local bank deducts $6

Hi Minnie! But you are in the US. Your banks probably have different policies there. Our banks here are like crocs.

Hey Cutie, I looked up the different policies and it looks like no matter what bank you use in the Philippines you will be charged 5.00 min and then the bank has the right to have their own surcharge. This is because the money amounts have to be changed from American money to the type of money in your country (sorry I don't know what it is called). There is an exchange rate that all countries charge, some have a lower amount while others are pretty high. My sister had the same problem when she was in Japan, talk about fees, they have a fee for everything you do, no matter how small. It basically comes down to economic issues that countries work out with each other. From what I was able to find out is that when you want to send money to someone in the Philippines it is a pain in the back side because of all the rules on how much can be sent and that each bank has the right to make what ever charge they want for the transfer. Sorry I could not be more helpful. Quick question, what is the money in your country called? In everything I looked at it just showed a 'P' before the amount.

It's pesos. Everytime I withdraw money from my PayPal account using Banco de Oro (Philippine bank), the bank deducts P200 apart from the P50 deducted by PayPal. It's really like that.

Hello Some. Yes, I will ask another branch about it. These banks have a lot of hidden charges, it's so frustrating.

I've come across hidden charges here before and they've waived the fee the first time because I was not aware of the charges. Maybe they'll do that for you as well.

I will try to work on this because $6 is too high for me.

Is the RCBC card a DEBIT/Visa Electron/Mastercard account? Can you verify your PayPal with it? I'll check your post. Hehe.

Well, you didn't state in your post whether the RCBC account is like Unionbank EON which can be used to verify your account. Unionbank EON has so far been the most reliable Debit Card/Visa Electron Card that has been able to truly verify a PayPal account. I once tried SmartMoney, but SmartMoney would lock its own account. :( I'm going to try BPI's My e-Prepaid and PS Bank's MasterCard in the future, too. :) BTW, how did you verify your PayPal if RCBC did not have that capacity?

I would rather choose RCBC without any annual charges even maintaining balance too. But if you used the atm itself to other transaction like sending money to the atm accct. They charged 10.00 for the sender, more cheaper than any transferring money agent.

Thanks. Yes, I am thinking of transferring to another bank.

Really? Is that possible? So where do we withdraw the money in that case?

Few offers might provide some debit cards or something! Again, make sure you read fine print carefully!

Hi there erjnsimon, BPI has a no-maintaining bank account, the Easy Saver account. The ATM card is exactly like the regular savings bank account. Only, there is a Php 5.00 fee for withdrawals and Php 2.00 fee for balance inquiry. But all the perks are the same. You can do mobile and online banking with a BPI Easy Saver, no-maintaining balance account. I pay my friends and send money all via BPI. :P I used to be a BDO user, and then I discovered BPI. That's why I have three accounts there. xD

What? BPI charges us for balance inquiry and withdrawal? I didn't know that.

I think charges should be based on the amount, at least.

Oh wow! Good to know that RCBC is another option, aside from Unionbank EON! :) Thanks for sharing, Lyn. :)

Yes it is a debit card. It does have a Php 350 yearly charge. I haven't updated mine, so I'm not sure if that has increased. Other banks: Diba once you've verified your account using either a credit or a debit card, you can already add more bank accounts? Or is the process different lately?

Unionbank eon i think is a debit card that has yearly charges also it is used when you don't have credit card. Using other bank needs credit card verification from papal.

Hi Hatley, Well, PayPal is a US-based entity. To transfer money across countries and borders also involves money: there are services rendered, people to be paid a salary, and all that. So, the fees are but fitting. PayPal is among the cheapest in options, actually. Though, the bank that Cutie chose actually charges the highest. We've suggested two banks that can give her the best value for her PayPal withdrawal, and I believe that will solve her problem. :)

Local transferring of funds or bank to bank in the country has no charge I guess provided the receiver and the sender use the same bank. But we're talking about money transferred to our local bank from Paypal. The bank charges $6 for this.

It's not even $4 because Paypal also has its own fee. What reaches us is less than $4 and we've worked so hard for that. These banks are so hungry for money.

Actually, those are just normal fees that SOME local Philippine banks charge PayPal withdrawals. There is only one Philippine account that does not impose charges, though their exchange rates are slightly lower. This is not an error, an issue or something worth disputing at all!

But Cutie18f, you can try and verify with PayPal's twitter, as VidhyaPrakash has suggested. Though I bet they'd tell you that the bank fees are at the discretion of the local banks, it's still worth a shot to know, without a doubt, that these are the things we PayPal users need to deal with, when using PayPal.

I think Paypal has nothing to do with the BPI bank charges since they have their own charges which is 50.00 in our own currency.

Sorry, my mistake.. Thank you for correcting me.

Hey Signupnow! :) Please let us know how the RCBC withdrawal went and how much was deducted from you. Thanks! :D