• For users of this system, a list of services is provided that provide resolution of organizational issues in the process of opening an account in foreign organizations.
• But to sign the contract, you still need to meet with a representative of the bank or personally appear at the selected financial institution. This feature is only available to people who can deposit more than $1 million.

• in state banks 100% ;
• compulsory insurance 0 90% , but not more 20 thousand euros;
• add. guarantee - up to 30% equity jar.

Currently, there are no laws prohibiting opening an account (deposit) abroad. The law "On Currency Regulation" states that an account can be opened in any country that is a member of the OECD (organization for economic cooperation and development).

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A prerequisite for opening a foreign deposit is notification of this tax within a month. In order for the Russians not to pass this point, the law obliges Russian banks demand from citizens who want to transfer money to an account at any foreign bank, a certificate of notification of the tax office.

Banks that do not want to lose their license with the wording “for money laundering” will not bypass the law and will not undertake to transfer funds without an appropriate document.

Who needs

First of all, foreign deposits are designed to protect their money from inflation, and in the light of the events of 2013, to completely protect them from loss. To a greater extent, this task wealthy people. A person who has earned a lot takes care of the transfer of wealth to his loved ones, the increase and preservation of his capital.

The larger the amount, the greater the risk of suffering from dishonesty of banks. Since October 2013, when the Central Bank began to check the financial market for the integrity of the players, at least 40 banking organizations have left the market.

Moreover, among them were large and well-known players in the financial market. Further, the crisis in Ukraine added fuel to the fire. People rushed about, looking for the salvation of their funds from devaluation and other losses.

Alternatively, people preferred:

1. transfer to larger banks;
2. transfer cash to bank or safe deposit boxes;
3. transfer ruble deposits into foreign currency;
4. invest in real estate and large purchases;
5. withdraw and store cash at home.

Many preferred to transfer their funds to deposits abroad to protect their funds.

Peculiarities

The main features of deposits abroad include:

1. A large and complete package of documents, sometimes containing rather unusual certificates that do not need to be provided when opening a deposit in a Russian bank. It's all about the "anti-money laundering" law, which works in any state with advanced economy. This prevents the legalization of income that is acquired dishonestly. The bank must be sure of the “purity” of its deposits, and since it is much more difficult to check a Russian depositor than a resident of the West, the bank imposes increased requirements on the package of documents;
2. Very high threshold for the very first deposit. Therefore, most people who want to open a deposit are not people with low or even average incomes. The larger the amount of the deposit, the more serious the package of documents that the bank requests. Therefore, the main clients of Western banks are people with very high incomes;
3. Long review process. Since there are a lot of documents and a serious check, it is impossible to check them quickly. Therefore, the verification process can take several months. However, employees of companies that provide intermediary services, argue that if the verification dragged on for more than a month, and more and more documents are required for verification, hope for positive decision meaningless. IN Western banks it is not customary to openly refuse, so the bank intends to delay the verification procedure. When the client gets tired of this, he himself will stop conducting meaningless correspondence with the bank.

Video: About the possibility of opening

How to open a deposit abroad

Consider the procedure for opening deposits abroad in stages. First of all, it is worth knowing that there are no foreign representative offices of foreign banks in Russia. In most cases, banks advertise their affiliation with Western banks.

For example, Raiffeisen Bank is a subsidiary of the Austrian Raiffeisen Zentralbank. But since the bank operates under a license issued to it by the Central Bank, on the basis of Russian legislation, and you will not protect yourself from the so-called unrest and risks within the country.

In order to open an account with a foreign bank, you need to visit the country in which the head branch of the bank is located, in this case Austria.

An account in foreign banks is opened only for savings, for maintaining entrepreneurial activity account use is prohibited. The procedure itself is not fast: from 1 week to 2-3 months.

You can make a deposit in 2 ways:

1. Visit the country where the bank is located, with all necessary documents and fill out the registration form in a foreign language. The bank, having checked all the data for accuracy, will inform you of its decision. The turnaround time is usually not fast.
2. Contact an agency that provides mediation services. For a fee (from 300 to 12,000 dollars), they will help you with opening an account abroad. In order to work with intermediaries, you will need to provide a certified sample of your signature.

The conditions of some banks imply communication with the client at least by phone, or holding a meeting in Moscow before considering a loan application. The most complicated registration procedure, as a rule, is in English banks.

Foreign banks and terms of contracts

The main goal of the Russians when opening an account in foreign banks is, after all, to preserve their funds, and not to increase them. Because rates are much lower than the interest on deposits in them.

Add to this the expensive tariffs for opening and maintaining an account (which is not in Russian banks), then the interest for exchanging and withdrawing cash is equal to deposit interest, an expensive transfer to another account, then the controversial issue of the benefit of a deposit of up to 100 thousand dollars will be resolved by itself.

What interest and conditions are offered by foreign banks for opening a deposit:

Can a Russian open an account abroad

Now the procedure for opening an account has become much easier than ten years ago. Permission to open an account from the Central Bank, according to the Federal Law "On currency regulation and control" is not required and gives the right to Russians to open accounts outside the Russian Federation.

With the exception of persons listed in federal law"About the ban certain categories persons to open and have accounts (deposits)"

List of documents

Before deciding on a foreign bank where you will open an account, you should familiarize yourself with the list of documents in each bank. After choosing the most suitable for yourself, the one that you can provide.

Minimum list of documents:

1. Income document certified by the tax office;
2. a notarized copy of the passports of the depositor and his immediate family;
3. information about the composition of the family;
4. confirmation of payment for utilities;
5. certificate of no criminal record.

If you are cooperating with a subsidiary of a foreign bank in Russia, you should contact them for help. A manager who works in the Private Banking segment will prompt you with the collection of documents, as well as the existing connections between the parent and "subsidiary" enterprises will help speed up the process.

Requirements for non-resident investors

The main requirements for non-resident depositors is the transparency of the origin of money on the deposit.

The source of origin is checked very seriously. On this fact, various checks are carried out. Will be required different types certificates and statements that are not required when opening a regular deposit in a Russian bank.

National taxation

Today, about 5 million Russians have deposits in foreign banks. However, not everyone officially declares such investments, because according to the law, any deposits should be subject to a 13% tax on income from this deposit. The fine for tax evasion starts from 4000 rubles.

Insurance

The deposit protection system is called insurance. If a bank is ruined or its license is revoked in Russian banks, up to 700,000 rubles of damage is compensated.

In foreign banks, the advantage is a much larger amount of compensation (depending on the particular bank)

Tips for a Russian who decides to open a deposit abroad:

1. consider all proposals for deposits of foreign banks;
2. decide on a package of documents;
3. think about whether you can communicate with bank representatives on your own, or whether you need the help of intermediaries;
4. if you are a client of a "subsidiary" organization of the selected bank, contact them for help;
5. estimate whether the amount of your deposit meets the requirements for the minimum entry threshold of banks;
6. decide on the purpose of your contribution, whether it will be beneficial to you.

Russians who do not trust the Russian banking system, can place their funds in almost any foreign bank. But, having learned about the conditions for opening an account, many will most likely refuse this procedure. In order to open a deposit abroad, you need to have serious reasons - “increased” well-being and a transparent financial biography.

Possibilities

Russians are now free to open an account (deposit) in a foreign bank. The law on foreign exchange regulation, updated last year, says that a bank account can be opened without restrictions in any country that is a member of the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) or FATF (Development Group). financial measures anti-money laundering).

According to the same law, accounts in countries that are not members of these international organizations can be opened in the manner prescribed by the Central Bank. In March 2004, the Central Bank issued Directive No. 1411-U, which stated the obligation to pre-register such accounts or deposits. “However, the registration procedure has not yet been established by the government and the Central Bank,” says Sergey Budylin, a consultant at the law firm Roche & Duffay. Therefore, formally, guided by the principle “everything that is not prohibited is allowed”, you can open an account in any country without restrictions. “However, it is not a fact that the courts will interpret the law in this way,” Budylin added.

The only condition required by the law is that a Russian resident who has opened an account in any foreign bank is obliged to notify the tax office at his place of residence within a month. You must also inform the tax authorities about closing an account abroad.

And in order to avoid the temptation to bypass the tax authorities, the law obliged Russian banks to require citizens wishing to transfer funds to an account in a foreign bank a certificate of notification of the tax office (or a certificate of account registration). Banks that do not want to lose their license with the wording "for laundering" will not undertake to transfer your money abroad without this piece of paper.

In general, the total fight against money laundering leaves bank customers less and less opportunities for anonymity. This especially affects the procedure for issuing numbered accounts. Dmitry Kizenkov, deputy manager of the Cypriot branch of Promsvyazbank, notes: “The current Cypriot legislation prohibits local banks from opening numbered accounts. Moreover, if funds are received in favor of a client of a Cypriot bank, but there is no information about the sender in the payment instructions (or there is a certain client code, as is practiced in some Swiss banks), the Cypriot bank has the right to credit the client’s account with money only after it receives from the correspondent bank, accurate information about the sender of funds.

Kizenkov noted that Swiss banks have not abandoned the practice of opening numbered accounts for clients. Moreover, transfers from numbered accounts within Switzerland are allowed without restrictions. “However, cross-border transfers will require disclosure of account holder information anyway,” he says.

formalities

Despite the fact that foreign banks scrupulously select clients, Russians have a chance to open an account in almost any country. Unlike residents or citizens of some countries, with which most foreign banks prefer not to deal. As a rule, these are countries included in the FATF black list, or offshore, as well as states with an unstable political situation or in a state of civil war.

There are also banks that are ready to deal only with residents of certain countries. The bankers explain that in this case it is not a matter of a suspicious attitude towards the Russians, but of the policy of a single bank. Sergei Budylin notes that Swiss bankers have no prejudice towards Russian wealthy clients, but when dealing with English banks, difficulties may arise. But in general, notes Dmitry Kizenkov, if a client wants to place a very a large sum, for example, $ 1 million, he can be met halfway, subject to other conditions.

A lot of formalities will have to be done. A Russian who wants to open an account in a Swiss, English, Turkish or any foreign bank should pay attention to the fact that the bank will require detailed information about a potential client.

Dmitry Kizenkov notes that there are practically no significant differences in the procedure for opening an account in a foreign bank and in a branch of a Russian bank abroad - the procedure and requirements will be almost identical, including the basic requirement "know your client". To open an account, the client will have to fill out a questionnaire, where he will provide all the data about his place of birth, residence, work, contact information. Information about the place of residence will have to be confirmed by documents - as a rule, these are payments for public utilities issued in the name of the client.

The bank will also require letters of recommendation. “Recommendations can be given both by a well-known bank, where the client is served in Russia, and by the company-employer,” says Pavel Neumyvakin, Chairman of the Board of Uniastrum Bank. “It is best if the employer is a well-known company, and the bank that provided the recommendation is included in SWIFT (so you can quickly contact him),” says Kizenkov. An ideal, but not mandatory, option is to add to the recommendations listed a letter from a client of the bank where you want to open an account.

CEO CAB "Bank Societe Generale Vostok" Michel Bricu says that in order to open an account abroad, a client who applied to the Russian branches of the BSGV must provide copies of their passports (internal and foreign), a certificate of employment and fill out an application for opening an account.

Intermediaries

An account in a foreign bank can be opened by contacting the bank directly (including through the representative office of the bank in Russia) or through intermediaries. Such services are provided by some Russian banks (especially within the private banking), both Russian and foreign law firms. Bankers believe that intermediary firms are best avoided. “The firm must act on behalf of a Russian resident wishing to open an account abroad. In practice, it is very difficult to check the activities of an intermediary company,” says Pavel Neumyvakin.

“If an individual who wants to open an account in a foreign bank acts through an intermediary, no one guarantees that the information about your account will not go to the side,” Dmitry Kizenkov believes. He notes that for Lately many foreign banks have opened their representative offices in Russia, and it is best for those wishing to open an account to apply there.

Sergey Budylin objects that a good intermediary company will be able to competently recommend a suitable bank to the client, advise on legal and tax situation in the country. He noted that usually European bank additionally takes care of the security of operations carried out by foreign clients. “The bank agrees with the client on how each order for account transactions will be confirmed. For example, an order sent to the bank by fax may contain a code word or be duplicated by a personal call from the client,” says Budylin.

Subsidiaries or representative offices of foreign banks in Russia also advise clients who wish to be served abroad. Michel Bricu, General Director of Bank Societe Generale Vostok, says that opening accounts for Russian citizens abroad is one of the services provided by BSGV in 80 countries of its presence. “Together we determine the goals that a person sets for himself, and depending on the result, we make him an offer that would best meet his needs. The terms of account activation depend on the question the client came to us with and in which country we open the account,” Bricu says.

Money

As for the amount with which it is worth contacting a foreign bank, everything is very individual here, but almost always expensive. Swiss banks specializing in private banking usually do not work with clients wishing to deposit less than $100,000.

“The same can be said about many banks in Europe,” recalls Sergei Budylin. According to him, you can find a serious bank that will agree to open an account for a private foreign client for 50 thousand euros (dollars), but it is unlikely that anyone in Europe will be interested in a smaller amount.

In other countries, you can try your luck with smaller amounts. Branches of Russian banks abroad are also often picky. “In the Cypriot branch of Promsvyazbank, you can open an account without limiting the amount of the balance,” says Dmitry Kizenkov.

The costs of opening an account in a foreign bank, as well as its maintenance, are usually rather high and often exceed $1,000. And the requirements of banks to the minimum balance on the account can amount to tens of thousands of dollars or euros.

“A client who is going to open an account abroad needs to be prepared for the world level of prices for Banking services, which depend on each specific country,” says Michel Bricou.

It should also be borne in mind that foreign banks often include a clause in deposit agreements on the possible suspension of operations on the client's account if the information provided by him about himself is not true.

Translation

After an account or deposit abroad is opened, it remains to transfer money to it. The easiest and most unquestionable way is to transfer money from currency account in a Russian bank. As we have already noted, a Russian bank will undertake this operation only after you present evidence that the tax office knows about the existence of the account.

"Notice procedure tax authorities on accounts or deposits opened abroad has not yet been developed. uniform form or the document does not exist today, it all depends on a single inspection,” Sergei Budylin notes. You can carry money across the border in cash. But this method, firstly, is inconvenient (you cannot take out more than $10,000 through customs at a time), and secondly, it will arouse the suspicions of foreign bankers.

After you have successfully opened a foreign account and transferred money to it, do not forget that by notifying the tax office about opening an account abroad, the resident automatically agrees to submit account statements at the request of the tax authorities. And once a year, resident individuals are required to submit to the tax inspectorate a report on the balances of funds on accounts (in deposits) in banks outside the Russian Federation as of the beginning of each calendar year.

Against the backdrop of a weakening ruble, many people who are thinking about the future are starting to look for options for transferring funds to foreign banks. By law, a Russian citizen can travel abroad, it is only important to choose a reliable organization. The main advantage of transferring funds to a bank in another country is a more stable exchange rate foreign exchange, flexible terms for depositors, increased reliability, as well as the ability to conduct transactions without currency conversion. The latter is especially true for people who buy real estate abroad, pay for their studies or travelers who often come abroad for vacations.

How foreign banks work in Russia

According to Russian laws, foreign banks and their branches cannot operate on the territory of the country. However, their subsidiaries can legally exist - other legal entities whose activities are controlled by Russian law. Residents of the country willingly use the services of such companies, believing that the "daughters" are under the control of stronger banks that can help them.

Now there are about thirty "daughters" of foreign banks operating in the country, most of which are not so well known due to the fact that they work with big clients and primarily represents their interest in financial markets. However, such well-known companies as Raiffeisen Bank or Rusfinance Bank also serve individuals.

Trying to compete with domestic banks, foreign companies highlight the following advantages:

• More services;
• Individual approach;
• Reliability.

If you can argue with these points (after all, Russian banks are also trying to develop their service lines and significantly improve the quality of service), then with the opinion that the "daughters" of foreign banks are much more efficient and easier to experience economic crises, even experts cannot argue.

In which foreign bank to deposit money

Foreign banks mainly give depositors the opportunity to deposit money at low interest rates - from 1% to 5% per annum, while setting strict conditions early withdrawal money. Providing guarantees of the highest reliability in exchange, many foreign banks work with clients who deposit from 10 thousand euros (mainly large Swiss companies). This is explained by the fact that in Europe, according to the law, a client in the event of a bank failure receives a minimum of 20,000 euros. In Lithuania, this amount is 100 thousand euros.

If earlier the majority of Russians preferred to keep money in Cyprus, then after the banking collapse that happened on the island, they transferred funds to more reliable systems - the banks of the Baltic countries, as well as to Denmark, Germany and Austria. Russians turn to the services of Swiss banks less frequently due to large amounts minimum deposit.

According to demand research, best deals for the citizens of Russia the following banks:

1. The Cypriot Bank of Cyprus and AlphBank offers deposits at 4.5% per annum, and in some cases gives its customers a guarantee of payment up to 6% per annum;
2. Latvian Citadele can offer a maximum rate of 3% per year;
3. In the US, Russians often turn to Edvard and Jones Vanguard Group, where they deposit dollars at 2.96%;
4. In the UK, a Russian citizen will be served by the Bank of London, offering up to 2.8% on deposits;
5. The Italian ING Direct Italia can give a maximum of 1.4% per annum, provided that the contribution is made in euros.

Not all foreign banks are happy with Russian clients. Until recently, it was believed that the most loyal to Russian banks are located in Cyprus. These institutions could not check the legitimacy of the money that settled on the accounts of clients, asked for a minimum package of documents, and also provided enough good conditions- relatively high interest per year and a low account maintenance fee. In second place in terms of loyalty are the Baltic banks, they are also happy to see Russian clients, often have subsidiaries in Russia and can guarantee the creation of an account under a simplified scheme in particular cases.

Banks in Great Britain and Scandinavia, on the contrary, are literally afraid to work with Russian clients, demanding from them a huge package of documents. However, even if all the papers are correctly filled out and provided on time, the bank may refuse the request to open an account, and then it will be useless to argue with its employees - the institution will not change its decision.

Guarantees of bank deposits abroad

Studying more information about the difficulties of opening an account and creating a deposit in foreign banks for Russian citizens, it is not always clear: why spend so much effort. Adding to it the facts that foreign banks do not give high interest on deposits and charge significant amounts for servicing, one might think that not a single Russian would want to cooperate with them. However, foreign banks provide great guarantees even if they fail.

Many countries have set minimum amounts that each depositor receives if the bank fails to meet its obligations due to bankruptcy. In most countries, this payment starts from 20,000 euros. In Russia, only 1,400 thousand rubles are guaranteed to be returned in the event of a bank failure, the rest of the money can simply “burn out”. That is why it is more profitable, calmer and more convenient for people who have large amounts of money to become a client of a foreign bank.

Another indisputable plus is confidentiality. Swiss banks have long been the most reliable institutions that do not disclose information about their customers to anyone, domestic banks cannot boast of this.

How to open an account in a foreign bank

When a Russian is going to open a deposit or an account in a foreign bank, he needs to first study all the conditions of the companies and choose the most loyal and reliable ones. Many foreign banks, especially Scandinavian ones, do not provide such services to people who are not residents of the country. In addition, the service may be denied even to people who have arrived in the country for a long time.

The main requirement that people who are going to open a bank deposit abroad must fulfill is the ability to confirm the transparency of income. To do this, you need to provide all kinds of certificates - from the place of work, extracts from other cards. An additional plus will be a recommendation from a person who is already a client of the bank or registration with a subsidiary bank located in Russia. A huge plus will be the presence of a business in the country, to the bank of which a person applies.

1. Contact the bank to clarify the conditions for opening an account;
2. Collect a package of documents, translate it and certify it with a notary;
3. Send a package to a foreign bank;
4. Get confirmation of approval of the operation or refusal;
5. Sign the agreement by personally arriving at the bank (sometimes this can be done through an official representative);
6. Deposit a certain amount into the account;
7. Send documents confirming the opening of an account in a foreign bank to the Federal Tax Service of Russia.

The last point is very important, it is spelled out in Russian legislation. You can study a sample of filling out a notice of opening an account abroad in advance, and documents after creating an account must be submitted within a month. Delay is punishable by a fine - 5 thousand rubles.

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