Frequently Asked Questions - Foreign Exchange

FX International Payments is a real-time payment processing system that captures all of your transactions as they occur. You will see the confirmation page immediately following a submission. You can check the status of your foreign exchange transactions online anytime using the view Payment History feature, or you can request to receive an email confirmation for each transaction at the time your account is set up. To find out more, view the Payment History tutorial.

For wire and draft transfers, FX International Payments can automatically send confirmation emails to the initiator of the payment and the beneficiary, provided a beneficiary email address is supplied advising them a payment has been initiated to them. Please ensure you’ve enabled this feature. For assistance, please contact our Customer Service team directly by calling 1300-885-749, Monday through Friday, 8am to 6pmor by emailing fes.ip.payments@aexp.com

Yes, all transactions will appear in the view Payment History feature in FX International Payments. To find out more, view the Payment History tutorial.

If there are any fees associated with your wire, we will automatically deduct them from the designated Australian business bank account you identified in your online application, each time you authorize a wire transfer. There may also be fees applied by the beneficiary bank. FX International Payments does not have control over these third-party fees. These fees are deducted from the amount received by the beneficiary.

If we have not already completed your transaction, we will make every effort to accommodate your cancellation request and issue a payment recall. Please be aware that there is no guarantee we will be able to cancel your transaction if it has been completed or if the funds are available in the beneficiary’s account. Additionally, there may be fees associated with this request. You may attempt to cancel a transaction online or by contacting our dedicated Customer Service team directly by calling 1300-554-884, Monday through Friday, 8am to 6pm or by emailing fes.ip.payments@aexp.com

During the account set up process, you will be required to identify a Australian business bank account in the name of your company from which you authorize FX International Payments to electronically withdraw funds to cover the costs associated with your foreign exchange wire transfer. You may also wire the amount to an American Express FX International Payments account.

You will need to:

1. Log in to your account and visit the Manage Payees page.

2. Set up a new payee (if you have not already) by specifying their name, address, and full bank details. To find out more, go to the Managing Payees tutorial.

3. Go to Create & Manage Payment, select Create a Spot Payment, and choose Telegraphic Transfer from the product drop-down menu.

4. Specify details for the payment: currency, amount, and preferred settlement method.

5. Request a Current Transaction Quote to view the rate, fee and total cost of your payment.

6. Click Approve Now to complete your payment.

Visit our Making Payments tutorial for more detailed instructions.

An IBAN (International Bank Account Number) is a combination of 16-34 alphanumeric characters that identifies an account at a particular bank and branch in a specific country. An IBAN is unique to each payee's account – it should include a payee's country code, bank code, routing code and individual bank account number. If the IBAN is not provided on your payee's invoice, bill, or contract, you may need to contact the payee or their bank directly. Find out more about specific currency requirements here.

A settlement method is the method of payment used to fund a wire transfer, draft, or forward contract. FX International Payments provides three options:

1. Direct Debit

2. Credit

3. BPAY

Yes, certain currencies have extra processing requirements. To help avoid payment delays, you'll need to provide extra information before completing your payment. Learn more about these special requirements and where you can enter them within our online platform here.

The rate we offer you has a time limit, shown by a timer in an orange box on the Create a Payment page. If your quote does expire, simply click Re-Quote to generate a new one.

Eligible clients can lock in exchange rates in two ways. Firstly, you can use a Forward Contract to make one or more transactions today, or a year from now. Alternatively, an Intra Day Spot Contract allows you to lock in a foreign currency rate and apply it to one or several payments. However, unlike a Forward Contract, an Intra Day Spot Contract must be drawn down before the end of the business day and is only available for foreign currency transactions.

To find out more, view the Forward Contracts or Intra Day Spot Contract tutorials, or contact an Account Manager.

When you submit a transaction, and it is successful, you'll see a green pop-up window letting you know your payment is complete, followed by a Payment Reference Number. You can also check the status of your transactions online anytime using our online platform's Payment History feature. For more information, view the Payment History tutorial.

Payment processing times vary depending on the transaction's type, currency, and amount. The Value Date you see when you initiate the transaction is an estimate of when your payee will receive the funds. To confirm the estimated timeframe, feel free to call an Account Manager when making your payment.

You can check your transaction status online, anytime, using the Payment History feature. Once a payment is sent by FX International Payments, it will be labeled as Complete, but the actual date on which the funds become available to your payee (the Value Date) will be in the future. We can't control how quickly the payee's bank releases funds to your payee. For more information, view the Payment History tutorial.

Yes, with our Rate Alert feature, FX International Payments sends you your desired rate information by email. This can help you capitalize on favorable exchange rates and avoid having to monitor the market constantly. For more information, view the Rate Alerts tutorial.

For the best experience using our website, please use Internet Explorer or Chrome. You may also want to clear your browser’s cookies and cache as these are known to interfere with the platform. You can do this by entering Ctrl-Shift-Delete (Windows) or Command-Shift-Delete (Mac). If you still experience issues logging in, please contact our Customer Service team directly by calling 1300-885-749, Monday through Friday, 8am to 6pm or by e-mailing fes.ip.payments@aexp.com for further assistance.

First of all, you will receive separate emails from amexip@aexp.com and amex_FX_International_Payments@aexp.com containing your Username and Temporary Password respectively.

• 1Enter your Username and Temporary Password into the log in page.

• 2You’ll then receive an email containing your One-Time PIN.

• 3Enter your One-Time PIN to create your new account Password and set up a Memorable Date.

Visit our How to Log In tutorial for detailed, step-by-step instructions.

For added security, we require users to provide a Memorable Date. This date consists of a six-digit number that you'll enter each time you log in to our platform.

If you've forgotten either your Password or your Memorable Date, click ‘Forgot Your Login Details?’ on the FX International Payments login page. If you've forgotten your Username, or both your Password and your Memorable Date, you will need to contact Customer Service on 1300-885-749 to re-establish your account credentials.

Only authorised users can perform these functions. For more information, view the User Administration tutorial.

If you are not an authorised user, but require new users to be set up, simply fill out the Change of Detail form & email the signed form to your FX Relationship Manager.

If you selected that option during account set up, we can migrate your beneficiary data into our system. For assistance please contact our Customer Service team directly by calling 1300-885-749, Monday through Friday, 8am to 6pm or by emailing fes.ip.payments@aexp.com

If you are not enrolled in AccessLine, simply complete the AccessLine Registration Form & email the signed form to your FX Relationship Manager.

AccessLine allows for fast, secure payments via your eligible American Express Business and Corporate Card, even to merchants who don't accept Card payments – plus you can earn American Express Membership Rewards points in the process. Learn More

To enable new payment methods, apply by filling out the Outward Telegraphic Transfer or Bank Draft Requisition form & email the signed form to your FX Relationship Manager.

To enable or update details, simply complete the Direct Debit Authorisation form & email the signed form to your FX Relationship Manager.

You can learn about American Express' security efforts by visiting our Fraud Protection Center. For helpful tips on protecting your business’s data, view the Fraud Protection tutorial.

Our online platform combines high-grade encryption and firewall technologies to help ensure that all payments are secure. Additional security is provided through multiple layers of payment authorization, user permissions, and rigorous reporting and auditing. To find out more, view the User Administration, Reporting or Audit Trials tutorials.

Phishing (pronounced ‘fishing’) refers to fraudulent communication designed to deceive consumers into divulging personal, financial or account information to enable identity theft. Phishing emails continue to be prevalent for individuals and companies. Spoofing well-known companies, these emails ask consumers to reply, or ‘click’ on a link to a fraudulent web page that will ask for personal information, such as their credit card/bank account number, Social Security number, date of birth, account password, online user id, and other information.

For more information about phishing, please visit our Fraud Protection Centre.

For helpful tips on protecting your business’s data, view the Fraud Protection tutorial.

Phishing emails often look like legitimate correspondence that tries to create a false sense of urgency intended to provoke the recipient to take immediate action. For example, phishing emails frequently instruct recipients to ‘validate’ or ‘update’ account information or face cancellation and/or penalty. Be very cautious of any email asking you to update sensitive information, particularly if it has a generic greeting.

Always be suspicious of emails that do not greet you by name. While not impossible, it is more difficult and costly for phishers to associate an email address with the email owner’s name on a mass scale. Because of this, more phishing emails use generic greetings, like ‘Dear Customer’.

Follow these five simple steps to protect yourself from phishers:

• 1Be suspicious of any email that does not address you by name.

• 2Navigate to banking or other financial institutions’ websites by typing the URL into the address bar of your web browser instead of clicking a link in an email.

• 3Ensure that you are using up-to-date personal firewalls and anti-virus software on your computer.

• 4Read your bank statements, credit report, and credit card statements regularly.

• 5Have the American Express website remember your User ID on your computer, so when you return your User ID will automatically be entered into the Sign In box. A fraudulent website (spoof site) will not be able to display your User ID, letting you know that you are not on the genuine American Express website.

TIP: Do not use the Remember Me functionality on a public or shared computer.

If you suspect a phishing e-mail, do not reply to the e-mail and never follow any links. If you receive an e-mail relating to American Express that you believe could be fraudulent or at any moment feel your account information has been compromised, please contact us on 1300-885-749 or via e-mail at fes.ip.payments@aexp.com Please do not include your account number in the email.

If you feel your American Express account information has been compromised, please contact our Customer Service team directly by calling 1300-885-749, Monday through Friday, 8am to 6pm or by emailing fes.ip.payments@aexp.com

• Choose a long password that combines letters and numbers, and doesn't contain any words from the dictionary.

• Keep your password private and secure. Update it regularly, and change it if those you've trusted with it no longer need it.

• Do not keep your passwords or login details written down or saved on your computer.

• Do not disclose login details or passwords in response to unsolicited emails claiming to be from your bank, credit union, credit card company, or social networking site.

• Only divulge your details in a telephone conversation when you have instigated the call and are familiar with the company.

• Use secure websites by ensuring that they begin with https:

Learn more about best practices in our Fraud Protection tutorial.

FX International Payments will never ask for your login information or password in an email or text message. We will never send you an email or text message asking you to enter your Internet Banking details.