Bali Expat Forum - Bali Travel Forum

Hi,
A friend and previous guest of mine became enthused about property for sale in Bali, and came here with the intention to purchase. He converted his TC's to rupiahs and ( to make a long story short) the deal on the land went sour. He now has a lot of rupiahs and must return to the US because his tourist visa will soon expire. He will return to seek new property later this year, but he can't (as a foreigner) bank his money here and as I understand leave with more than 100juta ? in rupiah in his possession.
I would like to have opinions on what his alternatives might be other than getting raped on the conversion to $US.
Thanks,
Don

That's an interesting case study of trust versus loss of a small percentage of his initial 10G. The way i see it he's got a couple options:
1. Leave the money with someone who's got an RP account here, highly improbable as your friend probably doesn't know anyone here that he trusts enough to do that otherwise your post would not exist
2. Same as above except the person on which account he deposited the money then does a wire transfert of USD to his account, still a matter of trust as once the money is deposited the person may or may not do the transfert.
3. Find a reputable notary and deposit the money on his account since your friend does intend to eventually buy land. If the trust issue can be resolved, he could put it on a saving account and gather interest in the process.
4. Eat the exchange rate fee and go home with a small loss which could be named "fee for not doing proper homework before buying land in Bali".

i have done a bank transfer from bali to a foreign bank without having to have an account ..i just had to have valid ID... but that was a few years ago so maybe things have changed ..

and dong that way he will lose on the exchange unfortunately...=(

"reputable notary" - i know or at least i believe i know reputable notaries in bali, and i wouldn't trust any of them to hold more than my lunchbox for an afternoon..

i would suggest your friend eat the exchange rate (as per option 4).. unless we're talking about an amount in the 10's + 10's of thousands (e.g. $30,000 or more USD) it's not going to be a huge loss.. you could find an unauthorized money dealer and potentially get a better rate, but there are risks and it's unlikely you'll find one who can fund that type of transfer.. as per 'O's post it's all about trust.. if he knows he'll need IDR in the future he could just pack em up and in all likelihood he wouldn't have any issue getting them out in hand luggage but that's a bit of a logistical nightmare as he'll need to bring it all back at some point - most foreign banks won't accept IDR on deposit.. plus it has "arrest me for money laundering" written all over it..

all the best..

By unregistered money changers do you mean the ones with calculators that read 2+2=3?

Paying the conversion is hardly getting raped! It's part of the game your friend decided to play and if he or she (or both:)) is crafty they could make it up by getting a good deal later.

BaliLife - I notice your tone has changed lately. I remember you being so enthusiastic about the I of G - did I miss your coming down to earth adventure or are you going thru a "this place sux" stage?

I’ll go on record now with information I shared with Don via a PM earlier. That is to use a banjar based community bank. Unlike “commercial banks”, it’s not a problem for a foreigner to open a community bank account within a banjar...in IDR of course.

So, I will just sit back and wait for the flood of “oh my gods” to flow in from folks who have NO clue how banjar community banks operate. This should be fun!

Apart from the bulkiness of the cash you could just put it in your bag and take it with you?

He could also just try and open a bank account, depsite whatever the rules are or what people say you can or can not do.

I have had two Indonesian bank accounts, both were opened before I had my Kitas, with no questions and no problems whatsover.

The first was with BNI and my current bank is BII.

Apart from the bulkiness of the cash you could just put it in your bag and take it with you?

Read the string Jimbo!

The amount is in excess of the legal amount to be taken out of Indonesia! Then again, another huge potential problem...the arrival in the US with over 10K in currency...or as another poster put it...bells and whistles of money laundering! Then (and I can go on)...find a bank in the US which will even get to within 90% of the exchange rate to be found here for the IDR! The LAST thing this guy wants to do is bring that cash back to the US...especially in IDR. If he wants to take it home, (in cash), convert it here and take the hit. That point has already been made...more than twice!

Just a hint Jimbo, but you might find it less embarrassing to at least read the responses that have already been made before posting your own. The first response, from "O" was "spot on" and covered "all the bases" very well.

Mimpi, I expect your old rupiah currency accounts are waning, like mine? In other words, you've had them for several years (without being specific as to how long)? It is not easy, in fact, very difficult these days for a foreigner to open a new account in their name in a recognized bank.

I've heard it's not "impossible" so if you have current details...bank names, and even better, names of bank officers, the time is now to say who they are.

Jimbo , when I said you two should get a room , I hope you only paid for one night ; seems like the honeymoon is over -they go so quick really . I think hes mad knowone is falling over themselves thanking him for his prior post .

Thanks to all for your suggestions. The crux of the matter is in the amount of money concerned. The hit can be substantial. Unfortunately my friend was a bit premature in making his exchange, and had not considered all the snags he was about to encounter. It is especially nice when answers are civil, and those were certainly appreciated.
Don

Did read it Roy. Have you have been checked for currency going out? I have been in and out more times than I can remember and never even been asked. At the end of the day if none of the other solutions were acceptable then maybe you would just take it with you.

I came into Indonesia last year carrying $60,000 with no problem. Changed it a a bank and then banked the money at the same bank.

Jamie

Roy and I do not see eye to eye on many things and have huffed and puffed at each other several times over the last 3 years but thats life...not to be taken seriously. He is entitled to his opinion as am I.

I've heard it's not "impossible" so if you have current details...bank names, and even better, names of bank officers, the time is now to say who they are.

Roy I listed the banks above.

The newest account is with BII and was opened in Mataram, Lombok. I have no idea of any of the bank officers names. And it was opened about 3 years ago, at which time everyone was already saying you couldnt open a bank account without a KITAS. I just filled in the application form, they took a copy of my passport and gave me my ATM/Debit card there and then.

hey there dcc.. still love the i of the g's, but yeah have a clearer view of the realities now than i prob did before..

Jimbo wrote:

“I came into Indonesia last year carrying $60,000 with no problem.”

That was rather reckless on your part, wasn’t it Jimbo? In any event, your story is of no relevance to Don’s post where an American needs to return to the US with a large amount of cash. Suggesting that this can be done, with “no problem” is reckless advice, as in fact, that would be a big problem if that cash was discovered...and the likelihood of that cash being discovered (at the point of US entry) is almost a certainty in this day and age of airport security/scrutiny. If Don’s friend was caught with that amount on undeclared currency upon entering the US, he would face...A) complete forfeiture of all the funds, B) five years of complete IRS tax audits in the future, and C) possible criminal charges. As for me, I’d rather have an enema.

Jimbo, you might also consider how unwise it might be making a public announcement of what you might be carrying into Indonesia, (your point of arrival being fairly certain) on a public forum that bears your photograph. This advice of course has nothing to do with any possible government ramifications, but simply your own personal security.

Mimpi, I think you will find that even at BII, it is now very difficult, if not impossible, to open an account as a foreigner without a kitas or kitab. This would be especially true for an IDR account.