Sending Money to Philippines. Only expats can do so

Excuse me Haroun, but I fail to understand WHY you as a national of Tunis cannot send (legally obtained) funds to anyone else anywhere in the world? If a foreigner in Tunis can do so then how can it be possible that a citizen can't? Can you explain that for me please?

Brazil has the most complex and bureaucratic banking system and the strictest financial laws in the civilized world, yet as difficult and time consuming process as it may be foreigners and citizens alike are permitted to transfer funds offshore provided they give logical reasons for the need and prove the funds are licit.

I'm sorry but I really have to ask the question... were the funds you are talking about gained by legal means? Have you declared them as income and paid taxes on them? Is the transfer of an amount above a limit established by the government? In today's world NOBODY just asks for somebody else, especially somebody they don't know, to transfer funds for them. The world we live in today is one where money laundering and drug deals are all too common and the penalties for them are severe.

I would really like a logical reply. If you are paying a debt, buying something that is legal to own, how can it be that any law prevents you from making legal transfers of funds or payments internationally? Please explain.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Send the money to a Nigerian price and he can get some American to use his credit card for you.  That is, assuming Bill Gates sends everyone enough M&Ms to keep Starbucks from joining the army.

I live in Iceland and anyone with money in Icelandic krona can't xfer without proof of a very good reason. If you go to the bank and want to withdraw your own money in euros, you are only allowed to do it if you show a plane ticket to a eurozone (in the near future), or a bill for something that must be paid in euros.

first of all thnx for your answer mr Williams
in fact here in Tunisia, the law allow you to send money only to a close relative living out of the country (a son or a daugther for ex) and u have to bring a justification also why u send him money (for study for ex or for treatmement...) and of cours they dont allow u to send money to just a freind in another country..
it's very complcated here.. we dont even have international credit cards that allow u to buy things from internet (from a site in france for ex)
of course my money are leagal.. it's just my salary Im taking from the governoment.. and I want to transfer a small amount to a freind in phil... but Im simply not allowed to do so.. it's just the rules here.. so bad to say thats very far away from the civilized world of our days..
any way thanx for ur answer again
best regards

wjwoodward wrote:

Excuse me Haroun, but I fail to understand WHY you as a national of Tunis cannot send (legally obtained) funds to anyone else anywhere in the world? If a foreigner in Tunis can do so then how can it be possible that a citizen can't? Can you explain that for me please?

Brazil has the most complex and bureaucratic banking system and the strictest financial laws in the civilized world, yet as difficult and time consuming process as it may be foreigners and citizens alike are permitted to transfer funds offshore provided they give logical reasons for the need and prove the funds are licit.

I'm sorry but I really have to ask the question... were the funds you are talking about gained by legal means? Have you declared them as income and paid taxes on them? Is the transfer of an amount above a limit established by the government? In today's world NOBODY just asks for somebody else, especially somebody they don't know, to transfer funds for them. The world we live in today is one where money laundering and drug deals are all too common and the penalties for them are severe.

I would really like a logical reply. If you are paying a debt, buying something that is legal to own, how can it be that any law prevents you from making legal transfers of funds or payments internationally? Please explain.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Thnx for ur answer ECS
actually I went to the bank and I asked them if I can transfer money out to a freind out of the country and they told that there is no way to send money out except to a realtive..
to buy something in euro is may be possible but for now I just want to finde a way to send money for this freind
thnx again for ur answer

ECS wrote:

I live in Iceland and anyone with money in Icelandic krona can't xfer without proof of a very good reason. If you go to the bank and want to withdraw your own money in euros, you are only allowed to do it if you show a plane ticket to a eurozone (in the near future), or a bill for something that must be paid in euros.

Mr William;
I forget to tel u that foreigners here are allowed to send money out of Tunisia.. thats why Im looking for an expat living here who can do the transfer in his name
thnx again

wjwoodward wrote:

Excuse me Haroun, but I fail to understand WHY you as a national of Tunis cannot send (legally obtained) funds to anyone else anywhere in the world? If a foreigner in Tunis can do so then how can it be possible that a citizen can't? Can you explain that for me please?

Brazil has the most complex and bureaucratic banking system and the strictest financial laws in the civilized world, yet as difficult and time consuming process as it may be foreigners and citizens alike are permitted to transfer funds offshore provided they give logical reasons for the need and prove the funds are licit.

I'm sorry but I really have to ask the question... were the funds you are talking about gained by legal means? Have you declared them as income and paid taxes on them? Is the transfer of an amount above a limit established by the government? In today's world NOBODY just asks for somebody else, especially somebody they don't know, to transfer funds for them. The world we live in today is one where money laundering and drug deals are all too common and the penalties for them are severe.

I would really like a logical reply. If you are paying a debt, buying something that is legal to own, how can it be that any law prevents you from making legal transfers of funds or payments internationally? Please explain.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

To answer your PM question, I'm basically accusing you of some type of scam.  When someone's very first post is a request to launder money, it makes people wonder.  That's why Billy Canuck asked his questions.

ECS wrote:

I live in Iceland and anyone with money in Icelandic krona can't xfer without proof of a very good reason. If you go to the bank and want to withdraw your own money in euros, you are only allowed to do it if you show a plane ticket to a eurozone (in the near future), or a bill for something that must be paid in euros.

That's weird.  I wouldn't expect Iceland to be so strict.

ever since the crash in 2008 there have been currency controls to keep people from taking their investments out of the country and causing the krona to crash again. It's the world's smallest currency in circulation.

there are a lot more rules- my Icelandic company works only in Norway so all the money we earn is Norwegian kronur, but we cannot keep it in NOK in a Norwegian bank. It must be brought into Iceland and kept in Icelandic currency.

We are able to buy things internationally though- it's no problem to buy on Amazon or pay for hotels or flight tickets in other currencies and our credit cards work fine. So, we are better off than Tunisia it sounds. My point in telling this story was to show that there are other countries that don't allow free and simple movement of currency outwards, despite wjwoodward's skepticism.

I stand by my first comments. Currency controls have existed since long before the sub-prime crisis in the USA and it's fallout and long before the European credit crisis was ever dreamed of. For this very reason most countries have stopped producing banknotes larger than the national equivalent of $100 long ago. It's an effort to stop money laundering, drug trafficking and financial frauds. I'm hardly convinced by the answers given to this point. I do not believe that any nation no matter how bad the economic situation would make it impossible for citizens to make legal transactions through recognized banks. Certainly they have every right to require justification for the necessity of transfers. I can only assume that for some reason there is a reluctance to provide adequate justification and documentation for the transaction. Since when would any country prohibit sending (reasonable) amounts of money to a friend for any purpose????? What are we talking about here, something in excess of USD $10,000. If that's the case you're going to have to come up with a very convincing reason for that kind of transfer in any country.

I don't see what the problem is if it is a legitimate transaction of some kind. Prove the source of the funds, where and to whom they are being sent and substantial proof of why the funds are being sent. Come on... nobody is so gulible as to believe that in your very first forum post you'd be asking for a total stranger to transfer funds is something strictly on the up and up. You can't tell me that banks and Western Union or Wells Fargo don't do a roaring business in your country...... give me a break.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

that thread is closed for analysis - I've got a lot of contacts in Tunisia and I'll quickly find out whether this is a scam or not

(note this thread might disappear without notice )

Thread moved to the Tunisia forum, and reopened after investigation

and what did u finde after investigation mr julien???????
Im asking for help and u arz accusing me of scam.... thats very .....

Julien wrote:

Thread moved to the Tunisia forum, and reopened after investigation

Who talked  about Scam ?

Im asking for help and u arz accusing me of scam.... thats very .....

We just temporarily closed the topic, and read it with attention. Then, after what we call "an analysis" , we reopened the thread. That's it ! If you don't mind, I will remove the last messages here (starting msg 12 to msg 16) which are off topic

[moderated: free ads is not allowed]

Tunisia has a non convertible currency so Haroun is correct as he is not able to send money out of Tunisia.   The credit cards issued by the bank are marked that they can only be used in Tunisia.   I feel really bad as folks sort of jumped to conclusions on this guy.   Certain entities and individuals can open convertible accounts but it is heavily regulated.   Tunisians cannot even send $100 out of the country via Western Union.  When traveling they can get a limited amount per year converted into foreign currency but I imagine that is not easy to do.   We have a convertible account and one time we were traveling and took out some Euro.  I was shocked that the teller was asking to document our reason for doing so.

good faith is always presumed, but "CHECKING" does not exclude confidence either. unfortunately i am simply tunisian woman who would have been very happy to help you..

I just saw this thread and I am sorry to say but people need to stop acting as if they know everything. It is extremely rude of someone who thinks he is smarter than everybody else to start accusing people of running a scam without even having basic knowledge of the facts.

It is true that Tunisians cannot send money out of the country except to close relatives. I am an expat living in Tunisia and even as a foreigner it is difficult to transfer Tunisian Dinars through western union. I can only send foreign currency. If I want to send Tunisian Dinars I have to provide documentary evidence showing where I got those, like bank withdrawal slips.

SO people stop trying to be a smartass and know the facts before accusing some innocent bloke.

To further explain.

As everybody well aware, third world country aim to save reserve of international currency mainly Dollars and Euro's, therefore they are restrictions exporting currency outside of these countries.

The same counts in Tunisia, every Tunisian citizen has the right in a defined amount of money he can have in foreign currency when travelling. Basically if you are not travelling you can't obtain foreign currency in a legal manner, only through the black market.

Wiring money to abroad even more difficult, since Tunisian got no international credit cards such Master, Visa, AE etc ….

Harroun, I guess you wanted to do a charity by sending money to your friend in Philippine. Very good of you. God bless you man.

Thanks,
Makrem

Haroun, i was searchiing something about your country just now.. and i never expected to see you here.. lol i mean to see your posts here. 

and hey! i just want you guys to know that I am the filipina friend Haroun is talking about, and yes Haroun is just too nice that he's trying to help someone here.. and i swear He's not doing any scam or gumbling.

piece! and Thanks!

I also am an ex pat with residency here in Tunisia and can also confirm that it is really difficult for nationals to send or take money out of account.We have to keep two accounts,one a sterling one that allows us to do this.

How can we send money outside Tunisia nobody know a trick or something like this ?

And i need to know in the country if i want to send money to an friend what sistem works like western union

And what documents needs the receiver to pick up the money

Someone told me that poste tunise is the best !

James wrote:

I stand by my first comments. Currency controls have existed since long before the sub-prime crisis in the USA and it's fallout and long before the European credit crisis was ever dreamed of. For this very reason most countries have stopped producing banknotes larger than the national equivalent of $100 long ago. It's an effort to stop money laundering, drug trafficking and financial frauds. I'm hardly convinced by the answers given to this point. I do not believe that any nation no matter how bad the economic situation would make it impossible for citizens to make legal transactions through recognized banks. Certainly they have every right to require justification for the necessity of transfers. I can only assume that for some reason there is a reluctance to provide adequate justification and documentation for the transaction. Since when would any country prohibit sending (reasonable) amounts of money to a friend for any purpose????? What are we talking about here, something in excess of USD $10,000. If that's the case you're going to have to come up with a very convincing reason for that kind of transfer in any country.

I don't see what the problem is if it is a legitimate transaction of some kind. Prove the source of the funds, where and to whom they are being sent and substantial proof of why the funds are being sent. Come on... nobody is so gulible as to believe that in your very first forum post you'd be asking for a total stranger to transfer funds is something strictly on the up and up. You can't tell me that banks and Western Union or Wells Fargo don't do a roaring business in your country...... give me a break.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

I'm sorry James, but you are quite wrong. I don't live in Tunisia, but I am moving to Morocco shortly and have researched this. Both the Moroccan dirham and the Tunisian dinar are non-convertible currencies. I have discovered that I shall be paid in dirhams and as a foreigner, I need an authorisation from the Finance Ministry in Rabat to send money out of the country. Even so, I can only send 4000 Euros a year to Sweden. I hope to have netted far more than this after my time in Morocco! There is no way round this. I shall have to set up a facility to send this sum out of Morocco for several years. WU is a no-no in Morocco and, I assume, in Tunisia too.

This has implications for heirs outside of both countries. Firstly, in Morocco, a man who has (allegedly) become a Muslim to marry a Moroccan woman may not leave his money or property to Christians or Jews, thus pre-existing (non-Muslim) children are excluded from any money at all that is in Morocco. I am informed that this is the same in Tunisia. Secondly, someone who has made a considerable investment in Morocco, if he or she dies, the heirs can only recoup 4000 Euros a year of the inheritance to be taken out of the country. I assume that similar laws exist in Tunisia.

Thus your hypothesis is incorrect as to the motives of the OP. However, I do think that any foreigner would have similar problems to those he is experiencing and the effort to help him would be far too great. I think he is stuck.

The Tunisian Dinar is a closed currency meaning that you cannot send it out of the country.  There is no facility for transfer abroad from WU or any other sources!!!  You can only transfer if you have a foreign exchange account which is what most foreigners here have!!  This is how we transfer money out of the country and only by transfer from Tunisian account to Foreign account

Hey guys,

I also couldn't beieve that it's impossible to tranfer money from Tunisia outside the country, but apparently it's extremely hard. So could you please tell me, what is the way to do it ? How can I transfer money from a tunisisan bank account to Europe ?

Cheers !

Hey,

Thank you for your quick response. So, my girlfiend who is tunisian is doing her internship in Germany. Her visa expires in the middle of November and she is doing her best to extend her stay here. One of the way to do this is to sign up for a german course and to put forward a proof of secure livelihood, which can be a blocked account with particular amount of money. The thing is that she has this money on her tunisian account in Tunisia and she would like to transfer it to Germany to be able to create this blocked account in a german bank. Thanks in advance for all information

Cheers !