₦airaland Forum

lavida001:
What’s the monthly ATM withdrawal to £

Should be £750 daily, not monthly. You can instruct them to increase it.

lola0999:
Also,
I have another question,
How do I navigate from where the bus will stop me to my hotel seeing that I may have not gotten a UK SIM by then?
If I decide I want to use uber,how do I hail a uber without internet on my phone(Seeing that
I will have no SIM with data) then..?

There should be Wifi in the airport, or you use your Nigerian SIM (roaming). I typically just book National Express Coach.

lola0999:
Hello mates,

I will be traveling in few days and I need advice.
I have about 1,400 dollars in my dollar account.
Do I withdraw this and change to pounds before I leave?
Or I can I use my GTBank usd card over there for my booked hotel payment etc..?
Please what is the best advice?
I will be reading comments

Thanks

Your choice, really. There's not so much difference.

Lexusgs430:
You think it's not normal, for Nigerian banks to rip their customers off ............

Hehee... it's not o

lightnlife:
No be small thing.

Anything we be 'E' na motorised and they're classified as vehicle needing license.

Problem no day finish.

You don't need license for e-bike, the electric bicycle.

Lexusgs430:
Very normal ....... But people that love the convenience/or having trust issues....... Should just keep using ATM's .......

It's not normal jor

lightnlife:
What's been the exchange rate of recent?

This has always been my concern. I eventually used my USD card to withdraw Pounds today, and it was bad.

For context, I withdrew 250 quid, and 357.82 USD was debited from my account. The difference is too much.

The exchange rate was pegged at £1:$1.4088. Access fee was charged at £3.99. Then they added a "Mark Up" fee of 12.8%.

Is this a normal experience with exchanging USD to GBP via a Nigerian issuer?

Nope. Should be about like 1.2 or 1.3. Reason why I kept saying Access Bank

Jbloc:
This case is the reverse, the Op wanted £.

Oh, I see! Well, what I do in that case is: Send Naira to my aboki and he credits my Access Bank USD Account with Dollars, then I use the Debit card of that USD Account and withdraw Pounds from the ATM.

HondaLover:
Good day everyone, I've tried following this trend at least from December 2021 up till this moment.
The information here are amazing and it would save a whole lot of people coming in.
Kudos to everyone who has helped in one way or the other, I can't begin to mention names.

To my questions, I will be coming to the UK soon with wifey as a dependant(she got a job at Hull University Teaching Hospital, NHS), I've really not heard much talked about around the region, I would love people give information or ideas around living within the East Yorkshire.

What are the possible options for me in terms of work? I'm a Data Analyst and a Digital Marketer as well(I don't think I'm ready for this care job sha
Is it advisable to get a car or public transport is fine for a newbie(Not like funds dey oo )?

Concerning accommodation, I know where to look by now, but after seeing that most of the house utensils can be gotten for relatively cheap or next to nothing, is a furnished still the best option?

Concerning getting a car, can an MOT be transfered?, is Insurance and Road tax mutually exlusive(if the oyinbo correct )?

Should I get to clinch a job that comes with sponsorship, how do I go about it (I've applied for a PBS/partner visa hoping to hear from TLS soon) I go Port or not?

Is a bicycle tax free? Be like say this UK go tax person to any lenght(can a delivery job be gotten via bicycle or some sort).

A sizeable amount of tech job opportunities I see are in london(how do I navigate Provided madam go dey hull, it won't be easy doing two accommodations o).

Let me stop here for now.

Thanks in anticipation

Honourary mentions
Ticha( I hail o)
Lexusgs430 (Àgbà!!!)
Justwise(Mr No nonsense I see you)
Umarwy(Mr fast and Furious)
The Aboki Camps Nagode
The HR camps(Good afternoon Dear Senior Colleagues).
I tap out

Well, in addition to what Lexusgs430 said, and I risk repeating some of his points, you don't have to do care job. There are other casual jobs like Warehouse, Factory, Call centre, Data Entry clerk, etc. As for Professional jobs, if you are good in Data Analysis and Digital Marketing, there are a lot of opportunities and many of them are Remote jobs or outside London too.

Get a car, don't get a car: your choice. I won't advise you rush into getting one but they're quite affordable so you can if you want to. It depends on where you live, availability of parking space in your accommodation and available public transportation.

Bicycle is a good option. You can get a used one for as little as £60 and a brand new one for as low as £200. You can even get an electric one for like £600. And you can take them on trains or even buses (smaller foldable ones) so with a bicycle and train ticket, you can travel to anywhere in the UK. No tax, no fuel, just sheer manpower.

The delivery jobs are a little scarce in smaller Towns now compared to Covid era.

Your question about sponsorship job, "ayam not understanding".

All in all, one step at a time, enter UK first, you will definitely figure the rest out, you even have soft landing with your wife's job. Some people came here on Student visa and a year later, they had paid their £15k school fees and are earning 6 figures income as a Couple. The Job market is that good now for Tech if you can prove you know your stuff.

Khalifa99:
I see reasons why most of you say things like stay away from any Nigeria but I always think it can’t be that bad but what happened to me this morning made me understand that we Nigerians are truly our problems

I got a message in one of the groups I joined while I was processing my student visa
Saying he needs naira who has pounds
Sent a dm
We both agreed on a rate
And he said he needed 250 pounds
Spoke on the WhatsApp call,Came to a rate of 750 and he said it was okay by him

I sent my uk bank
He sent where he wants the naira

I credited him the naira of 182,500
Then gave him screenshot
I gave him 10mins
Sent him a message then called him
Told him what’s causing the delay he told me he needed 300 I said oh sorry I don’t have 300 you said only 250 and I have 250 only

He told me the reciever is having problems because he needs 300 not 250 pounds
He then told me to send extra fifty in naira currency before he can send the pounds to me

I told him I don’t have
Then I told him please send my naira back

Only for few mins to noticed he blocked me


Here is the number +234 702 525 2570
He calls himself mr REx

I'm so sorry you had to pass through this. Reach out to both Banks but you might have to start setting your mind on the fact that the money is gone.

You said "stay away from Nigerians" and I warn it might not be the solution. Scammers are everywhere, not just among Nigerians. We need to be extremely careful and think this through deeply whether with Nigerians or any other Nationality especially when transacting with someone we met on Whatsapp, Gumtree, Facebook, etc even Nairaland! Heck, you can even be scammed on this very thread, be that suspicious!

For instance, I don't Exchange money with someone I don't know or on a platform without a Regulator. I use CBN approved apps like WorldRemit, Sendwave, etc (there are probably up to 50 of them) to convert my Pounds here to USD in Nigeria, either in my Access Bank USD Account or for someone to pick up at a Bank branch(never done this). I then transfer to my trusted aboki in Nigeria (who just happens to be an Alhaji with the best rates ever). And voila! In a matter of minutes, I convert my funds and CBN even dashes me N5 per Dollar. The rates are not that bad, last week, £1,000 converted to N755k so N755 per pound.

So sorry, once again, we learn daily.

Mamatukwas:
Good morning oh. So Virgin our Internet provider recently has been taking the piss and we want to port.

What are you guys using that is affordable and efficient? Internet only, no add ons?

Vodafone. I pay £23 for one of the best Internet services I know here

Ibk2020:
My bank is giving me dollar in cash instead of pounds as PTA, pls how best can I get value for my money when exchanging?
Should I exchange at the airport or bring the dollars to UK to come exchange?

I won't advise you bring it to the UK. The rates here aren't good. You can deposit it in your Nigerian USD Account if it's a decent bank like Access, Zenith or Gtb. Otherwise, convert it to Pounds or Naira at aboki.

Keralis:
Good morning,
Kindly clarify if the 2nd dose Covid vaccine must be taken 2 weeks b4 travel to Nigeria or if it's okay to take the 2nd dose a day b4 departure.

As long as you took it, it's fine. It doesn't matter when.

lightnlife:
Afternoon House,

I'm about to take an offer and this clause on renumeration looks funny to me. Is this a normal practice in the UK?

"Remuneration is payable in arrears. You will be paid for each calendar month on the 5th of the subsequent month (or on the preceding working day if the 5th of the month falls on a non-working day) by BACS. Please allow up to 5 working days for transfer to be completed."

Lexusgs430, erico2k2, omopapa, Fatima04, goke77, Solumtoya, sammyk, NNTR

Very normal.

lightnlife:
Just realised people need license to ride e-scooters in this UK ooo.

Abi am I getting it all wrong?

Uhmmm... the truth is that it is actually illegal to ride an e-scooter on any public road. So no need for license since it is illegal. Many people don't know this.

Khalifa99:
Hello everybody
I just arrived in the uk 2 days ago
Can someone please suggest a bank I can set up online
Monzo won’t give me one
And netwest is asking for proof of living

I only have my student id
And my brp card.

You can get Revolut. I can give you £20 if you use my my link below: https://revolut.com/referral/jedidi9xv3!MAY1-22-AR

Viruses:
I cannot download the amex app from playstore because the location on my phone is Nigeria. How can I change the location please? I have tried to no avail.

Have you sorted this? To change your Google Play country, navigate to your Google Pay Settings. Under Payments profile, click Edit next to Country/Regions. You can only do this once a year or so.

TheGuyFromHR:
This might be done innocently, but the bank could determine it fits the money mule pattern, so anyone considering this should bear that in mind.

I get your point but it's something he can do for a little amount only a few times. Once he gets proof of address, he can open his own traditional account.

lightnlife:
Please house, how and where can I deposit cash into my Revolut account?

I brought the cash from Naija.

Thanks

You can't. You can open Monzo and deposit £1,000. Better still, give it to someone you trust with a traditional Bank account to deposit and transfer to you.

lightnlife:
I opened Monzo yesterday and got the card today.

Might open this Chase or Revolut too.

Hope there won't be any issue opening multple accounts.

You can open Revolut. Best in International transfers. I use it a lot to transfer to USA and Canada same day. Also good with Crypto ans Shares.

You can use my ref code and I will send you 20 quids when you finish the steps:

https://revolut.com/referral/jedidi9xv3!MAY1-22-AR

Missposh:
Please help me reason this my question o, I just got an apartment barely settled in and TV license people sent a letter to say they've opened investigation to come visit the house and confirm we don't watch live TV.

As a background to the above, it appears there has been series of correspondence between the former tenant and TV license people which went unanswered before we moved in.
Thinking of calling them on phone to say we've only just moved into UK and not aware of the previous correspondence, and we opened this letter because it read legal occupier, and we are now the legal occupier and also to say we don't have TV, no plan of getting TV any time soon and we've not been watching live TV since arriving here. Is this OK to say

Please your opinions are highly welcome. Thanks

Yup, it's normal. TV License is not transferable so you can get yours by paying about £165 per Annum and it can be broken down to monthly. I usually advise people to just pay it instead of arguing that they don't have a TV because even if you watch Live programmes on any device (phone, tablet, etc) within the Apartment, you are still eligible so instead of keep proving periodically that yoh don't watch BBC or any other programme in the list, just close eye and pay for the license.

lightnlife:
Hello ladies and gentlemen,

I just got into the UK.

Thanks to everyone for all the insight being shared on this platform.

I'm trying to open a Revolut account via my partner's referral code but they stated that I'll have to add another banking details before I can proceed and reward my partner with the £60 bonus. I don't have any UK account yet. Revolut is suppose to be my first.

Is this the right process? What do you advise?

Just have your partner transfer into the Account. Sometimes, it takes a while to tick on the referral page but once you do 3 transactions, it should

Rubyventures:
Try looking in Acton

Thank you!

erico2k2:
White City

Thanks, I just checked. Couldn't find any below £1,200.

On a similar note, Work-from-Home is changing to Hybrid for me so I need to move closer to London (W2).

I need suggestions of affordable, decent areas around. Would appreciate!

Hwy9:
Please, what location is this? Seems high for a single occupant. My energy bill for April was approx £50 and I use electric only ( Even me I am still in shock). March bill was approx £60. Ctax should be between £80 to 100 for single occupancy. My water bill is less than £20. This is for Wales. Location and usage are key drivers.

Sounds fair. Remember my first line: "No two situations are the same". I'm in Wales too. Mine isn't single occupancy so yeah. Also, I hope these your bills are not estimated but for meter readings you submitted. I remember back then when I thought my water bill was constant like in Scotland. Boy, was I wrong!

jadepinkett:
This energy bills be scaring me. Always stayed in a shared apartment, all bills inclusive but seriously considering setting up on my own.
So if I were to get a 1 bed apartment with good EPC rating, can anyone give me a rough estimate on what to expect on bills? Water, gas/electric, council tax etc...

I know that no two situations are alike but an estimate will help me prepare budget

Yup, no two situations are same. Sure you already know your monthly costs for Feeding, Transport, Phone, Miscellaneous... So the new ones will be Energy (could be £80 to £350 especially if it's Electric Heating, Gas Heating is way cheaper), Council Tax (£130 ish), Broadband (£20 ish), Water (depends on usage, maybe £25 since you're alone), TV License (£32), that should be it really. It's all in the Energy bill! Thankfully, you can control that.

P.S.: With your name, I bet Will Smith could pay for it all.

JustJoy0717:
Hello gurus in the house,

I need your input on this on. Just received my 1st electricity bill for a flat i moved into on the 15th of March and it was a ricuclous £296 for 11th march to 29th April. Is this normal, or can i contest it. I live with 2 kids who are in school from 8-4pm, so i must say it was moderate use, except for the period i turned d heaters on.

Please advise.

Is it Electric or Gas Heating?

Watch your Thermostat closely. Especially for Electric Heating. If you could keep the temperature really low, say 20° or less. My first Bill for my Electric Heated apartmemt was about £900. With proper management of the Heating, I was able to bring it down to about £160. It's getting to the season where we can turn off Heating, mine has been off for some weeks now. Your Hot water is another guzzler

Lexusgs430:
It must be a full moon ..........

But you agree, this thread is much better than wikipedia/google combined ........ What makes sense to one, might not always make sense to another.......

Look at it like Ọja Oyingbo....... Loads to choose from.... ....

Some have made friends ...... Whilst others, lasting enemies........

Sure, It's a beautiful community here. Let's not make people afraid to speak by shutting them down when they speak. But yeah, love it here. Lots of selfless information given out for free.

Viruses:
Everyone keep saying negative things about Nigerians and they are the Nigerians. Those ones advising against associating with Nigerians nai worse pass. Just like stingy people, na them beg pass.

It's ridiculous. If you detest the company of Nigerians so much, stay off Nairaland and leave us alone. One person gives financial tips on Mortgages and all, we're excited. Another gives his own advice like "buy a cheaper car", we scream "mind your business". You made it everyone's business when you came to a public community forum asking for financial advice.

Let love lead abeg. Take what sounds good to you and leave the rest. The attacks are getting too much. The Sycophancy is glaring too cos we "look face" before attacking.

I come in peace.

AlphaUno:
Great people, good morning,

Pls as a dependant does one need an introductory letter to open an account or it is only the main applicant ?

Nobody needs intro letter if they can provide proof of address like a utility bill with your name on it. If you don't have that, I would say "stick to Revolut and Monzo" first as they don't require proof of address. You can even use the Statement of Account from Monzo to open a traditional account, I think. Truth is there is no rush, Revolut and Monzo are quite sufficient unless you love to deposit lots of cash. There are other ways to get proof of address like receiving a Government letter to your place of abode. Maybe register to vote and they send you a letter

hearkenwunmi:
Good evening, I will like to ask if someone travels a month before course start date, can he work full time before school resumes?

Yes, but you need luck and adequate planning to be able to get your BRP, Account number, school timetable and a job very quickly. Otherwise, it could take up to 3 weeks or more before you start working