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How long does it take to transfer money from Kazakhstan to ICBC's foreign exchange account?
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A client sent money from Kazakhstan to our ICBC foreign exchange account. They said it would arrive in three days, but it hasn't shown up after a week. We've urged the receiving bank several times, but they keep saying it's still being processed. How long does it usually take for cross-border transfers like this? Could the money have been lost?
Daniel XuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Director of Import & Export OperationsStart a Chat
When transferring funds from Kazakhstan to ICBC's foreign exchange account，the official processing time is 3-7 working days，but due to strict foreign exchange controls in Central Asia，it typically takes 10-15 working days to complete the transfer. Currently，your most urgent tasks are to verify three key points。
1. Does the payer provide complete trade documentation (contract，invoice，customs declaration)? Any missing document will trigger a reality check by the foreign exchange authority，delaying the transfer by 3-5 working days。
2. Kazakh banks strictly review payments related to mining and energy sectors. If the transaction involves sensitive industries，the funds will be held at local banks for 5-7 days to undergo compliance screening。
3. ICBC verifies 71 fields of the SWIFT message during account crediting. If the contract number is incorrectly entered，the payment will be routed to a manual review queue。
Immediately request the client to fax the payment slip and verify the accuracy of the payment memo. This is the most common cause of transfer delays.
Evelyn LiYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Cross-border Compliance SupervisorStart a Chat
For SWIFT transfers from Kazakhstan to ICBC, theoretically, the processing time is T+3 working days. However, most Kazakh banks route the funds through correspondent banks in New York or Frankfurt, which adds 1-2 days of clearing time at each node. Here’s what you should do now:
1. First, ask the client to obtain an MT103 message from their bank to confirm whether the funds have left the Kazakh banking system. If the message hasn’t arrived after more than 3 days, it likely got stuck at the correspondent bank.
2. Next, directly call ICBC’s International Department and provide the last 8 digits of your foreign exchange account to check if the funds are in the "pending verification" queue.
3. Finally, verify if there are any Kazakh public holidays (e.g., Nawruz holiday) during the transfer period, as local banks may delay processing.
If the funds haven’t arrived after 10 working days, it’s highly likely that the correspondent bank requires additional compliance documents. In this case, the paying bank needs to coordinate with them to resolve the issue.
Lucas LiuYears of service：8Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Operations ConsultantStart a Chat
Chasing payments too aggressively can easily annoy clients, but waiting too long also impacts cash flow. I suggest you send an email to the client today: "To check the payment progress, could your finance department please provide a copy of the SWIFT MT103 message? We need to confirm the payment status with Bank of China." This approach not only demonstrates professionalism but also shifts the responsibility to the banking system. The fundamental solution is to amend the contract terms - changing "within 3 days after payment" to "within 5 working days after the payer initiates the SWIFT transfer, the funds should arrive in the beneficiary's account, and the bank's processing time is not counted as a breach of contract." Before the next cooperation, it's essential to test the payment timeliness during the advance payment stage and require the client to provide their bank's average processing cycle as an attachment. When cooperating with Central Asian clients, building personal trust is more important than contract terms. Regular email greetings during normal times will help avoid appearing abrupt when chasing payments.