Can you pay in dollars into UK bank accounts?

maximilianus87 · Apprentice Joined: 03 Nov 2009 Posts: 1

I have received a cheque with an amount in US dollars. I would like to cash it and tried it in my bank. The fee for conversion was unreasonable, so I'm looking for a different way. Is there a bank with lower fee? Can I ask to be paid directly to my account? Can you pay in dollars into UK bank accounts?

dominik1727 · Apprentice Joined: 20 Oct 2009 Posts: 1

Banks have to charge conversion to pounds, but fees are often high. There is often a fixed fee for this service but in range of some amount. I know for sure that with Abbey and LLoyds you would have to pay 10 pounds for small amounts. At Barclays you wouldn't been charged for amounts lower then 50 dollars. You should check other banks, but I doubt they have better terms for this. Opening a US dollar account could be a solution if you're planning to get dollars often. There are two kinds of this account, regular and savings account, and they have different charges. You should choose depending on amounts you receive and how often you get paid. You would have to pay maintenance for this account and it's a yearly fee. The good thing is that you have no minimum balance demanded, so you can put as much money as you want to that account.