Can Google AdSense USD Pay Overseas Services Directly? A Test From ZgoCloud Payment to Bank of China APP Settlement

I have always kept a balance of USD foreign exchange in my Bank of China account.

This money came from Google AdSense. The transaction details in the Bank of China APP show the counterparty name as Google Asia Pacific Pte Limited, the transaction type as “International Remittance,” and the remark as GOOGLE ADVERTISING PAYMENT.

Recently, I was preparing to pay for an overseas server on ZgoCloud, which led to a natural thought:

Since there is already USD in my Bank of China account, can I directly use these funds to pay for overseas services?

This seemed like a way to avoid first converting the USD into RMB, only to purchase USD again later when paying dollar bills.

However, after further investigation, I realized that having USD foreign exchange in the account does not necessarily mean the current bank card can directly access these funds for overseas spending.

I currently hold a standard Bank of China Great Wall Electronic Debit Card, which belongs to the UnionPay network, not a Visa or Mastercard international debit card. Considering there was no immediate need to apply for a cross-border card just for this relatively small amount of USD, I ultimately abandoned the idea of paying ZgoCloud directly. Instead, I chose to convert the USD foreign exchange into RMB using the Bank of China APP.

This article documents the entire process, from “preparing to use foreign exchange directly” to checking the bank card type, and finally completing the foreign exchange settlement.

1. This USD Came from Google AdSense

First, I found the credit record for this USD in the Bank of China APP.

The transaction details show:

• Income currency: USD foreign exchange;
• Counterparty name: Google Asia Pacific Pte Limited;
• Counterparty account: ending in 1055;
• Transaction type: International remittance;
• Remark: GOOGLE ADVERTISING PAYMENT.

This information confirms that the money came from Google AdSense advertising revenue.

This time, the USD was directly visible in the account, but when I first received a similar payment in 2023, the process was not this smooth.

At that time, Google AdSense had already indicated the payment was sent, but the funds did not enter the account normally. It was only after contacting Bank of China staff and providing the relevant remittance receipts that the bank personnel manually processed the credit.

That experience is recorded here:

Google AdSense: Please check the payment you recently received. Handling the issue when a wire transfer to a bank account remains unreceived.

That previous article documented the entire process of receiving the Google AdSense payment notification, contacting the Bank of China, providing remittance receipts to the staff, and the bank manually crediting the account. (Shuijing Wan)

2. “USD/FX” Displayed in the Bank of China Account

Upon entering the “Account Details” page in the Bank of China APP, I could see that the account simultaneously held:

• RMB;
• USD/FX.

Here, “USD/FX” indicates that the account holds USD foreign exchange.

Foreign exchange typically refers to foreign currency funds that enter a bank account through international remittances or overseas transfers. It is not exactly the same form of funds as physical USD cash deposited directly at a bank counter.

At least in terms of the account balance, this USD was indeed ready to be normally settled, transferred, or used for other compliant foreign exchange transactions.

3. Initially Planning to Pay ZgoCloud Directly with USD

Since ZgoCloud’s server fees are considered an overseas service expense, I initially thought:

I already have USD in my account. As long as I choose USD at checkout, the payment should be deducted directly from the USD balance.

If this were possible, the entire fund usage process would be quite straightforward:

Google AdSense pays USD → USD enters Bank of China account → Use USD to pay for overseas server fees.

This would require neither an immediate settlement nor purchasing USD with RMB later.

But after further research, I found that this actually involves three distinct issues:

1. Whether the bank account holds USD;
2. Which payment network the bank card belongs to;
3. Whether the overseas merchant’s payment gateway supports this bank card.

Having USD in the account only resolves the first issue.

During the actual payment, it also depends on whether the bank card is UnionPay, Visa, or Mastercard, and whether the bank allows the USD account to be accessed directly through this card.

4. Checking the Bank Card Type in the Bank of China APP

By clicking on the bank card in the account details and entering “Card Information,” I could see the details of my current bank card:

• Account type: Great Wall Electronic Debit Card (Tier I Account);
• Account alias: Great Wall Electronic Debit Card;
• Card number: starts with 62;
• The card design features the UnionPay logo.

According to the official Bank of China introduction, the Great Wall RMB Debit Card uses the UnionPay standard, and the card number starts with 62. (Bank of China)

Therefore, the card name, the starting digits of the card number, and the UnionPay logo all confirm:

The card I currently hold is a standard Bank of China UnionPay debit card, not a Visa or Mastercard.

Visa or Mastercard is not a feature that can be temporarily enabled within the Bank of China APP.

The card network a bank card belongs to is determined when the card is issued. A standard UnionPay debit card cannot be turned into a Visa or Mastercard simply by changing settings.

5. Having USD in the Account Does Not Mean the Card Can Spend USD Directly

The most confusing part of this investigation was the distinction between the “USD account” and the “bank card’s payment capability.”

My account does indeed hold USD foreign exchange, but the current bank card is a standard UnionPay debit card.

The Bank of China’s guide for overseas card usage states that when a standard Great Wall UnionPay debit card is used abroad, transactions are generally denominated in the local currency and then debited from the RMB account. (Bank of China)

In other words, even if the account linked to the bank card holds USD, overseas spending with a standard UnionPay card will not necessarily deduct the USD foreign exchange directly.

When spending at overseas merchants that support UnionPay, the typical process is:

Transaction currency → UnionPay performs the conversion → Debit from the RMB account.

Furthermore, on overseas websites that only support Visa or Mastercard, a standard UnionPay card might not even be able to complete the payment directly.

Therefore, “having USD in the account” and “being able to pay USD bills directly with this card” are two entirely different things.

6. Which Bank Card is Better Suited for Directly Using USD Foreign Exchange

Bank of China does offer bank cards that can directly use foreign currency balances, such as:

Great Wall Cross-border International Debit Card.

These cards come in Visa and Mastercard versions, support original currency payments for multiple foreign currencies, and also support overseas online payments, direct debits, and subscriptions.

According to the official Bank of China introduction, the Great Wall Cross-border International Debit Card can make original currency payments using 19 foreign currencies, including USD, EUR, JPY, and HKD. If the transaction currency is not supported or the balance of the corresponding foreign currency is insufficient, it can also draw from the USD account according to specific rules. (Bank of China)

This type of card is more suitable for the following uses:

• Online payments on overseas websites;
• Overseas software subscriptions;
• Payments for overseas servers and cloud services;
• Spending at overseas merchants;
• Direct debits in foreign currencies.

However, this requires applying for a separate Visa or Mastercard cross-border debit card from Bank of China.

To use this relatively small amount of USD currently in my account, applying for a new card specifically for this purpose did not seem very necessary for me at the moment.

Therefore, I ultimately abandoned the plan to pay ZgoCloud directly with USD.

7. Deciding to Settle the USD Foreign Exchange into RMB

Since I was temporarily not planning to apply for a cross-border debit card, keeping this USD had no obvious practical use for me.

The simplest way to handle it was still:

Settle the USD foreign exchange into RMB, and then use it as regular RMB funds.

In fact, I had already documented a similar operation in 2023:

The operation process of settling USD received from an international remittance into RMB in the Bank of China APP

The previous settlement article did not fail to explain the source of the USD.

At the beginning of the article, it cited the aforementioned Google AdSense international remittance credit record, and then continued to document the operation process of settling the USD into RMB via the APP after it entered the Bank of China account. The old article already included steps such as viewing “RMB, USD/FX,” processing the settlement, confirming the transaction, and the successful settlement. (Shuijing Wan)

Therefore, the two articles from 2023 actually formed a continuous process:

Google AdSense sends USD funds → Contact Bank of China to process the credit → USD foreign exchange enters the account → Settle into RMB in the Bank of China APP.

However, this experience added a new starting point.

Originally, I was not preparing to settle the funds directly; instead, I intended to use the USD for overseas service expenses like ZgoCloud. It was only after checking my bank card that I further clarified:

• The difference between a USD foreign exchange account and a bank card’s payment network;
• The difference between a standard UnionPay debit card and a Visa or Mastercard cross-border debit card;
• Why having USD in the account does not guarantee it can be used directly for payments on overseas websites;
• How to select the source of funds when settling Google AdSense advertising revenue.

Therefore, this article builds upon the previous records by supplementing new practical experiences and comprehensively re-documenting the 2026 settlement page and operation process.

8. Finding the Settlement Entry in the Bank of China APP

After opening the Bank of China APP, you can directly type into the search box on the homepage:

Settlement

The search results will show:

• Settlement;
• Salary Settlement;
• Settlement and Purchase Inquiry;
• Settlement and Purchase;
• Salary Settlement Inquiry.

This time, I chose the standard “Settlement”.

You can also enter the “Settlement and Purchase” function and then select “Settlement” at the top of the page.

According to the official Bank of China instructions, personal foreign exchange settlement can be processed through counters, online banking, self-service terminals, mobile banking, and telephone banking. In mobile banking, you can enter “Foreign Exchange Settlement and Sale,” select the foreign currency account, and then process the settlement. (Bank of China)

9. Checking the USD Settlement Exchange Rate First

After entering the “Settlement and Purchase” page, you can see the reference exchange rates for different foreign currencies.

The page mainly displays two sets of prices:

• Bank selling rate;
• Bank buying rate.

Under each set, it may also show:

• FX;
• Cash.

These prices are easily confused.

When a customer uses RMB to buy USD, it is equivalent to the bank selling USD to the customer, so you typically look at the “Bank selling rate”.

When a customer exchanges USD for RMB, it is equivalent to the bank buying the customer’s USD, so for settlement, you mainly look at:

Bank buying rate.

My account displays “USD/FX”, which means USD foreign exchange, so I should check the buying rate for USD foreign exchange, which is shown on the page as:

Bank buying rate — FX.

The exchange rates on the page are generally displayed as the RMB equivalent for 100 units of foreign currency.

For example, if the buying rate for USD foreign exchange is shown as 674.64, it means that when the bank buys 100 USD in foreign exchange, the equivalent is approximately 674.64 RMB.

However, exchange rates fluctuate with the market. The list page shows reference prices, and the final transaction should be based on the actual exchange rate and confirmed amount at the time the settlement transaction is submitted.

10. Entering the Settlement Amount

After entering the “Settlement” page, the system automatically reads the current account information.

The page displays:

• Settlement quota used this year;
• Remaining settlement quota for this year;
• Transaction account;
• Available USD foreign exchange balance;
• Currency;
• Foreign currency amount;
• Estimated RMB received;
• Source of funds.

You can manually enter the amount of USD you want to settle, or you can click “Settle All”.

This time, I had no immediate need to retain USD, so I chose to settle all of it.

The top of the page shows:

• Quota used this year: equivalent to 0 USD;
• Remaining quota this year: equivalent to 50,000 USD.

Personal foreign exchange settlement and domestic personal foreign exchange purchase currently each implement an annual convenience quota management of USD 50,000 equivalent per person per year; within the quota, it can generally be processed with a valid ID. (State Administration of Foreign Exchange)

The settlement quota and the purchase quota are calculated separately here; they do not combined total only USD 50,000.

11. How to Select the Source of Funds for Google AdSense Revenue

After entering the settlement amount, you also need to select the “Source of Funds”.

This is also the step where people hesitate the most during the entire operation.

The sources of funds provided by the Bank of China APP are usually broad categories, such as:

• Goods trade;
• Transportation;
• Travel;
• Financial and insurance services;
• Consulting services;
• Other services;
• Employee compensation;
• Family support;
• Investment income;
• Other current transfers.

My income came from Google AdSense; it is advertising revenue earned from displaying ads on a website.

It clearly does not belong to:

• Salaries and wages;
• Family support;
• Investment income;
• Donations;
• Goods trade.

Therefore, this time I selected:

Source of funds: Other services.

The personal current account settlement fund attributes officially listed by Bank of China do indeed include “Other services”. (Bank of China)

In the State Administration of Foreign Exchange’s classification of foreign exchange receipt and payment transactions, the code for “advertising services” is 228024, and its scope includes media placement, buying and selling advertising space, and product promotion services. Earning revenue by providing ad display space on a website through Google AdSense is the closest to this category. (State Administration of Foreign Exchange)

Since the Bank of China APP currently does not continue to display the detailed sub-category of “advertising services”, selecting “Other services” is more appropriate.

If the bank later requires further explanation of the source of funds, it can be described as:

Google AdSense website advertising revenue.

Or:

Overseas internet advertising service revenue.

It is not recommended to select “Employee compensation” simply because “Google makes regular payments to individuals”.

Google AdSense advertising revenue is not a salary paid by Google to the website publisher, and the two parties do not have an ordinary employment relationship.

12. Confirming Settlement Information

After selecting “Other services”, click “Next”.

The confirmation page will display:

• Settlement amount;
• Reference exchange rate;
• Reference RMB amount;
• Transaction account;
• Source of funds.

Before submitting, it is recommended to double-check:

1. Whether the currency is “USD foreign exchange”;
2. Whether the settlement amount is correct;
3. Whether the transaction account is correct;
4. Whether the source of funds is “Other services”;
5. Whether the reference RMB amount meets expectations.

Because exchange rates can change in real time, the final transaction amount may have a very slight difference from the estimated amount on the previous page.

After confirming everything is correct, click “Confirm”.

13. Settlement Completed, RMB Credited to the Account in Real Time

After submission, this settlement was completed quickly.

Then, going into the transaction details of the RMB account, I could see a new RMB credit.

The transaction information shows:

• Counterparty name: My own name;
• Transaction type: Settlement;
• Transaction channel or location: Mobile banking;
• Income amount: RMB received after settlement.

The counterparty name shown here is myself; it does not mean someone else transferred money to me.

Essentially, the bank converted the USD foreign exchange in my account into RMB, and then credited the corresponding RMB to my own account.

If you choose to settle all funds, upon returning to the account details, the previous “USD/FX” balance will become zero, or it will no longer be displayed separately.

This is consistent with the result I had after my operation in 2023. The old article at that time also recorded that after the settlement was completed, only the RMB balance remained in the account details. (Shuijing Wan)

14. Should You Settle All at Once?

Whether to settle all USD at once depends on your actual use case.

You might consider keeping a portion of USD in the following situations:

• You already have a bank card that supports original currency payments in USD;
• You are preparing to apply for a Visa or Mastercard cross-border debit card;
• You have actual USD payment needs in the near future;
• You need to process compliant overseas remittances;
• You want to settle in batches based on exchange rate fluctuations.

The following situations are more suitable for direct settlement:

• You temporarily do not have a USD payment channel;
• The amount is small;
• You primarily use RMB domestically;
• You do not plan to apply for a separate cross-border bank card;
• You do not wish to hold a foreign currency balance long-term that is difficult to spend directly.

My situation this time fell into the latter category.

Although I initially hoped to use the USD directly for ZgoCloud, applying for a cross-border debit card just for this money did not make much practical sense.

Therefore, I ultimately chose to settle all of it into RMB.

15. Recommended to Retain Relevant Transaction Vouchers

Even if the mobile banking settlement was completed smoothly, it is still recommended to keep the documents related to this income:

• Google AdSense payment records;
• Google AdSense payment receipts;
• Bank of China international remittance credit records;
• Transaction details showing GOOGLE ADVERTISING PAYMENT;
• Settlement confirmation page;
• RMB credit details.

If the bank needs to verify the authenticity of overseas income in the future, these documents can explain the payer, the nature of the income, and the flow of funds.

In particular, the payment records in the Google AdSense backend and the international remittance details from the Bank of China should ideally correspond to each other.

16. Conclusions Drawn from This Operation

Through this practical investigation and operation, the following points can be summarized:

1. USD paid by Google AdSense can enter a Bank of China account via international remittance;
2. After being credited, the USD is displayed as “USD/FX” in the account, meaning USD foreign exchange;
3. The existence of USD in the account does not mean the current bank card can directly pay USD bills;
4. My Great Wall Electronic Debit Card is a standard UnionPay debit card, not a Visa or Mastercard;
5. When spending through overseas UnionPay channels with a standard UnionPay debit card, transactions are typically denominated in the local currency and debited in RMB;
6. To directly use USD foreign exchange for overseas online payments, a cross-border debit card that supports original currency debits is more suitable;
7. If you are temporarily not applying for a cross-border card, you can settle USD into RMB through the Bank of China APP;
8. When settling Google AdSense advertising revenue, the source of funds can be selected as “Other services”;
9. When settling USD foreign exchange, you should mainly pay attention to the bank’s buying rate for foreign exchange;
10. After a successful settlement, RMB can be directly credited to your personal RMB account.

I originally just wanted to use the USD in my account to pay ZgoCloud directly.

However, my research revealed that there are multiple steps between “holding USD foreign exchange” and “being able to spend USD directly via a bank card”, including the card network, the merchant’s payment gateway, original currency debit capabilities, and account linking rules.

For my current situation, although settlement adds an extra step, it remains the simplest and most convenient way to handle it.