Paying Money In From Overseas
Q. Can I pay a foreign cheque into my account?
A. Yes but it must be payable to you and you need to sign the back of the cheque and send it to us with a paying in slip. Our address is:
Foreign ServicesPO BOX 200
Skelmersdale
WN8 6YA
Foreign cheques can also be paid in at the counters of any Co-operative Bank branch.
Please don't send foreign cheques to the usual address for sterling cheques (Northampton) or pay them in at the Post Office, as they can't be processed there.
There are two ways that we can process foreign cheques for credit to your account, negotiation with recourse and Collection.
Negotiation with recourse:
With this method, we pay the money into your account, and then wait for the other bank to send us the money. If the cheque is returned unpaid, we'll take the money back and charge you £10.00 for the cheque being returned. This is what we call ‘with recourse'. There may also be a loss on the exchange rate as the currency has to be bought back.
We can only send cheque for negotiation if they are issued in the same currency as the country that the cheque is drawn on, e.g. US dollars on a US bank account or Euros on a French bank. The only exception is that some Canadian banks issue cheques in US funds. These cheques can still be sent for negotiation as US funds.
This method takes around 5 working days for the funds to credit your account. We charge £4 for paying cheques up to the value of £100 into your account and £8 for cheques valued £100 - £2000.
We can negotiate any single cheque up to the value of £2000. Cheques in the same currency and drawn on the same country can be negotiated together up to a total value of £5000 and are charged at 0.25% of the sterling amount. We can only negotiate up to £5000 worth of cheques in any 28 day period.
Please note we reserve the right to send any cheque for collection, as we can only negotiate a cheque if your account is being operated fully within the terms and conditions.
Collection:
If your cheque is for more than £2000.00 then we will send this for collection. This means that we have to present the cheque back to the foreign bank it is drawn on and make payment to your account once the funds are received by us after the cheque is paid by the foreign bank.
This takes 6 - 8 weeks to get into your account and we charge 0.25% of the value of the cheque, maximum £60. The minimum charge is £15 for U.S. dollar cheques and £16 for cheques in any other currency. The issuing bank may also charge for cashing the cheque and remitting the funds. Please note this timescale is only a guideline as there may be delays from the foreign bank.
Any cheques not drawn in the currency of the country the cheque is drawn in, for example, pounds sterling drawn in Germany, must also be sent for collection regardless of the amount. This also applies to foreign cheques payable to persons under the age of 18.
Q. What do I need to know if an overseas bank will be sending money to my Co-operative Bank account?
A. When money is being sent electronically from another country to credit your account, the sending bank will need the following information:
- our SWIFT/BIC code - CPBKGB22
- your IBAN (International Bank Account Number) number
- your full name and address
The rate of exchange will be based on our 'buy' rate the day the money is received. This will be based on current market rates and will be comparable to those used by other banks and building societies within the UK.
We charge £6.00 for money received from overseas, if the remitter has said that you should pay our charges. However, we will not make a charge if the value received is less than £100.
Q. What is an IBAN?
A. IBANs (International Bank Account Numbers) were introduced to standardise the identification of bank accounts. Your IBAN will include your sort code and account number.
Q. How do I know what my IBAN is?
A. IBANs are displayed on all statements, as well as your online statements and recent items.
