Seems a bit pathetic answering my own question but here goes. These are from very hurried attempts and digging round, are by no means exhaustive and I don't guarantee their accuracy. So now that I've disclaimed everything . . :confused2
Option1: open a bank account in the States with someone like the Chase Bank. That way your US client can simply transfer money for a minimal fee (if anything at all) to your US account. Its then up to you to sort out transfer to the UK and pay the charges. The idea of having a foreign bank account is new to me and I don't know how comfortable I feel about it.
Option2: just have you client transfer directly to your account using SWIFT. Problem is that your client will be changed $50+. Many aren't happy about that so you'll have to reimburse them. You'll also have charges for conversion from a foreign currency.
Option3: open an International Currency account in the UK. You could have this with your current bank. The advantage is that you could use this for ALL foreign currencies rather than just American. European clients would be able to transfer money very quickly and cheaply. clients outside the EU will again have their full charges levied. Not popular.
Option4: US cheque. My bank (Halifax) are happy to accept US cheques and only charge £10. but they take upto 8 weeks to process it. Santander says 8 weeks for the first check and subsequent cheques take 5 days for anything under £2000 and 8 weeks for anything over.
Asking clients to send cheques in multiples of £2000 or less smacks of amateurishness.
Option5: Paypal. Fees can be astronomical. Last time I received money through them I was charged $99. The payment I'm trying to sort now would be charged $250. Thats unacceptable. I've also had them freeze my account and it was a nightmare getting them to reopen it and give me access to MY money. They're not a bank and so appear to work to their own rules.
Option6: Western Union. For the same payment as above they want to charge me £213. Thats using their online calculator. Not acceptable.
Option7: There's various online options such as billfor.it but after browsing their sites I didn't feel confident. Maybe that says more for their sites than their services but even so they often just seem to act as a portal for multiple online payment schemes such as Paypal or Nochex.
Option8: open a UK business account with Visa facilities. Not really had a chance to look into this yet but its interesting.
My main aim is to ensure payment from my clients is easy and cheap, preferably free. Generally as little inconvenience to them as possible. The rest is my responsibility so Option 1, though leaving me a little uneasy, possibly suits me the most.
The title just about says it all really but I'll give some background info.
I got laid off back in October and when my redundancy came through in December bought a PC. I hadn't planned on going full time self employed till Maybe July/August but circumstances forced my to jump sooner. I registered with HMRC at the end of January, more than a month after I bought the PC and now I'm wondering if there's any way to offset it against tax .. or something. Its used exclusively for work.
Many years ago I freelanced for a while and just used my personal account. Never again. It just became a mine field. I've found it much easier to get a separate account and only use that for business related things.
I also got an ISA and with every payment I put a percentage away in there to save for Tax and accountants fees. I've read that as a Freelancer you don't need a proper Business Account and all its extra fees. I just got a current account from Halifax and told the woman what it was for just to be on the safe side and it was fine.
I'm just looking for advice on the best way to receive payment from the US. Previously I've used Paypal but last time they charged me over $100 and I'm afraid they'll charge double that for my next payment.
I've tried a US cheque which my bank, Halifax, will cash, but they take 8 weeks! to clear it. Western Union is more expensive than Paypal (£213!) as are the 3 dodgy cheque cashing shops I've tried. I looked into moving accounts to Santander and Natwest and the both said up to 8 weeks. I'll of starved and lost the house by then.
All my clients now are American and they all seem to be loathe to use direct transfer because of the cost to them (about $60). Should I just ask them to invoice me for the charge (which would result in my having the whole issue in reverse) or should have it subtracted from their invoice? Or is there a viable alternative?
