The Regal Rules for Girls (44 page)
Converting British sterling to American dollars is never a pleasant experience. It only works in your favor if you’re earning pounds and spending dollars—not vice versa. But if you’re earning dollars and spending pounds, it’s best if you know the most up-to-date exchange rate. So bookmark the following on your computer or buy the app. Oanda is the most accurate converter I’ve found so far and the most user-friendly.
www.oanda.com/currency/converter
Feel the thrill of totting up a balanced book A thousand ciphers neatly in a row! When gazing at a graph that shows the profits up Your little cup of joy should overflow
—M
ARY
P
OPPINS
Oftentimes a UK university or UK employer will set up a British bank account for you. But in some cases you’ll have to do it yourself. As part of the UK’s money laundering legislation, British banks must establish your identity when you open an account. It can’t hurt to bring a reference from your US bank, but by law the British bank will need to see one identification document (like a passport) and one address verification document (something formally addressed to you at your UK address).
This is a bit of a catch-22 as it’s quite hard to establish a UK address unless you have money to pay the rent. That said, until you set up your UK bank account, make sure your US bank account offers the following:
no ATM fees when you withdraw cash abroad
a credit or debit card without fees for overseas purchases
online banking
a twenty-four-hour helpline
the ability to quickly transfer money internationally (For this you will need to know routing numbers, SWIFT codes, and BIC numbers.)
As you’d expect, British banks offer a staggering array of accounts to choose from. As part of preparing for your move to London, go to MoneySupermarket to compare what’s on offer in terms of interest rates, etc (
www.moneysupermarket.com/current-accounts
).
KNOW THE BANKING LINGO:
current account:
a checking account.
standing order:
These are regular bank transfers to a company or person. You may need to organize one of these for your rent. Ask your landlord for a standing order form, fill it in, and give the completed form to your bank.
direct debit:
This is similar to a standing order, but instead of returning the completed form to the bank, you return the form to a company that you authorize to take money from your account. Most Brits use direct debits to pay for regular household bills.
chip and pin:
In the UK (and across Europe), they don’t rely on signatures to authorize card payments. Instead, your debit
and credit cards are fitted with a microchip and private pin number—which is much more secure. (The downside is that you have one more thing to memorize.)
cheques
(that’s the UK spelling of “checks”): These aren’t used in the UK as much as they are in the US. Debit cards that take money directly from your checking account are preferred, and most bills are paid online via bank transfers or direct debits (although you can still send a cheque, if you prefer).
overdraft
: Imagine my surprise when I learned that bouncing cheques in the UK is entirely allowed! Don’t get excited—they do charge you for the privilege and you need to have something called an “agreed overdraft.” An overdraft allows you to take money out of your checking account even when the balance is zero. You can only take up to an agreed limit (usually £500) and interest is payable on the amount you take. (If you are a student, you may be offered an interest-free overdraft.) Still, this handy facility definitely helps you get by from pay cheque to pay cheque and is a lot cheaper than borrowing money on a credit card.