enough funds playing the money market so in case I am to leave China in a hurry, I will have access to funds to allow me to continue travel safely back home without getting stranded, considering that you are only allowed to exit Chin with 6,000 Rmb cash or negotiable securities with you.  Of course, there are also a couple of credit cards for emergency purposes too.

It ain't foolproof, but to me it is a manageable and acceptable risk, and does give me peace of mind.  

 

subhash.sah:

I was wondering about that 6000 RMB only rule. What if you have a lot saved. For instance let's say I have 60,000 RMB in my account here and I am leaving China. How can i transfer or take all my money with me when I leave?

11 years 40 weeks ago
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HappyExPat:

Open an account in Hong Kong and keep most of your money there, inside China keep absolute minimum plus emergencies if it worries you.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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subhash.sah:

My concern is actually how I can get a considerable sum out of China when I leave. Since I cannot carry more than 6000 RMB equivalent, what are the methods for me to take my savings( e.g. 60,000 RMB)?   

11 years 40 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
Posts: 2409

Emperor

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Any country can do the same thing.  In the US it is called "Nationalization" where all foreign held assets are seized by the government in case of an emergency.  Dealing with this remote possibility is part of the reality of an expat lifestyle.

 

As Happy says, it is best to diversify your liquid assets as much as possible.  But just keep in the back of your mind, that your bank accounts aren't the only thing that can be seized.  Any country has the right to seize ALL assets of foreigners (or a specific individual or foreigners from a specific country) in extreme situations.

 

However, these situations are very rare and have only been exercised in a few instances that I am aware of.  So I wouldn't worry too much about it.

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1008

Shifu

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What Happy says is really true. I keep most of my funds in my HSBS HK account, but also keep enough in my Chinese account that are joint accounts with my Chinese wife. As for worrying if they can take away your account we have to look at a couple of factors.

 

1.) Let's say for example, China goes to war and the money is needed to support the war, although China's government seems to control everything, it is absolutely not true. It is an ongoing argument among many Chinese and Officials. Who runs China, who is responsible for the incredible price increases in housing and real estate, some say the government others like myself think the extremely rich and the banking system.

 

2.) Citic, Citi, HSBS, Bank of China, ICBC, Merchants, would be impossible for the government to access this money, all these banks are either American, British, HK, or Banks large enough to have many branches around the world, if the government decided it would like to take foreign money, it would be the doom of it's economy globally, The UN could freeze its assets all over the world including the big hitters, HK, Macau, Singapore, US, Canada, England, Germany, Aust. and so on.

 

3.) Now all that being said, this all depends on what you mean by taking foreigners money. Do you mean, illegalities? Working on an improper visa, illegal trading, embezzlement, corruption and so on. In these cases, of course they have every right to freeze your account and fine you, imprison you and deport you.

 

It is a common conception to think that if I'm here illegally, then I should be able to keep my money. Not true, if you are working on L, X, or F(not an intern), then you are not paying correct taxes, taking money from people who do not know you are illegal, or have misled people in thinking you are qualified in any field you are working.

 

I hope that helps you 

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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Governor

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I dont understand why you would want a chinese bank account.

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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