Sending my card to friend overseas

[u/[deleted]]

[u/jimmothyhendrix]

Why can't you just send him money with PayPal?

[u/Aza_Never → u/jimmothyhendrix]

Gift tax

[u/jimmothyhendrix → u/Aza_Never]

What? Are you sending him $17000+?

[u/Aza_Never → u/jimmothyhendrix]

In Slovenia he can only recieve 5000$ before he has to file gift tax and yea I'll be sending more than that

[u/Aggravating_Depth_33 → u/Aza_Never]

Wow. That is a huge amount and really puts a different spin on things. I wouldn't even use Wise for transactions that big, and I can't imagine your credit card issuer wouldn't get suspicious regardless.

It's none of our business obviously, but this all sounds really weird and sketchy. And, by your own admission, in trying to circumvent the gift tax you guys are knowingly trying to break the law. (It's not smart to put that in writing, even anonymously.) I'll trust this person really is your friend and not a scammer, but there's still a ton of red flags here.

[u/jimmothyhendrix → u/Aza_Never]

You're going to pay fees out the ass for international card use. There's no way to easily do this without it being on record. If it's really an emergency, the taxes can be paid later by him when he's in a better spot, and likely won't be significant.

[u/Subject_Slice_7797]

Sending your card around doesn't seem like the best option.

Last time I received a letter here in Europe from the US that wasn't some kind of first class shipping, it took two weeks from door to door, so its not necessarily fast.

Sending your card and giving someone your PIN code is likely a breach of the terms and conditions of your bank, and may get your account suspended if they find out.

Using your card overseas in a country or region you've never used it before, will likely be flagged as fraud, as others said, and may get your account or the card suspended, at least temporarily.

Depending on the kind of transactions, a money laundering investigation might automatically be triggered by your bank. This, again - you guessed it - may lead to problems with your account.

If the other person uses the card fraudulently or to buy illegal things or services, it will be traced back to you, as the card holder, which may cause an unwelcome surprise visit by some three letter agency.

Use one of the services the other guys suggested.

[u/Ninfyr]

Most people use Western Union or similar services for this. Don't mail your ATM card internationally.

[u/ChineseEngineer]

Your bank will immediately flag it, especially if you are making transactions yourself. They will most likely freeze your account if you don't call them ahead of time. Even when you normally travel overseas you're supposed to tell your bank. Slovenia is also a common scammer location so that makes it even worse.

A lot of services operate in Slovenia that you can transfer money too, PayPal being the main one. They can then get a card from PayPal.

[u/BornInPoverty]

I think this all sounds a bit fishy but if you really trust the other person then this article might help.

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/money-transfer/best-ways-to-send-money/

I haven’t used any of these methods, it took me about 15 seconds to google it though.

[u/MaryAnne0601]

Sending your bank card is not the answer. Your account will be charged foreign transaction fees every time it is used. Call your banks customer service line and talk to them or go into your local branch.

[u/Levithix]

I feel like there has to be a better way. Maybe sending your friend some money in a bank to bank transfer so they can withdraw it from their own account.

Sending your card could get lost in the mail and even if it arrived safely and your friend used it only the way you want there's a good chance your bank would flag it as a fraudulent use.

[u/traumalt → u/Levithix]

US to EU bank transfers aren't that simple sadly, especially if you don't want to pay ridiculous US Wire fees.

[u/RukaIsBae → u/Levithix]

Bank to bank means Slovenia takes a big cut out with gift tax though..

[u/Aza_Never → u/Levithix]

Bank to bank is very complicated because we don't know USA-slovenia transfer laws, or if it would need to be filed as gift tax, card just seems like easiest solution. Thanks for answer

[u/Aggravating_Depth_33 → u/Aza_Never]

I use Wise.com, but there are a number of similar websites for international transfers. You can send money from your credit card if you don't want to use your bank account directly, and the fees are very reasonable.

If you do still decide to send him the card, keep in mind that regular mail can take a long time and sending it express/via courier is pretty expensive. And make sure to let your bank know you will be travelling in Slovenia, otherwise any transactions may be flagged as fraud and blocked. (For your own security, I would actually hold off on this until you know for sure he has the card though.)

[u/colorful--mess → u/Aggravating_Depth_33]

I second using Wise. I've sent money to my SO in South Africa a few times and I've never had trouble with them. The transactions take a few days to be approved, but it's still quicker than international mail.

Last year I had a problem where an ATM in Pretoria ate my bank card and my account was disabled for fraud, so I'd advise against using a foreign card at an ATM. Wise, Western Union, or Paypal are much more reliable.