Singapore Expats

So I went to open a bank account with our helper today and was told that DBS and POSB (who seemed to serve most of the maids before) will no longer open accounts for maids UNLESS the employer has an account with them and agrees to a regular monthly transfer to her account. And to pay associated service charges of course. I suppose we could open an account there but that just ticked me off. Then went to OCBC who would open account, but they have to maintain a monthly closing balance of $1000.

Has anyone else run into this? Are there any banks in SP that treat helpers decently? I suppose the banks got tired of maintaining thousands of accounts with no money in them but still. Helpers should been able to open a bank account!!! Aargh. S'poreans complain about maids being irresponsible and then make it impossible for them to do responsible things like have a bank account.

Good on you for helping your maid to get a bank account.
Standard Chartered have a pretty cool e-saver account that doesn't have a minimum required salary etc and no fees and a debit card (nets). It will help however if you go with her to the branch to open the account. You don't need to sit with her with the consultant, but it does help if they see a foreign face looking closely on.

carteki wrote:Good on you for helping your maid to get a bank account.
Standard Chartered have a pretty cool e-saver account that doesn't have a minimum required salary etc and no fees and a debit card (nets). It will help however if you go with her to the branch to open the account. You don't need to sit with her with the consultant, but it does help if they see a foreign face looking closely on.

And SCB e-saver skips passbook and sends out a statement..

Their atm card WAS NOT NETS .. unless they added it in recently ..

ecureilx wrote:
And SCB e-saver skips passbook and sends out a statement..

Their atm card WAS NOT NETS .. unless they added it in recently ..

How do you define "recently"? I've had a NETS SCB ATM card since Aug 2007 - they're the only non SG-based bank that offers this

carteki wrote:

ecureilx wrote:
And SCB e-saver skips passbook and sends out a statement..

Their atm card WAS NOT NETS .. unless they added it in recently ..

How do you define "recently"? I've had a NETS SCB ATM card since Aug 2007 - they're the only non SG-based bank that offers this

Sorry .. my bad .. E-Saver has no atm and no minimum balance

http://www.standardchartered.com.sg/per ... ccount/en/

X-tra saver has ATM and NETS .. but .. there is a daily minimum balance .. ha - So how ?? ?:)

http://www.standardchartered.com.sg/per ... asaver/en/

my bad too they've changed their product line-up since I last checked...

but still in my experience the best place to open a bank acc for a domestic worker.

carteki wrote:my bad too they've changed their product line-up since I last checked...

but still in my experience the best place to open a bank acc for a domestic worker.

but, when a person earns a few hundred $ salary, a monthly deduction of even 5 $ for insufficient minimum balance is not funny I guess ...

The alternate would be for you to do the e-saver, and let the withdrawal only by Counter service ..

Thank you! I will check that out. May even open accounts of mine own there as HSBC pissed me off so much today re my own business that I'm ditching them at the same time.

movingtospore wrote:Thank you! I will check that out. May even open accounts of mine own there as HSBC pissed me off so much today re my own business that I'm ditching them at the same time.

You mean SCB ? Well, if she don't need an atm card .. go for it ..

I just opened a POSB bank account for my FDW. It does not require a minimum balance .However I do have an account with DBS .

Serendipitysays wrote:I just opened a POSB bank account for my FDW. It does not require a minimum balance .However I do have an account with DBS .

did you read the fine print ? if the minimum balance is not maintained, there is a deduction .. so - your FDW (maid ???) is going to loose 5 $ every month .. or so ..

I've actually given up on this as there always seems to be a catch.

ecureilx wrote:

Serendipitysays wrote:I just opened a POSB bank account for my FDW. It does not require a minimum balance .However I do have an account with DBS .

did you read the fine print ? if the minimum balance is not maintained, there is a deduction .. so - your FDW (maid ???) is going to loose 5 $ every month .. or so ..

http://www.dbs.com/posb/deposit/fdw-sav ... fault.aspx

Note point 2

Serendipitysays wrote:

ecureilx wrote:

Serendipitysays wrote:I just opened a POSB bank account for my FDW. It does not require a minimum balance .However I do have an account with DBS .

did you read the fine print ? if the minimum balance is not maintained, there is a deduction .. so - your FDW (maid ???) is going to loose 5 $ every month .. or so ..

http://www.dbs.com/posb/deposit/fdw-sav ... fault.aspx

Note point 2

Serendipitysays "I didn't bother to read the thread before sticking my foot in my mouth."

Had you read the first post, it would have explained that the OP needs to have an account there as well before they can take benefit of the FDW account.

sundaymorningstaple wrote: Had you read the first post, it would have explained that the OP needs to have an account there as well before they can take benefit of the FDW account.

And I too need to admit that I was not aware of the POSB FDW account

Small measure to help the maids but, the benefit of no fall below-deduction is great ..

I believe that POSB is the only one with such an account type, the same POSB, that, allowed you to open an account with 20 $ and had no minimum balance, until DBS took over and turned everything upside down ..enforced minimum balance, and also killed off the multitude of ATMs, even inside army camps ...

PS: I don't get this part in the T & C :

You, the employer as stated on the FDW’s work permit card, must have an existing DBS/POSB Savings/Current Account. This account will be the debiting account for the monthly contribution into this POSB FDW Savings Account every month.

followed by

Select one of your existing DBS/POSB savings or current account as the debiting account to deduct the monthly salary.
Choose an amount (min S$50 and max of S$1,000, in multiples of S$10) and a date (between 1st and 25th) to credit into her account every month.

To avoid any failed deduction, please ensure that there are sufficient funds in the debiting account by 7pm, one day before the monthly savings date.