The mysterious Php200 Paypal Withdrawal Fee

Abe Olandres Editor-in-chief February 15, 2008 · 2 min read

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The recent Paypal withdrawal feature got everybody thrilled especially that bank fees are practically free for amounts greater than Php7,000 (and it’s only Php50 if less than that.) Never mind the lower exchange rates as that’s the only way banks benefit from this setup with eBay/Paypal.

The mystery though is that there still seem to be some form of bank fees as I personally experienced the other day. A week ago, I withdrew an amount of $200 from my Paypal account to see how much lower the exchange rates would go. It basically hovers somewhere around Php0.90 less than current day exchange rates. That means my $1 dollar went from Php40.60 to just ~Php39.70 when I transferred it to the bank.

Another withdrawal for the amount of $1,000 a few days later showed the same discrepancy in the exchange rates. Now we know why bank fees are free.

However, the actual amount that reflected in the bank is Php200 short. See screen shots below from Paypal transaction history and Banco de Oro online banking report.

Obviously, the missing Php200 was not reported as a transaction fee. My other theory is that it could be another exchange rate since the dates of transaction span around 3 days (though it’s weird that the rates ended up an with exact Php200 difference).

I withdrew again to another bank to see if there’s gonna be the same Php200 difference. Sent an email to eBay’s PR for SEA to clarify this as local banks are still oblivious of Paypal.

What is the Php200 mystery fee when withdrawing from PayPal?

The Php200 difference between the withdrawn amount and the bank deposit is not reported as a transaction fee.

How much lower is the exchange rate when withdrawing from PayPal?

The exchange rate is about Php0.90 less than the current day exchange rate.

Is the Php200 fee consistent across different banks?

The author withdrew to another bank to check if the same Php200 difference occurs.

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Abe Olandres

Editor-in-chief

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and is considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines.

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76 Comments

Den Den · 9 years ago

Yes. I experienced the same thing.I just recieved the money today. I withdrawn 5k just to test it through and the most annoying thing is it took BDO to exactly 7 days in order for them to put the money in my bank account though paypal processed only 2days to complete their transaction with BDO. PHP 4,750 is reflected in my account today. 50 pesos for paypal fees and thats that the mysterious 200 pesos just vanished in BDO’s expensed. I know because I often do my withdrawals in BPI in there is no 200php deduction.

Jaizhi · 13 years ago

I noticed this too and had called my bank “sterling bank of asia” they just said they charge EFT and so does paypal. Told them it is over 7k so wla charge si paypal and they cant seem to give me exact amount ng kinuha nila as their EFT fee but from what I noticed it was 300 pesos +… Moving to Union…

Andrew · 14 years ago

Go for Unionbank. They don’t deduct a single centavo on your PayPal withdrawals as long as you withdraw Php7,000 and more.

Ishabelle · 14 years ago

I have been a full time online worked for almost two years and I’ve been using my BPI bank account for withdrawals, I know they charge P150 as bank transaction fee. BDO does charge P200 as well as other banks. It’s really too bad, but I don’t think there’s anything we can do if it’s a bank policy which has nothing to do with Paypal.

John · 14 years ago

Hi Mga kabayan!

Thank you po sa creator nitong site pati na rin ang mga forumers na nagpopost ng comments. You’re so very helpful sa mga gaya naming freelancers.

Good luck po sa lahat!

rea · 15 years ago

hello good morning i have international card ,the brand is cirrus in maestro…my money in my savings is 8,000 i try to withdraw 7,500 but does not release …then i try to withdraw again 5,ooo next 2,000 ,,i have recieve a recipt which is 400pesos deduction since i access and withdraw two times…but the problem is i cannot get my balance 500 … is it true that the deduction in international card is 1,000 php

Johnny Cagasan · 15 years ago

I try to apply paypall and use my smartmoney but they will not accept my smart money card only Credit Card, Any suggestion how to apply paypall using smart money card for withdrawal. Thanks.

Ryan · 15 years ago

USE SMARTMONEY TO WITHDRAW PAYPAL FUNDS USE SHIFT CODE OF BDO THANKS

franco · 15 years ago

I use EON for 1 and a half year and i see no problem on my account withdrawal….

Girard Andrew · 16 years ago

Although PayPal does not charge for fund transfers to BDO accounts (referring to P7,000 and up), BDO charges P200 for the transfer transactions.
I guess I need to explore other options. I heard Unionbank does not charge a fee.

Brian · 16 years ago

Wow! nag google ako at ito itong site ang lumabas :D

Anyway, ang problem ko naman is bakit ang baba ng exchange rate ng paypal kesa sa mismong banko natin dito sa pinas. Nag withdraw ako ng $100 to metrobank dati at 43 lang ang exchange rate ng paypal eh 45 ang sa metrobank. Ilang days nanaman ang dumaan at withdraw ulit ako ng $300 papunta metrobank, ganun parin mababa parin exchange rate ng paypal. Ano yun protection ng paypal dahil fluctuate ang dollar? Kahit ba magopen ako ng dollar account eh dedeposit ba ng paypal eh pesos parin?

@k_mae – hi ^_^ try mo post ng resume mo sa Onlinejobs.ph, 1st try ko sa online outsourcing is sa forums.digitalpoint.com sumasali ako sa mga contest dun (graphics & logo design) tapus may amerikano nag contact sakin, heto ako now full time sa amerikano. pay nya ako $20/day. tapos iba pa yung mga sideline ko. tapos nag post ako ng resume sa onlinejobs.ph tapos may 3 amerikano nag email at kumukuha sakin, kaso isa nalang ang kaya ko, pinili ko yung parttime. Bale ang work ko now is isang Fulltime($20/day) isang parttime($60/week) at mga sidelines…Try mo ^_~

jun · 16 years ago

siguro nga.. dapat pag mag widthdraw tayo sa paypay.. eh mag ipon muna tayo ng funds bago natin ma withdraw.. lugi ka kasi pag less $100 yung withdraw mo.. pag mas malaki.. mas ok .. mas mababa compare kung ang gagamitin eh xoom..

k_mae · 16 years ago

hi guyz! i was just wondering what do u do and where do you guyz work to get paid from paypal? i am a fresh graduate and i would like to have a part time job while waiting to have a full time job. thank u.

Nick · 18 years ago

Hmm, I came across this looking to see if anyone else noticed a recent change in the PayPal withdraw function.

I went to do the normal withdraw to credit card the other day and forgot all about the increases in the exchange rate, but what I found was nice. For starters, PayPal now does the automatic conversion from USD to PHP before the withdraw is even sent to the bank. Furthermore, the $5 charge is no longer $5 but it is P200 flat.It is nice seeing the actual exchange rate PayPal is sending the money to the account as well as seeing the credit card withdraw fee in Pesos.

-Nick

rhuby · 18 years ago

hello, im currently working in one of our local banks mentioned above, as far as i know, hindi siya hidden charges, everytime u withdraw kc from any other bank aside from ur own bank (e.g. metrobank to bpi or vice versa), especially if ur card is an international one ( with logo of cirrus, maestro, plus, mastercard, visa, amex etc.) normally $3.50 ang withdrawal fee, plus pag nag balance inquire ka pa, another $1.50 pa un, multiplied by conversion rate for that day. so since nag out ka ng funds mo, considered w/wal din cia. AND hindi ang local banks ang kumikita dun, but the networks like mastercard, visa and the like, though ang alam ko, may certain commission lang ang local banks but very minimal lang ciempre, for the cost of using their atm machines.

Jehzeel Laurente · 18 years ago

@karla – nag withdraw na ako sa BPI at may hidden fee din, pero di ko nalang pinansin.. mga 200+ din cguro :) hehe

Jihan · 18 years ago

Just wanna know if what BDO account u used to link on ur paypal? Is it the credit card or the BDO ATM debit account (with mastercard logo)? Mine is the latter but always get denied by paypal…. what seems to be the problem? so frustrating…

as of the P200 mystery lost from making money transfer via BDO…i heard it’s their flat rate charge for online transactions…same as to China Bank.

aytako · 18 years ago

http://paypalsucks.com/PayPalFormerEmployee1.shtml

paypal truth

Angelo · 18 years ago

Unionbank hasn’t made any deduction as for me so far.. I already withdrawn money several times and the only deduction is the Php50 of PayPal..

PIng · 18 years ago

I guess it’s better to withdraw to UnionBank. Never experienced the P200 deduction, so far.

Head Geekette · 18 years ago

@sherwin Banks also accept Postal IDs. Getting one is actually easy. Just go to your resident city’s post office and ask how to avail of one. A GSIS or SSS card is also acceptable.

Nowadays, a lot of banks and even some shopping malls now ask for two IDs instead of just one to confirm your identity. Getting that postal ID will actually help in the long run.

sherwin · 18 years ago

Paypal to Metrobank withdrawal last Monday with the amounts of $200=7K+. P76.7 was deducted. mas mababa ng 0.70-0.80 ang exchange rate.

sa akin ok na yun, wala akong eon eh, hindi binigay yung card ko, I need to present 2 valid IDs daw. kaso driver license lang meron ako at original marriage contract and birth certificate pero gusto nila galing pa ng NSO. ganun sila ka higpit sa isang debit card na wala namang laman at babayaran ko pa. :)

karla · 18 years ago

thanks for the tips everyone. :) so, I’d rather get myself an EON account. :D

Gloria · 18 years ago

in that case – and the fact that the USD to PHP conversion of paypal is too low, I’d rather use the withdraw to card option wherein my local card provider will convert my paypal funds based on their current conversion rate.

jangelo · 18 years ago

That depends on your bank. I think it’s the usual bank transfer fee when one transfers from a foreign-currency deposit account to a PhP account. Some banks, I think, even charge PhP 500. Some charge lower (like Metrobank).

Andre · 18 years ago

I transferred 5k from my PayPal to Union Bank account, sent on 2/11, received on 2/14. Pretty quick.

ana.banana · 18 years ago

same here. it was around Php150 – Php200… on my BPI express cash account.

ChrisMo · 18 years ago

hmmm… Same thing for bdo, and when you talk to their info desk, they can’t even muster PayPal. I’m just happy my eon card just got here today. Let me try this one…

marhgil · 18 years ago

same thing happened with my Paypal to BDO withdrawal, 200 pesos was deducted. :(

Liz · 18 years ago

True, BPI has hidden fees., naloka ako sa kaka-calculate. So I go back to EON, at least dun clear na 5$ lang ang fee.

Joni · 18 years ago

I withdrew funds to two separate local banks (BPI and Chinabank) with amounts of more than 7K and both times there was a discrepancy of 200 pesos.

I wonder where my 400 pesos went.

Gloria · 18 years ago

so in effect, either way (to credit/debit/card or pinas bank account) you withdraw paypal funds eh halos 5$ lang din and charge.

baka pumatak pang mas mahal yung withdraw to bank account na 50+200 = 250/40=6.25$ depending on how much the dollar really is.

Gloria · 18 years ago

that could be bank-related. i used my metrobank account and i experienced the same thing: the credited amount is 200 pesos short.

but when using the EON. I’m not sure if Unionbank deducts an additional amount because i haven’t really checked. ;-)

karla · 18 years ago

I want to hear someone’s experience in withdrawing to their BPI Savings Account.

The Dark Knight · 18 years ago

@Jeric and Jhay,
what’s the exchange rate for Unionbank?

silvertooth26 · 18 years ago

Haven’t tried to withdraw my measly $$ yet, but hope that won’t happen to me =p

Jeric · 18 years ago

Unionbank has made no other deductions on my past 2 withdrawals.

jhay · 18 years ago

Wow! That’s quite a lot for a difference in exchange rate. In the 2 bank withdrawals I’ve made so far, Unionbank has made no other deductions aside from the Php50 fee.