Problems opening bank account b'cos transfer of money for property!

Don't know about all this - banks branches make their own rules as they go along - but as a data point I transferred money direct to notary from overseas no problem no questions, large sum.

Thank you volcane. That is good to know, especially when I speak to the notary about it

UK banks would ask for proof of fund source too I believe (when buying property in the UK),  part of the system to avoid money laundering - may be the same in Malta?

I had some parallel issues, trying to open an account with HSBC, to receive money transferred from England to pay for an apartment purchase. I did however pay for a 6 month rental deposit from my English account, without first having a Maltese account and paid the !0% on promise of sale cash as well as 1% tax down payment. Perhaps you could investigate paying from the Italian account without the need to involve a Maltese account at all. I do not know if there is a rule against this, but do not se why there should be.

Thank you vagrant and kiwi dan. really helpful to get your advice and experiences on this issue

hanham wrote:

Hi everyone,

I am in a bit of a pickle and any advice would be appreciated. I moved from the UK to  2 months ago as I am studying at the university this autumn. About a month ago I put a deposit down on a flat and and now trying to work out how I will transfer the funds to pay for the sale.

The funds for the sale will come from my mum's account which is in Italy and the funds are not from income but from sale of some land she inherited (she resides in the UK but is originally Italian).

The Bank of Valletta said I can only open a bank account as a student IF I get a maintenance grant. As i am self funding the course they said they cannot open an account (very strange!). They then said that if any other funds come into the account (I told them that I might want to transfer my mum's money into my account so that I can pay for the sale from my account when the time comes) that that would not be permitted and my account would be blocked!

I then went to HSBC and they said that I can open an account as a student BUT if I want to transfer funds from the mum's account I will need to account for how she got the funds by showing proof of her dad's will, proof of sale of the land and her bank statements - she has all of these but the bank said they need to be translated into English - so a big cost! It is then not even guaranteed that they will open the account and they may ask for me evidence!

I was initially advised by someone I knew that if I transfer the money in smaller amounts into an account then it is less likely these massive checks will be made but they didn't say how much is good to transfer each time. If I now open an account just as a student but transfer the money over slowly I am concerned, because I already told them about the money for the sale of the property, that it will be flagged up on the computer and my account blocked....

I have been told my mum can transfer the money directly to the vendor or the notary public but I am concerned their banks will also require evidence of where the funds came from (i.e the will etc)!

Any advice would be appreciated!

According to law, the regulations regarding access to and opening bank accounts with basic features should have been reformed 13 days ago:

By 18 September 2016, EU Member States shall adopt and publish the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with DIRECTIVE 2014/92/EU on………..access to payment accounts with basic features.

Please see Article 16, entitled, ‘Right of access to a payment account with basic features’:

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/ … 32014L0092

try Mediterranean Bank tel 2557 4400 or visit one of their branches.

I recently bought property in Gozo without having a Maltese bank account by transferring the money directly to the notary.  I just had to provide proof of where the money came from, which was the proceeds of my UK property.  As in the UK clients money is held by the notary in a separate account until all legal documents are signed.
In the UK a 'small' amount of money for transferring abroad is usually below about £2000.
Could your mother transfer the money back to her bank in the UK and then send it to you piecemeal so that it looks like she is supporting you?

Thank you Fionne and raycall. I will check out the links and bank you suggested.

Thank you Andrew Scuba - the issue is exactly that, getting the proof of where the money came from. The money came from sale of land and the legal documents for the sale is not only around 70 pages but also in Italian so would need to be translated into English which is lengthy and costly. If the notary's bank also asks for these documents then this will be another obstacle...we were hoping to avoid paying for the sale from our English bank account because the pound is so weak.

I had also considered my mother transferring bits on a regular basis but I worry that the bank would pick up on it as it would be a relatively large amount transferred over just a couple of months....