We’d like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum.

This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are – or become – political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.

📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
The Forum now has a brand new text editor, adding a bunch of handy features to use when creating posts. Read more in our how-to guide

Transferring money abroad without paying fees?

I recently had to borrow some money from a friend of mine when i had some issues with my debit card. They've now moved on on a backpacking tour and i promised to transfer the money to their bank account. When i tried to transfer the money to their account (Australian) i couldn't do it because their accounts have 9 digits but i could only enter 8 digits when trying to transfer through internet banking. I got in contact with my bank and they told me how to do it, but also said it would attract a £25 charge, which is nearly half as much as i borrowed to begin with. Is there any way to transfer the money without paying these fees?

Otherwise it would probably be cheaper to put the money in an envelope and send it recorded delivery.
«1

Comments

  • Okydoky25
    Okydoky25 Posts: 1,139 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts
    Pay by PayPal?
  • Jamopy
    Jamopy Posts: 105 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10 Posts Combo Breaker
    Is that possible? I've only ever used paypal to buy things online.
  • innovate
    innovate Posts: 16,217 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Use a specialist money transfer service, such as transferwise
  • benjus
    benjus Posts: 5,433 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts
    PayPal is easy, but not the cheapest, the fees are not transparent, and if something goes wrong it's a real pain.

    Have a look at CurrencyFair
    Let's settle this like gentlemen: armed with heavy sticks
    On a rotating plate, with spikes like Flash Gordon
    And you're Peter Duncan; I gave you fair warning
  • benjus
    benjus Posts: 5,433 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts
    innovate wrote: »
    Use a specialist money transfer service, such as transferwise

    Don't think transferwise works with AUD - it still has a pretty limited range of currencies, mostly focused on Europe.
    Let's settle this like gentlemen: armed with heavy sticks
    On a rotating plate, with spikes like Flash Gordon
    And you're Peter Duncan; I gave you fair warning
  • McKneff
    McKneff Posts: 38,857 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Is your friend really in need of the £50/60 you borrowed, could it not wait till he came back.

    Ask him....
    make the most of it, we are only here for the weekend.
    and we will never, ever return.
  • opinions4u
    opinions4u Posts: 19,411 Forumite
    McKneff wrote: »
    Is your friend really in need of the £50/60 you borrowed, could it not wait till he came back.

    Ask him....
    This would be my approach.
  • Em11
    Em11 Posts: 8 Forumite
    Don't think Transferwise do Aussie dollars as tried when I went travelling. Ended up using FTT global who may be worth checking out as cheaper than Paypal.
  • jonesMUFCforever
    jonesMUFCforever Posts: 28,898 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Does the friend not have a UK account?
    Why not transfer it there free of charge with a faster payment.
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 354.4K Banking & Borrowing
  • 254.4K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 455.4K Spending & Discounts
  • 247.3K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 604K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 178.4K Life & Family
  • 261.5K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.7K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.