Payment methods for customers outside Australia

Payment options

It is usually best to send your TB-303 and wait for me to contact you regarding payment, which I will do when I am working on the machine.

The table at the main page (index.html#price-table) has links to conversions into currencies other than Australian dollars.  These figures are a guide to your costs, since the actual exchange rates vary day-to-day and with different banks.  The payment methods below are for customers outside Australia, with the final payment being in Australian Dollars.  I don't accept credit card payments, but it is possible to use major credit cards via PayPal, as described below.

It is possible to pay via a Bank Cheque, in Australian dollars, which any bank can create and which my bank can accept quickly and without any fees.  (Ordinary cheques from accounts in other countries can be cashed here, but there are fees and delays of many weeks.) For instance a bank in Denmark creates a paper cheque using an account they have with an Australian bank.  You send this to me, and I pay it into my account.

Advantages:

No fees or delays at this end. 

Disadvantages:

You need to visit your bank, pay a fee for the cheque (which may be USD$20 or Euro 10 or so), and post the cheque to me.   This does not involve any extra delay if you send the cheque with the TB-303.  However, it is usually best to send the TB-303 and then sort out payment when I am actually working on the machine.

The most common approach is Bank Transfer, AKA Wire Transfer, using the SWIFT inter-bank system.  This can be done by visiting your bank - or any bank, since you don't need an account to do this.  Alternatively, many banks enable this via their Internet banking system, though they may have some limits or special security measures to guard against fraudulent use of the system.  This is usually the best way to pay for the full modifications.  The details you need to give to your bank are at the end of this page.

Advantages:

There is no physical cheque to post.  The payment usually arrives in my account within 2 to 5 days.  As with the Bank Cheque approach, the total cost depends on your bank's exchange rates, which vary between banks, but which are certainly more favorable PayPal's rates.

Disadvantages: 

The fee you pay your bank for this service is probably marginally higher than for a Bank Cheque.  In Australia, a typical transfer fee is AUD$28, which is about USD$22 or Euro 17.  However I have heard of some banks in other countries charging significantly more than this.  There are a number of other potential disadvantages:

1. Some or many banks in the USA are incompetent and cannot send a transfer for an Australian dollar amount.  Instead they do a calculation on the day of the payment and send a payment specified in US dollars.  My bank converts that value at their exchange rates on the day the payment arrives.  This typically results in a lower payment.  This is usually not a major problem and I accept this risk.
   
   
2. Some banks, mainly in the USA, are unable to send the transfer directly to the Commonwealth Bank.  Instead, they send it via one (or in theory potentially more) intermediary bank, who take a fee, such as USD$25.  This is all part of the contract, and banks typically can't tell you whether or not intermediaries will be used.  I accept the risk of this occurring.
   

Banks banks outside the USA, in my experience, are always able to transfer the exact Australian dollar amount.  Some UK and European banks are even enable the sender to pay for the fee (AUD$5) which my bank charges for accepting this kind of payment.


It is possible to pay via PayPal using your Credit Card.  (See the section below if you are in the UK, the USA or Canada and wish to use an "eCheck" or "eCheque" payment from your bank account, without using a credit card.) This is the best approach for smaller payments, such as if I am doing a single additional modification or a repair to machine I have already modified.  For payments for the full modifications, I am not sure that the costs will be less than the fee for a Bank Transfer - but you may find PayPal more convenient.

The following is based on you using PayPal to send an Australian Dollar amount, no matter what the currency of your credit card is. 

Advantages:

Many people are familiar with PayPal.  If your credit card has sufficient funds, you can make your payment securely, via the Net, in a few minutes.  PayPal does not divulge your card details to anyone.  I get notification of your payment instantly.

Disadvantages for larger payments, such as for the full modifications:

1. They charge me a 3.4% fee, so you need to add this to the Australian Dollar amount you send.
   
   
2. PayPal's exchange rates for converting from one currency to another are significantly worse than the usual inter-bank rates.  They acknowledge this, and justify it by pointing out that there are costs in any credit card transaction between different currencies.  In their FAQ Why is the foreign exchange rate different from what I see in the newspaper? (2006-01-08) PayPal states "The 2.5% spread that PayPal charges is competitive with most multi-currency credit card transactions, in which Visa or MasterCard charge a 1% spread above their wholesale exchange rate, and the card-issuing bank typically charges an additional spread of 1-3%."

For customers in the USA, the UK and Canada, PayPal with eCheque or eCheck is an attractive option.  This involves PayPal taking money directly from your bank account, such as a cheque/check account or, I guess, a savings account.  It does not involve the use of a credit card and it does not involve you writing a cheque/check.  

Advantages:

1. No need for a credit card with sufficient funds.
   
   
2. Their 3.4% fee is capped at AUD$7.50, so don't worry about it - there is no need  to add 3.4% to the amount you send me.
   
   

Disadvantages:

1. It can take 4 working days in the USA (8 in Canada and 9 in the UK) for PayPal to complete the transaction with your account.  I get a notice of a pending payment, but it is not confirmed and the money does not arrive in my PayPal account until the 4/8/9 day period.  This is generally not a problem, since I will still be working on the machine.
   
   
2. Compared to a bank transfer, you are still paying PayPal's higher exchange rates, but then you don't have any fee for the bank transfer.  Generally, for smaller payments, this makes PayPal clearly better. 

  Account name:     Real World Interfaces
                       (It is a cheque account.)

  Bank:             Commonwealth Bank of Australia
                       (The largest bank in Australia.)

  SWIFT-code for the Commonwealth Bank of Australia:
                    CTBAAU2S

                    (If your bank asks for an IBAN number, this
                     is only for accounts in European countries:
                        http://www.ecbs.org/iban.htm
                     No account in Australia has an IBAN number.)


  Branch:           Balwyn
                       (Address: 220 Whitehorse Road Balwyn 3104)
                       (Fax number of the branch:  +61 3 9888 5098)

  Full acc. number: 06310500171707

                       (063105 is the "Bank-State-Branch" or BSB number,
                        which is what some overseas banks may call the
                        "Routing Number".)
                       (3105 is the branch number.)
                       (00171707 is the account number within the
                        Balwyn branch.)