How to write a cheque from a UK bank when I don't have a UK bank account?

September 13, 2010 7:17 AM

How to write a cheque from a UK bank when I don't have a UK bank account?

As part of the application process for medical school, I need to send an admissions office a physical cheque for 25 pounds, drawn on the UK branch of a bank.

I am currently in Sweden. I have a French and a Canadian bank account, and will soon have a Swedish bank account. None of my banks have branches in the UK.

I don't know anyone in the UK with a chequebook.

What is the cheapest/fastest way to go about this?

posted by snoogles to work & money (7 answers total)

I think you're going to want to talk to the admissions office about this, as this sounds like a mind-numbingly bureaucratic requirement. Which is not to say that some self-important, narrow-minded academic paper pusher might not require it of you, but that it would not surprise me if they were more interesting in getting your money than enforcing the rule.

If they do want to go ahead and enforce it, your best bet may be to find a bank which does have a branch in the UK and have them write you a cashier's/certified check or money order. You may not need to open an account to do this, especially if you explain the situation to them.
posted by valkyryn at 7:29 AM on September 13, 2010

Electronic transfer. You'll need their bank account number, sort code and branch address.

Make sure the originating bank realises that 25 pounds has to hit the UK account, and that fees will be paid on your side (i.e., in addition to the funds transferred).

In the notes section be sure to detail your name and any reference numbers that might help admissions link your payment to your application. From the French or Swedish accounts this shouldn't be a problem at all.
posted by Mutant at 7:45 AM on September 13, 2010 [1 favorite]

If you don't run into some pointy-haired bureaucrat who insists on having a physical piece of paper in their hands, I'd totally go with Mutant's suggestion, but again, your admissions drone may decide to be a dick about it.
posted by valkyryn at 8:06 AM on September 13, 2010

Maybe a banker's draft?
posted by idiomatika at 8:30 AM on September 13, 2010

What Mutant said. I did the same exact thing from the US a few years ago. An electronic transfer shouldn't be a problem for any reasonably large bank. You'll likely have to pay a small fee.

Call the office, and tell them that you want to pay by an electronic transfer or direct debit. They'll know what to do, and will give you the relevant numbers and codes. You're not the first or the last international student that they're going to have.
posted by schmod at 8:43 AM on September 13, 2010

I have run into this problem twice. The first time, my U.S. bank had a service through which I was able to order a cheque in GBP drawn on a UK bank, even though my U.S. bank did not have UK branches. Have you talked to your bank(s) yet?

The second time, I'd switched to a credit union that did not have such a service. I started asking around for advice and found an English department faculty member who traveled to England for research every summer and kept a current account there. He volunteered to write the cheque and I gave him cash for a little over the exchange amount.
posted by Orinda at 8:52 AM on September 13, 2010

This is what a bank draft is for. Your Swedish bank should be able to give you draft drawn in pounds on a UK bank to your specified payee.
posted by canoehead at 9:14 AM on September 13, 2010