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READER QUESTION: What are the rules on international money transfers to and from Denmark?

We respond to a reader's question regarding international money transfers to and from Denmark.

Man by a laptop with a credit card
Photo: Rupixen on Unsplash

You can transfer funds to and from your Danish bank account relatively easily. 

Most banks recommend using their online or app service to do the transfers rather than inside the branch, to keep the fees down, as costs are involved.

Fees

How much the transfer costs depends on your bank or service provider, the amount you are transferring, where it’s being transferred to and whether you need it to be an express transfer. It is more expensive to transfer in a branch or through a cheque.

There are no fees if money is transferred between the same banks. The fees are also lower if transferring within the EU. 

Under EU law, if you make cross-border payments of up to €50,000 within the EU, you will not pay more than the cost of a national transaction.

If you do have to pay an international transfer fee, it is recommended to share the costs between you and the recipient in the other country. If you choose to pay all the costs, you risk paying high fees to the foreign banks.

An express transfer with Nordea bank for example, to a non-Nordea account costs 350 kroner. An ordinary international transfer with Nordea costs 75 kroner.

It is also worth nothing that once made, foreign payments cannot be cancelled. If you make an international payment by mistake, you will need to contact the recipient to retrieve the funds.

How long will it take?

Usually between one and five days, depending on your bank.

What information is needed?

You need the correct BIC/SWIFT and IBAN. You will find your own IBAN number and SWIFT address in your online banking, under account information.

IBAN stands for International Bank Account Number, and it must be used for payments to all countries in the EU and EEA, regardless of the currency.

Using the IBAN helps Straight through Processing (STP) and avoids any associated charges or manual processing fees.

Always state the full name and address of the payee. 

Only fill in the field “Information for the bank” if absolutely necessary, as it involves manual post-processing which costs a fee.

Incoming payments

There is also a fee for receiving money from abroad. With Nordea bank for example, there is a 50 kroner fee to receive up to 2,000 kroner and a 100 kroner fee for amounts over 2,000 kroner. For money received from the EU, the fee is 20 kroner.

You need to pass on your bank details to the payer, including IBAN and BIC/SWIFT code details.

Do I need to use my Danish bank to make the transfer?

It is worth shopping around to find the best exchange rates and fees when making international payments.

There are providers like Wise, OFX, Currency Fair, Currencies Direct, and Hargreaves Lansdown, that offer competitive international bank transfers by opening an account with them.

READ MORE: What salary can you expect to earn in Denmark?

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READER QUESTIONS

READER QUESTION: Do Denmark’s residency rules allow you to take a side job?

A reader asked about what the rules are for taking a second side job if you have a work permit or residency permit in Denmark. Here are the rules.

READER QUESTION: Do Denmark's residency rules allow you to take a side job?

READER QUESTION: If I came in pre-Brexit on the grounds of self sufficiency, and I’m on a temporary residency permit, am I allowed to do a bit of self employed work to top my funds up?

For this reader, the rules are quite clear.

“A temporary residence permit granted according to the Withdrawal Agreement (Brexit) also includes the right to work in Denmark – even though the person has resided in Denmark on grounds of sufficient resources or as an economically inactive person,” the Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI), told The Local via email. 

But for other non-EU citizens, here under one of Denmark’s many job schemes, such as the Fast-track scheme, Pay limit scheme, and the Positive lists, or under the various researcher schemes, the rules are more complicated. 

READ ALSO: How can you get a work permit in Denmark if you are not an EU national?

You are generally allowed to get a second job, but you may have to apply for a separate work permit for paid sideline employment, (find information from SIRI here), and also fulfil various conditions. 

If you are a researcher with a permit under the Researcher scheme or the Researcher track under the Fast-track scheme, a Guest researcher, a PhD student, a performing artist or a professional athlete or coach, you are allowed to take up unlimited sideline employment without needing to apply for an additional work permit for sideline employment. 

If, however, you are employed as a researcher under the Pay Limit Scheme, then you have to apply for a special work permit for sideline employment.

People who received their residency permits under the Jobseeker scheme are not eligible for a sideline employment permit. 

For the other job schemes, you need to apply for a separate work permit for paid sideline employment, find information from SIRI here.

“For sideline employment, the salary must be the standard one for the job, and within the same area of ​​work as the main occupation,” SIRI said. 

For example, a musician might want a permit for sideline employment as an instructor at an academy of music, or a doctor might want a permit for sideline employment to teach at a medical school. 

You can be granted a sideline permit for as long as as the duration of your main work permit. 

If you lose your sideline job, you must inform SIRI. If you lose the main job that is the basis for your main work permit, your sideline job permit is automatically invalidated. 

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