Investment & Money Transfer for Expats
Where newcomers can invest legally, how investment income is taxed, and the cheapest, safest ways to move money across borders in each of our six destinations.
Investing & Sending Money from the USA (2026)
Brokerage and 401(k) basics for newcomers, FDIC-protected savings, and the cheapest ways to remit dollars home.
Investing & Money Transfer from the UK (2026)
ISAs, workplace pensions and FSCS-protected accounts — plus low-fee GBP transfer routes for expats.
Investing & Sending Money from Australia (2026)
Superannuation, ASX investing for residents, and how to move AUD abroad without losing money on spreads.
Investing & Money Transfer from Canada (2026)
TFSA and RRSP essentials for newcomers, CDIC-covered deposits, and the best CAD remittance options.
Investing & Sending Money from Italy (2026)
Italian investment accounts, capital gains treatment, SEPA transfers and FITD-protected deposits.
Investing & Money Transfer from Portugal (2026)
Investing as a D7/D8 resident, IRS treatment of investment income, and low-cost EUR transfer routes.
Investing & transfers · In-depth
Moving your money across borders without losing value
The cost of an international transfer is mostly invisible: the fee is small, the exchange-rate margin is not. High-street banks typically add 1.5–4% to the mid-market rate, so a €50,000 relocation transfer can quietly cost more than a thousand euros. Specialist providers publish the mid-market rate plus an explicit fee, and for amounts above roughly USD 25,000 a broker with a forward contract lets you lock a rate up to twelve months ahead — valuable when your move date and your salary currency do not line up.
Compare on the total received amount in the destination currency, never on the advertised fee. Check the delivery window, whether the receiving bank charges its own inbound fee, and whether the provider is regulated in both countries.
Compliance and source of funds
Large inbound transfers trigger routine anti-money-laundering checks. Have a clean paper trail ready — a property sale contract, a settlement statement, or investment redemption confirmations — and the transfer clears in days rather than weeks.
Avoid informal channels
Unlicensed transfer arrangements offer better rates and no protection. If the counterparty fails, the money is simply gone, and the receiving bank may freeze the account.
Currency risk after you land
If you earn in one currency and owe a mortgage or school fees in another, you carry currency risk permanently. Matching the currency of your income to the currency of your liabilities, or transferring on a fixed monthly schedule, removes most of the volatility without any need to forecast rates.
Investing as a cross-border resident
The core question is not which fund to buy but which jurisdiction should hold it. US persons face PFIC treatment on most non-US funds, while non-US investors in US-domiciled ETFs can face 30% dividend withholding and US estate-tax exposure above modest thresholds — which is why Irish-domiciled UCITS ETFs are the common answer for expats outside the USA.
Use the local tax-advantaged wrapper of the country where you actually pay tax, keep costs low with broad index funds, and hold six months of expenses in cash before investing anything. Also confirm what happens to the account if you move again: some brokers restrict or close accounts when you change residency, so portability is a real selection criterion.
Moving money across borders without losing value or breaking rules
Currency conversion is the most reliably overpriced part of an international move. The headline fee is rarely the real cost; the spread between the interbank rate and the rate you are offered is. On a single transfer of a deposit and three months of living costs, a two per cent spread can cost more than a year of bank account fees. Compare providers on the amount that lands in the destination account, not on the advertised fee, and run the comparison on the same day because rates and spreads move.
For large one-off transfers such as a property purchase, ask specifically about forward contracts and limit orders. Locking a rate when you sign a purchase agreement removes the risk that a currency move changes your budget before completion. For recurring transfers such as maintaining a mortgage at home, a standing arrangement with a specialist provider is almost always cheaper than a bank's regular payment service.
Reporting thresholds and source-of-funds checks
Banks are required to ask where large sums came from, and being unable to answer quickly is the main cause of frozen transfers. Keep a documented chain: a property sale contract, an inheritance grant, a share-sale statement, or payslips covering the accumulation period. Separately, several countries require declarations for cross-border movements above set thresholds, and cash carried in person is subject to strict limits at the border.
Keep records longer than you think you need
Source-of-funds questions can resurface years later during a mortgage application or a tax review. Store the supporting documents with your tax records rather than deleting them once the transfer clears.
Investing as a newly arrived resident
Tax-advantaged accounts are national and generally cannot be carried across borders: an ISA, a TFSA or RRSP, a 401(k) or IRA, and superannuation each have their own rules, and a wrapper that is tax-free at home may be fully taxable in your new country. Before contributing to anything, confirm how your new country of residence treats that specific account type, and check whether your old country continues to tax it after you leave.
Reporting foreign accounts and assets
Most destinations require residents to declare foreign accounts above a threshold, and information is exchanged automatically between tax authorities under common reporting standards. US citizens and green-card holders additionally file FBAR and FATCA reports regardless of where they live. These are disclosure obligations rather than extra taxes, but penalties for silence are severe, so treat the first filing in your new country as a task worth paying an accountant to get right.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest way to send a large sum abroad?
For amounts above roughly USD 25,000, a regulated FX broker with a forward or spot contract usually beats both banks and app-based providers. Below that, a specialist transfer app at the mid-market rate is normally the best deal.
Can I keep my home-country brokerage account?
Sometimes. Many brokers restrict accounts once you become non-resident, particularly US brokers for clients moving to the EU. Ask before you move, because a forced liquidation can crystallise tax you did not plan for.
Should I hedge my currency exposure?
Hedge liabilities, not ambitions. If you have fixed future costs in another currency, lock the rate; if you are investing for the long term in your new home currency, regular contributions already average out most of the risk.
Figures on this page reflect published 2026 government rates and typical market pricing at the time of writing. Rules change — always confirm against the official immigration, tax or regulator website for your destination before you act.