Inheritance Cheque (U.S. Dollar > Euro)

PrettyBoy

Today I received an inheritance cheque from a relative in America. The cheque is in U.S. Dollars so, considering how weak the Dollar is against the Euro at the moment, would it make more sense for me to get the Dollars in cash until the exchange rate improves?

If so, how would I go about doing this in the bank (AIB)?

jeckle

You won’t be able to cash a US$ cheque for US$ cash. I’m assuming that it’s for larger amount. First of all you bank would probably require you to lodge the cheque to your account until it was cleared. The procedure is that the $US amount has to be converted to €uro. If you wanted $US you would then have to convert the €uro back to $US. The bank have a different buying rate & selling rate plus administration/transaction fees on both ends, so you would never end up with the exact $US in your hand as the cheque amount.

So, you have the option of waiting for a while to see how the exchange rate is going & lodge it into your bank account on a good day, or to open a $US account in your bank.

You mention that you currently bank with AIB – you have the option of opening a Currency Deposit Account in $US with them or a Currency Current Account in $US.

Depending on how quickly you would need access to the actual funds would be the deciding factor on which one you should open. Just be very aware that both accounts would attract higher charges & transaction fees & the investment account is more of a long-term option.

So, if the cheque isn’t for a sizeable amount you might just want to convert it to €uro as a regular lodgement to your savings or current account.

AIB have a dedicated customer service unit for these types of accounts. The phone number is 01- 6115210. Alternatively you could contact the Customer Relations Officer in your branch, either of who could probably advise you of the charges & fees.

Shop around if you decide to open a $US account.

Toots

If you are holding on to the cheque to see how things pan out with the dollar, just be aware that cheques are only valid for 6 months, so don't hold it for too long.

PrettyBoy

Thanks guys. Think I'm just going to lodge it to my account. It's the easiest thing to do. Not much point in speculating about exchange rates, plus I don't want to be hanging on to the cheque either.

Jet Black

The dollar is at the lowest its been at in a year now. Last november the buy rate was about 1.31 now I think its about 1.50.

So say the cheque is for 10k
@1.31 is roughly €7633
@1.50 is roughly €6666
So the difference is nearly 1k. Will the rate improve?? Well its very hard to tell.
Because its a cheque you could only wait 6 months and of course it can get a lot worse.

100gSoma

PrettyBoy wrote: »

would it make more sense for me to get the Dollars in cash until the exchange rate improves?

without going into too much detail. No. The rates will not be improving in the short term. and possibly much longer depending on how things pan out with Oil countries switching to EUro as their trading currency. Lodge it asap.

PrettyBoy

100gSoma wrote: »

Lodge it asap.

Thanks for the advice guys.