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Assume the situation in which you live in a country that shows tell tale signs that its moving to a hyperinflation. People's money will become useless. You have the option to move some of it in other countries that have a stable economy.

What are some options to store money outside your country in a safe and preferably cheap way? Offshore accounts, deposit the money into PayPal and leave it there? Other options?

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  • Does your country prohibit the holding of foreign currency within the country - e.g. keeping a stash of US dollars in a tin, or having a USD-denominated bank account? (If you don't want USD, pick whichever currency you prefer.)
    – Lawrence
    Mar 31, 2019 at 16:05
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    @Lawrence, I can keep foreign currency at home and I can have accounts in a foreign currency also, including USD. However, a would consider an USD account only if it is abroad not a local bank. In my own country the taxes and commissions for foreign accounts are high and eat a lot of money. And also, in case of hyperinflation the local bank might go bust and I would loose a way to access my account in USD
    – Pips
    Mar 31, 2019 at 16:29

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The options available to you depend in part on whether you yourself are physically abroad or have plans to be.

For example, if you moved to say...Japan to teach English for a year, you could establish residency (not necessarily long-term residency, but residency based on having a working visa sponsored by the Japanese company that hires you).

You would walk to a bank, show them your Japanese home address and residence card, and open a local Japanese bank account. Get paid in yen, convert and deposit any additional money of your own, and voila, your money is abroad in a different currency. If/when you leave Japan, your account and money can stay there at low or no annual fees.

Another option is to visit a "country"/jurisdiction such as Hong Kong, whose banks welcome non-resident account holders. Open a personal bank account, convert and deposit your money in HKD and you're set.

There are other ways, but the above examples stick to what is simple and familiar to most people: personal bank accounts.

Important: If your home country happens to be the U.S., you will need to report these accounts to Uncle Sam every year in an FBAR and (maybe) FATCA report.

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