USA Client charging question

[DSLiverpool]

Well after winging a living for the past 2 years I’ve actually landed a proper 4 days a month consultancy job that seems ongoing.

Company is in the USA and I’m helping them get set up in Europe. They won’t have a financial base outside USA

Question - what’s the best way to get paid from them? I’ve a normal Nat West business account, I’m aware of new soft banks but don’t want to do that.

Any suggestion please ..

[Si1295]

Your 4 options that I can see are

1/ Revolut account - I know you said no new soft banks but this one is the second easiest and potentially puts the most back in your pocket. You’ll have 2 accounts, USD & GBP. Get paid in USD, exchange to GBP as and when. Exchange rate will be better than your bank

2/ Come to an agreement with a FX service - Company pays the FX service in USD, they pay you at a better exchange rate than your bank

3/ Negotiate payment in GBP - You’ll gain sometimes, lose at others (particularly at the moment)

4/ Direct payment to your current account - Easiest, but the most expensive

[StevieBee]

You can also open a Dollar account with NatWest into which they pay your fees. You then transfer to your normal account when you need. I don't know what fees NatWest charge but I pay Starling Bank £7.10 a year for this and no fees when transferring from the USD account to the GBP one.

Also check with your client as they may have restrictions and preferences that you need to be aware of.

[DSLiverpool]

Cheers guys - interesting to learn a new thing

[sgrimshaw]

Been doing this for the last 15 years.

1. Rates quoted and invoiced in GBP

2. Payment to be made in GBP.

3. All bank fees to be borne by requester (ie the person who sends the money).

If that's not acceptable then tell them the USD rate is 1.5x the GBP rate.
Essentially you are offering a significant discount to them for dealing with you in GBP.

Never had an issue with a customer.