US customer do not acctept to pay via Paypal Thread poster: Silvestro De Falco
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Dear colleagues,
I just opened a paypal account but one of my US clients told me that "we do not do the Paypal invoices".
Can you think of a reason why?
Can you recommend a way for me to encourage them "to do Paypal invoices"?
Thank you for a reply.
Silvestro
[Subject edited by staff or moderator 2006-10-25 10:27]
| | | | gianfranco 
Brazil
Local time: 10:05
Member (2001)
English to Italian
+ ...
| Paypal may be unwelcome by some customers | Oct 25, 2006 |
Silvestro De Falco wrote:
...
I just opened a paypal account but one of my US clients told me that "we do not do the Paypal invoices".
...
Hi Silvestro,
first of all, Paypal is not an invoicing system and the answer from your customer is puzzling. If they used those words, as quoted by you, perhaps they don't know what exactly Paypal is and how it works.
In any case, some companies are very conservative about payment procedures and Paypal may just be not of their liking, or that of their administrators. They may prefer bank transfers or cheques to an Internet transaction, and there is nothing much we can do to "convince" them.
Using an Internet payment system, also, involves a greater degree or risk, and customers have the right to not use it, if they are not willing to run such risk. It is understandable, and their right.
Pleaes note that Paypal is handy for small payments but above 250-350$ a regular bank transaction starts to become more convenient.
Paypal not only applies a fee in terms of a percent on the total transferred sum, but for transfer to a different currency they apply an exchange rate which is less convenient than that usually applied by a traditional bank.
It's a kind of invisible fee, but for large sums it is hefty.
I use Paypal, when the client agrees, for some smaller jobs, and use the small total amount available for occasional Internet purchases, but I don't use it to receive payments for large jobs.
bye
Gianfranco
[Edited at 2006-10-25 10:41]
| | | | | US Customer does not accept Paypal | Oct 25, 2006 |
Thank you, Gianfranco.
I sent them a Paypal invoice (there is a template).
In fact, the total is less than $150.00. I figured I could use the sum to buy a few books.
Anyway, back to the check system.
Thanks again,
Silvestro
| | | | | Checks from US clients | Oct 25, 2006 |
Hi Silvestro,
I agree with Gianfranco. And I'd like to add that in my experience many companies in the USA prefer to send checks. My bank in Germany charges about EUR 10 handling fees per check. If your amount is not really small (i.e. below USD 100 or 200) a check will be the more profitable solution for you.
Best regards,
Stefanie
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| Send them a regular invoice | Oct 25, 2006 |
They said that they do not want to pay a "Paypal invoice", this doesn't necessarily that they do not want to pay through Paypal.
In many countries if not most, invoices must have a number (from your books) and bear various legal mentions depending on your status, country etc.
I always send "regular" invoices and mention Paypal as a payment method - clients are not required to have a Paypal account any more, it can be used as a normal bank card payment system.
It d... See more They said that they do not want to pay a "Paypal invoice", this doesn't necessarily that they do not want to pay through Paypal.
In many countries if not most, invoices must have a number (from your books) and bear various legal mentions depending on your status, country etc.
I always send "regular" invoices and mention Paypal as a payment method - clients are not required to have a Paypal account any more, it can be used as a normal bank card payment system.
It depends on where you are, but I certainly **do not** accept checks in USD below $200 any more. My bank + the Bank of France take a total of E14.50 on each foreign check (and this is the cheapest bank in this country for that), and in any way do not accept to process checks in $ under a certain sum (around $80), which is variable depending on the change rate.
Obviously if they reject the check for that reason, they charge you for the rejection (about €35 last time) - even in case it is about a sum that was within the limits the week before.
To make this short, talk with your bank before accepting checks in USD.
There is still the solution of a wire/bank transfer. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Erik Freitag
Germany
Local time: 15:05
Member (2006)
Dutch to German
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| Probably OT: How to arrange payment from abroad | Oct 25, 2006 |
Oddie wrote:
It depends on where you are, but I certainly **do not** accept checks in USD below $200 any more. My bank + the Bank of France take a total of E14.50 on each foreign check (and this is the cheapest bank in this country for that), and in any way do not accept to process checks in $ under a certain sum (around $80), which is variable depending on the change rate.
Dear Oddie,
This may be a bit off topic, but anyway:
Paypal is not for free either (which I've learnt only recently). I hadn't used my Paypal account for years (due to their incredibly poor service).
Recently, I gave it to a US-agency (I'm based in Germany). I was charged a fee of about 20$ for receiving a payment of about 500$! (They charge 3.9% for payments from abroad, if you have a premium account, which I do (and didn't know before).)
I'm thinking of offering paypal payment in the future, but passing these 3.9% on to the agency/outsourcer. Does anybody do this?
Regards,
Erik
| | | | | Yes they charge | Oct 25, 2006 |
Dear Erik
It's a bit off-topic indeed but international payment is an important question for all translators.
Yes certainly Paypal charges - but as far as I'm concerned the figures are:
Paypal: 3.4% + 0.25 Euro + 2.5% if it's from another currency - on average five days to get the money on my bank account, money can be spent the same day if the payment is through Paypal.
Bank (check): 14.50 Euros + 2.5 % - on average one month to get the money on my b... See more Dear Erik
It's a bit off-topic indeed but international payment is an important question for all translators.
Yes certainly Paypal charges - but as far as I'm concerned the figures are:
Paypal: 3.4% + 0.25 Euro + 2.5% if it's from another currency - on average five days to get the money on my bank account, money can be spent the same day if the payment is through Paypal.
Bank (check): 14.50 Euros + 2.5 % - on average one month to get the money on my bank account from the moment I give the check to the bank.
Mathematically, under 419 Euros Paypal charges less than the bank for a foreign check (3.4% of 419 Euros = 14.25 Euros) and the bank gets the better from 420 Euros on.
It depends on the banks so it has to be checked on a case by case basis.
Florence ▲ Collapse
| | | | Erik Freitag
Germany
Local time: 15:05
Member (2006)
Dutch to German
+ ...
| Common practice? | Oct 25, 2006 |
Dear Florence,
I'm sorry for hijacking this thread, but anyway:
Is it really common practice that translators pay these costs? I have a German bank account, and my clients (mostly European, though) pay me by regular bank transfer at no extra cost for me. Maybe this is a specific issue for non-EU clients?
Imagine I order something in the US. The vendor would certainly expect me (as the client) to pay him the full sum, no matter what the costs for the monetary trans... See more Dear Florence,
I'm sorry for hijacking this thread, but anyway:
Is it really common practice that translators pay these costs? I have a German bank account, and my clients (mostly European, though) pay me by regular bank transfer at no extra cost for me. Maybe this is a specific issue for non-EU clients?
Imagine I order something in the US. The vendor would certainly expect me (as the client) to pay him the full sum, no matter what the costs for the monetary transaction are, which means I'd pay the purchase price PLUS banking fees etc. Why should we as translators behave differently?
Best regards,
Erik ▲ Collapse
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| Check vs transfer | Oct 25, 2006 |
There are many financial translators who could be in a better position to answer this - but a check and a wire transfer are two very different things.
Yes, clients usually pay the expenses of the wire transfer. This is because it is paid at the moment it is sent, so they can have a receipt for their bookkeeping.
The expenses for a check are paid at the arrival, you can hardly invoice that and the client cannot have a written proof of this expense.
Certainl... See more There are many financial translators who could be in a better position to answer this - but a check and a wire transfer are two very different things.
Yes, clients usually pay the expenses of the wire transfer. This is because it is paid at the moment it is sent, so they can have a receipt for their bookkeeping.
The expenses for a check are paid at the arrival, you can hardly invoice that and the client cannot have a written proof of this expense.
Certainly a wire transfer is to be preferred over a check. There's no discussion about that when you're at the receiving end. It's just sometimes very complicated to send them (or is it just this post office/bank over here - they need to request the papers from the central office, it takes 2 days, and if you make a spelling mistake and want a second paper it takes 2 days more ...)
Florence ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Sorry for more hijacking, but... | Nov 2, 2006 |
efreitag wrote:
Is it really common practice that translators pay these costs? I have a German bank account, and my clients (mostly European, though) pay me by regular bank transfer at no extra cost for me. Maybe this is a specific issue for non-EU clients?
As far as I know, wire transfers within the Euro-zone are (or should be) mostly free, but at least my bank here in the UK charges for incoming foreign transfers, which of course the sender of the payment can't be expected to pay!
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