In a separate post, we talked about the different bank fees of banks if you are to utilize an automated teller machine (ATM) not provided by your debit card’s issuing bank. In that, you knew how much a specific charge is if you transact (either if you do balance inquiry or withdraw) with a different bank’s ATM.
Previously BPI’s charge was P15.00 for withdrawal charges (if you withdraw via a different ATM) and P1.50 if you do balance inquiry. In this article, we will talk about The Bank of the Philippine Island’s (BPI’s) implementation of asking for higher service fees starting this month. They made the announcement a few days before December 2018 ended.
Read: How to apply for BPI Savings Account
What transactions will be affected by this change?
Following the increases BPI made last September 2018, this change would hike prices for both deposits and withdrawals starting this year. Last September, the following fees for the following transactions heightened:
- Checkbook issuing;
- Checkbook en-cashing; and
- Providing bank statements.
These were push-backed by higher offices and allowed the public and some businesses proper time period for adjustments.
This time, however, everything will start on a clean slate. Both deposits and withdrawals either over-the-counter transactions and inter-region will see an increase in every transaction.
Inter-region transactions are transactions if you transact in a different city. An example is if your main bank is in Metro Manila and if you utilize your card in Cebu city. Over-the-counter transactions, on the other hand, are transactions that are made via the teller inside banks’ counters.
What are the new fees?
Since the new fees would only include deposits and withdrawals, the following would be the new set of fees that BPI banks will follow:
- Over-the-counter withdrawals (accounts with ATM cards): P100.00
- Inter-region cash deposit fee: P50.00
- Inter-region withdrawal fee: P100.00
Moreover, it is imperative to know that for dollar deposits, a charge of P0.10 per $1 is now in effect. This is to stabilize the economy for foreign currencies coming in and out of the banking system of the Philippines.
Read: How to use BPI Cash Deposit Machine
Refer to the table below for the changes that transpired last September 2018 if you are still not aware of what the changes in the transaction fees were. Some of it, like third currencies are not entirely affected, but some are. So, it’s better to know before you do such transactions and for everyone to be prepared in the event that they need to transact with the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI).
Service/Transaction | Price or fee before the 1st of September 2018 | Price or fee after the 1st of September 2018 |
Manager’s Check | P50.00 | P75.00 |
Demand Draft | P495.00 | P550.00 |
Checkbook | ||
Personal | P175.00 | P250.00 |
Corporate | P350.00 | P500.00 |
Statement of Account (SoA) | P100.00 for the first three (3) pages | P10 per page for succeeding pages | P50.00 per page |
Rental of Safety Deposit Box (SDB Rental) | ||
A | P400.00 to P600.00 per year | P2,000.00 per year |
B | P1,200.00 to P1,500.00 per year | P3,000.00 per year |
C | P2,000 per year | P4,000.00 per year |
D | P2,500.00 per year | P5,000.00 per year |
E | P4,500.00 per year | P6,000.00 per year |
Currency Cash Deposit (Foreign Currencies) | ||
US Dollar | Going over US $5,000.00, a P0.10 per USD 1.00 or a fraction, thereof | A P0.10 per $1 or a fraction, thereof |
Third Currency | For FREE | A P0.10 per $1 or a fraction, thereof |
Currency Cash Withdrawal (Foreign Currencies) | ||
US Dollar | Going over US $5,000.00, a P0.10 per USD 1.00 or a fraction, thereof | For FREE |
Third Currency | For FREE | For FREE |
In addition to this, the BPI also has Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) which concern the new fees of the transactions. The following information can be some sort of a guide to everyone who is looking to transact with BPI whether or not they are an account holder of any BPI branch or subsidiary.
FAQs taken from the BPI website:
Are BPI Family Savings Bank clients/account also covered?
Yes, all BPI Family Savings Bank clients and accounts are also covered by these updates of the lists and the fees.
Read: The BPI Get Ready to Win EMV Raffle Promo
Who will be covered by this updated list of fees?
All BPI and non-BPI clients who choose to transact in BPI branches will be covered by the new fees.
Are BPI Direct clients/accounts also covered?
Just like the BPI Family Savings Bank clients, BPI Direct BanKo clients and non-BPI Direct BanKo clients who choose to transact in BPI branches will also be covered by the updated fees.
How about senior citizens and persons with disabilities (PWDs)? Are they also covered?
Yes, these new bank fees will also apply to both senior citizens and PWDs. As per Section 4 and 1 of Republic Act (R.A.) No. 7432, Senior Citizens Act and R.A. No. 9442, Magna Carta Act for Disabled Persons and for Other Purposes, the 20 percent discount will not apply for bank fees.
Are there specific transactions not covered by these updated fees?
All check deposits are not covered by these updated fees. As of the moment, these will remain to be free of charge.
According to BPI, they are charging new fees because they have not updated their banking fees for quite some time now; this act is just them aligning their prices and fees with the country’s industry prices. More so, these fees will be utilized to improve all other services of the bank to provide clients and accounts flawless and seamless experience and transactions.
People who want to avoid paying the fees can utilize the self-serve option or the online portal. For example, people can download and print their own statement of account for both deposit and investment accounts via www.bpiexpressonline instead of asking a specific BPI branch to print it for them.
Read: BDO to charge Php10 for BDO to BDO transfers
Although this is the case, we should still consider that the updates this year only affected inter-region cash and withdrawals and over-the-counter transactions. The updates and changes you see in the tables are updates from September of last year, we are just giving you a quick rundown of what it was.
More so, banks usually hike their fees in order to provide better, faster, and much more efficient customer experience and transactions. Although there have been no announcement on what they will be using this for, of course, it is for something better and it is for them to improve the processes and the customer service that they currently have now.
Curious as to what banking fees and transaction fees are? If you are interested in knowing what the charges are for ATM withdrawal and balance inquiries, you can refer to a previous article we have written. However, do know these updates from BPI in order for you to be prepared when you need to transact with any BPI branch here in the country.