Opening a bank account in mainland China

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  1. #1

    Opening a bank account in mainland China

    Has anyone opened a bank account in mainland China? What I need and which bank is best?

    I have full HKID (***) and "Return Home" Permit.
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  2. #2

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    Quote Originally Posted by nucleus888:
    What I need and which bank is best?


    Posted via Mobile Device
    you need money to deposit.
    the best bank i guess is one that doesnt go bankrupt.

  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by nucleus888:
    Has anyone opened a bank account in mainland China? What I need and which bank is best?

    I have full HKID (***) and "Return Home" Permit.
    Posted via Mobile Device
    HKID, prove of residence (in HK) and some money (any currency).
    I am with HSBC and it is quite ok, except that they also have to follow the sometimes crazy mainland rules that keep always changing.

    You can with HSBC change 20k RMB per day in HK and wire them to your account in China (Max 80k per day to wire). This money will be kept in a special account and can be wired back at any time (That is the current rule).
    Last edited by hktraveller; 16-03-2010 at 11:16 AM.

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    My first bank account in the mainland was with China Construction Bank. Remitting money was time-consuming, but always enjoyable as there was no internet interface but a form-filling, sit-down session with one of their ever-charming office staff. Eventually I got the process down to under 30 minutes. I could never fault the staff for their courtesy and helpfulness, which made it a pleasure to go in and see them every month.

    On moving to Guangzhou I foolishly opened an account with Guangzhou Commercial Bank... Least said about that the better.

    To open a basic, local bank account in the mainland you require a proof of address, a proof or identity and some money. Depending on the bank and the account, the precise requirements can be a bit flexible. For example, some will require an address in mainland China, however if you haven't got an address in the mainland, then they may accept your friend's address (this was the case with China Construction Bank, where nothing in their terms said explicitly that it had to be the address of the account holder for which proof was provided).

    For remitting money from a local bank to an overseas bank, more paperwork is required, proving more convincingly who you are and where your money came from. The level of proof required increases once you try to remit USD5,000 or above (including proof that tax has been paid on the money, where appropriate).

    Apart from China Construction Bank, I have also heard good things about Bank of China and China Merchants Bank.

    HSBC is an increasingly viable option, but so far has relatively few branches in the mainland. Mainland China is still considered to be an emerging market for HSBC, and the bank's presence is limited to major cities.