Ask HN: How do I accept all major credit cards when not based in the US? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How do I accept all major credit cards when not based in the US?

13 pointsmarcamillion13 comments

I would like to be able to accept all major credit cards in USD, and have the funds transfered to a local bank account (Jamaica).I have tried Paypal, but they send a check. They don't offer instant transfers to Jamaican bank accounts, only US ones.I have a US bank account, so I guess I could have it transfered there, but am not sure how to get it from my US bank account to my local one without writing a check (which takes 45 days to clear) or without flying to the US and wiring the funds myself.What options do I have to streamline this process?Assume I will be earning recurring income from a subscription-based model, so I would need this to be a sustainable solution.All suggestions are welcome, including setting up a US company and doing some sort of standing order transfer. Specifics to do the above would be greatly appreciated.

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We're in the UK, so I don't know how applicable this is to Jamaica, but for http://kutoken.com/ we use HSBC Merchant processing to accept transactions in GBP, USD and Euro.

HSBC give us the option of having the funds deposited into HSBC accounts in those currencies, or converting to GBP (at our expense, not the customer's).

I'm very happy with this arrangement - it stops many customers from being put off by not knowing how much the service is going to cost them month to month, with the minimum of hassle for us.

Unfortunately HSBC isn't available in Jamaica :(

Virtual XS (Access)(http://www.vxsbill.com/) in The Netherlands do all kinds of billing acceptance and are one of the most reliable partners for a lot of companies all over the world. They do adult, gambling, pharmacy etc. Only legit business is allowed, because you get screened to the bone. You've to setup a company in The Netherlands, but they will wire all funds to your account. At least, you can contact them and explain your situation. They are more than willing to provide you with a suitable solution.

The absolute fastest way to do an I-can't-believe-its-not-a-wire-transfer is to get your US bank to issue you a debit card with the Mastercard or VISA logo on it, and then take that to an ATM in Jamaica. You'll get soaked like a foreign tourist but, hey, no waiting on the money.

You can also give your US bank instructions to wire transfer it to you. Some of them will let you do this online (Citibank does -- you'll have to clear their Know Your Customer hurdle but otherwise it is fairly routine) and most major ones will do it over the phone (again, if you can clear Know Your Customer).

Know Your Customer isn't that scary, although people make it out to be. Basically they'll ask you for a passport and government issued photo ID.

By the way...just to update this thread. So I have both a Wachovia and Bank of America account.

Apparently Bank of America allows you to order wire transfers online - through their 'transfer' feature. These orders can also be standing orders. I think this will suffice for what I need in the near-term.

BOA's website has this to say about SafePass and transfers:

With SafePass, your daily limit will increase from $1,000 to $10,000.Your weekly limit will increase from $2,500 to $20,000. Note: U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management or Premier clients may have higher transfer limits. Please contact your Relationship or Client Manager for more information on your limits.

Thanks for all the feedback and tips.

Just a warning, BofA wire transfer probably won't work. I tried to set this up with a landlord years ago and what happens is that the transfer amount will be locked up for a week or two, the transfer won't go through and then you'll both get charged fees for it not working. Maybe it's better now, but I doubt it.

Here is a link to some FAQ's for BOA.

https://www.bankofamerica.com/www/en_US/eas-docs/cfc-help/he...

Although I can't find the part about the limit of $10K. Maybe it is just for my type of account - free student checking. Will have to upgrade the account some time soon, I imagine.

Also looking for payment processors outside US.

About Paypal, AFAIK they can transfer funds to your credit card (not bank account) for about $2 per transfer. You have to authenticate the card before. It involves them making a small transaction from which you take a confirmation code (from the bank statements). Takes about 2-3 days.

Not sure if it fits the bill, but check out http://www.xoom.com

This looks interesting, but I don't see any option about payment processing - i.e. accepting credit cards, etc. from my customers and transferring to my Jamaican bank accounts.

I have emailed them though, in the event that I missed something.

we had the same issue as we are in NZ and US based companies often have that panic that everything non US is not controllable. we went with worldpay and have no issues with them. we currently accept visa/master in USD, NZD and EUR via them.

I thought you could do a wire transfer over the phone. Is that not the case?

Unfortunately...I have been using Wachovia...and I just got off the phone with them, and they confirmed that I can't do a wire transfer without coming into a branch - which sucks.

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