Carrying cash through Airport

[chichow]

Regarding the chips. It also depended on your chips. Your original post did not reference the denomination of your chips and whether they were RFID. Using Vegas as an example (I'm decently familiar with the Strip), some casinos are going to have RFID (and therefore metal) in their black chips and above. If you had tons of green chips, I doubt TSA would have been seeing metal in the chips and getting confused. Then again, I probably don't travel as much as some other site posters and I don't see as many casinos with RFID green chips.

Was it the TSA @ the Las Vegas airport or some other airport?

Overall, I have not been that impressed with many of the TSA. I did have one experience where I apparently held up a line without knowing it for 5 minutes, because the TSA couldn't tell that I was bringing cupcakes/muffins in a box.

 

[FLASH1296]

Bills were Benjamins and chips were not RFID

Not McCarren or any place with local casinos.

 

[SleightOfHand]

Regarding the chips. It also depended on your chips. Your original post did not reference the denomination of your chips and whether they were RFID. Using Vegas as an example (I'm decently familiar with the Strip), some casinos are going to have RFID (and therefore metal) in their black chips and above. If you had tons of green chips, I doubt TSA would have been seeing metal in the chips and getting confused. Then again, I probably don't travel as much as some other site posters and I don't see as many casinos with RFID green chips.

I believe that I read in CAA that chips appear as just a blob in the metal detectors

Overall, I have not been that impressed with many of the TSA. I did have one experience where I apparently held up a line without knowing it for 5 minutes, because the TSA couldn't tell that I was bringing cupcakes/muffins in a box.

omg You must be the muffin man! (Arrested Development anyone?)

 

[Josh]

Though it lacks the inability to closely monitor (physically) cash/chips, has anyone thought of packing up their goodies and shipping them with UPS/FEX? You can't insure cash (not sure about the chips, but I don't think you can insure those either), and of course UPS/FEX can always lose your **** en route (happens rarely - and this is after managing a UPS Store for 2 years), but it's an option. Not sure what they'd think (they meaning security at UPS), if they saw (or if they'd even see) lots of cash go through.

Just an idea!

 

[kewljason]

You guys seem to want to make this far more difficult and riskier than need be. Moo has the right idea. Just open account any any national or even regional bank that has a branch in Vegas as well as near your home town. Bank of America is the perfect choice for Vegas. There is probably a branch near anywhere you call home. When you arrive in Vegas just go withdrawl your funds. I can guarantee you that Bank of America in Las Vegas will have enough cash on hand to accomidate your 10-20 grand withdrawl without paying you in 10's. No need to worry about airport security or getting robbed. Now if you are worried about explaining these transactions. You withdrew funds in Las Vegas to gamble with. OMG, bet they have never heard that one before. :laugh:

 

[chichow]

Nice reply.

Very true about the when in rome part.

elsewhere in the country you have people using a marker on your hundred dollar bill.

In Vegas, a hundred dollar bill is as common as a 20 dollar bill (I don't know if it really is, but it feels that way in a casino).

So yeah, so going to a Wells Fargo or Bank of America works just fine.

And if you are playing at these levels, then the EV hit for a car shouldn't matter.

 

[SBCat]

I've considered the idea of using a local branch of my bank (BoA) for large cash deposits (and withdrawals?) before/after playing at a casino, but I keep wondering at what point the Patriot Act comes into play and whether it obligates the bank to report cash transactions beyond a certain size. And if they do so, what are the implications? Is the information shared with the IRS?

 

[NightStalker]

Any transaction >=10k

I've considered the idea of using a local branch of my bank (BoA) for large cash deposits (and withdrawals?) before/after playing at a casino, but I keep wondering at what point the Patriot Act comes into play and whether it obligates the bank to report cash transactions beyond a certain size. And if they do so, what are the implications? Is the information shared with the IRS?

needs to be get reported.
Above 2500(vary per bank), need your driver license on withdrawl..

 

[Sucker]

A Cash Transaction Report (CTR) has NOTHING to do with the Patriot Act and EVERYTHING to do with the IRS.

If you visit Vegas often and are concerned about moving large sums of money around, here's the alternative that's used by many BJ players and virtually ALL of the high-stakes poker players: http://www.24-7privatevaults.com/

 

[NightStalker]

if you lose the keys,

your money is gone.
NO ID required ??

 

[wwcd]

your money is gone.
NO ID required ??

And besides, how do you trust the private vault guys? Even corporate executives of multi billion dollar companies fraud their shareholders. So, what would stop them from drilling through the vaults and helping themselves to everyone's cash, followed by a nice trip to one of those caribbean islands?

You're not gonna be able to sue or prove that you had cash, since there's no ID

 

[Automatic Monkey]

And besides, how do you trust the private vault guys? Even corporate executives of multi billion dollar companies fraud their shareholders. So, what would stop them from drilling through the vaults and helping themselves to everyone's cash, followed by a nice trip to one of those caribbean islands?

You're not gonna be able to sue or prove that you had cash, since there's no ID

I agree, if you want to use a vault in LV use one at a bank that has some accountability.

 

[Sonny]

I agree, if you want to use a vault in LV use one at a bank that has some accountability.

As long as you only need the money during business hours...

-Sonny-

 

[Automatic Monkey]

As long as you only need the money during business hours...

-Sonny-

Sure. That's 8AM-6PM these days, in some banks. But by the time you're playing stakes where you need to keep your money in a bank vault, I'd think such a person would be planning ahead for these needs.

I just found out my credit union is a member of a national network of credit unions that lets me do business in other CU's all over the country. I haven't tried it yet, but next time I'm in LV I'll try sending my trip bankroll home that way and give a report. It doesn't look as directly convenient as BoA, but with more branches in more places and without their exorbitant monthly fees.

 

[SBCat]

As I sit here contemplating a potential ramp-up in my BJ playing in many potential geographic areas, dealing with large amounts of cash is one of the things I find most perplexing and unnerving. It's not so much the security guys at the airport. What I am actually more concerned with is two things -- thugs following me out of the casino, and the IRS. With all the online discussions about advantage playing, I find this particular issue woefully under-discussed -- both in terms of the legal issues and any practical strategies.

I know this is being discussed under the "Las Vegas" forum, but it's equally applicable in any other area with casinos.

Let me start with a couple of simple questions: Is there anything the casinos can/will do to help you manage the issue, and is it advisable to seek their help? Can the casino cashier issue you a check instead of cash? Or is there a way they can initiate an electronic transfer to a bank account of your choosing, rather than giving you cash for your chips? If so, is the casino under any obligation to report anything to the state or federal governments?

And by the way, when bringing chips to cash in at a casino cashier, at what point do they need to have you fill out forms and withhold taxes?

If we are talking about a bank, what is the $$ cutoff before they must report a cash transaction, and to whom must they report it?

Thanks for any and all responses.

 

[21forme]

Is there anything the casinos can/will do to help you manage the issue, and is it advisable to seek their help? Can the casino cashier issue you a check instead of cash? Or is there a way they can initiate an electronic transfer to a bank account of your choosing, rather than giving you cash for your chips? If so, is the casino under any obligation to report anything to the state or federal governments?

And by the way, when bringing chips to cash in at a casino cashier, at what point do they need to have you fill out forms and withhold taxes?

You can ask them to issue you a check. You can also make use of casino credit. I don't know about an electronic transfer. Obviously, they need your name. For credit, they also need your SSN and bank account number. Many of us like to give the casino as little information as possible.

Casinos are required to file a CTR for 10K or more. Taxes are never withheld from chip transactions.

 

[FLASH1296]

C T R s are only in reference to aggregate 24 hr. CASH transactions.

I have taken many 5 figure checks from casinos.

 

[SBCat]

C T R s are only in reference to aggregate 24 hr. CASH transactions.

I have taken many 5 figure checks from casinos.

If you ask the cashier to issue you a check, do they need anything other than a payee's name?

 

[Automatic Monkey]

If you ask the cashier to issue you a check, do they need anything other than a payee's name?

A long time ago, I owed a friend a small sum of money and she refused to accept my repayment, so I was in a casino and had the cashier make a check for the amount payable to her and sent it to her, as she could accept it now that it wasn't really from me. I'm sure every casino has a different policy.

 

[muppet]

on the subject of the full-body scanners: some good news. i was at LAS a couple days ago and there were like 4 metal detectors and 2 full-body scanners..and if you get in the right line then you dont need to go through a body scanner