Sending money overseas discussion area

Mikeyorks

schiff wrote:

For years now BACS has been the best and no-charge route for me. I've always 'known' that CHAPS costs a fortune in comparison - but then I might not be up to date on this. So avoided it like the plague (unless of course you want a quick payment to be made - and some forward planning can nip that necessity in the bud). Therefore I find it odd that russellgreeno and Mikeyorks seem to be talking about CHAPS xfers as if there is no cost element to be considered.

I personally have no need to consider CHAPS xfers but I would appreciate knowing if things have changed in that area -just from idle curiosity!

No - we were talking about BACS being the standard default mechanism you access for inter-Bank transfers (SOs / bill payments)

You would need to specifically ask for a CHAPS transfer - and one assumes you would only do that if you need a same-day transfer?

CHAPS remains a chargeable facility that most people would need to specifically organise with their Bank and - as you say - most would attempt to plan to avoid that.

quirin

grumbler wrote:

£7.50 every month is a lot of money! And I think Nationwide rate is better. Next time you make a transfer compare rate to Visa rate (used by Nationwide) and tell us the result.

Hi grumbler,
thanks for the advice. I have a N/w flexacc now and will see how it works. One little drawback though: you can only take out £ 300 or the equivalent per day if I understood it correctly, so that you have to go to the ATM several times to take the money out and pay it into another bankacc abroad or if you want larger amounts. But I shall see how it works.
Thanks
quirin

intalex

Hi,

I'm sorry if this has been covered elsewhere, but I couldn't find any information relating to it after an hour of searching the forum.

Would it be any cheaper to do an international transfer from a Barclays account in the UK to a Barclays account in Africa? What charges would be applied in this transfer?

What about a transfer from a Standard Chartered account in the UK to a Standard Chartered account in Africa?

The amount I'm thinking of transferring each month is around £300 - £350.

Advice will be much appreciated !!!

THRIFTY1_3

Hi Intalex,
You really need to ask your respective banks what charges they would apply to foreign transfers, you would have thought that no fees would apply since the transfer would remain within their own banking structure, however these are banks we're talking about. The key thing to enquire about is what rate of exchange they would apply to converting your pounds sterling to S.A Rand. It may then be worth comparing these rates with those offered by the many online International money transfer services available, who's rates are generally a lot better. They do generally charge an admin fee for each transaction, so you need to factor this cost in when comparing cost efficiency against using them against your bank. If possible you may consider making quarterly transfer rather than monthly, not only would you cut down on admin fees but also benefit from an improved rate as the value being transferred is larger. The other thing to consider when transferring through a third party company is that you would firstly be required to transfer the money from your ccount to their client account for conversion and transfer, however if you're looking to do this on a regular basis and the amount will continue to be the same you could simply arrange a periodic standing order to them, saving the hassle of arranging a transfer each time. I know this is something Justeuros.co.uk offers, I use them to transfer regularly, service and rates are great. Onlinefx also do this I believe. Just 2 companies worth looking into, but there are plenty more out there.

Hope this is of use to you.

intalex

Cheers Thrifty1,

I've now done a little bit of research on some of these online IMT services. I wouldn't be able to know anything about the "receiving fees" if I used my bank, which makes these online IMT services, who guarantee no receiving fees, more appealing.

Some of them don't have an admin charge, but I guess they would probably offer a slightly lower exchange rate instead.

By the way, I intend to transfer the money to Tanzania (East Africa), not South Africa, so I guess the key factor to take into account would be whether or not any of these online IMT services would be able to transfer money to a bank account in Tanzania (Barclays or Standard Chartered) and can guarantee that there will be no receiving fees.

That would probably filter out most of these services, and I can then focus on the admin charges / exchange rates for the ones that are able to transfer to Tanzanian bank accounts.

So the question is, does anyone do regular transfers from the UK to Tanzania (or anywhere in East Africa - Kenya/Uganda) using an online IMT service?

Cheers again!

THRIFTY1_3

You are quite right , it's all swings and roundabouts, what you don't pay for in an admin fee you often pay for in the exchange rate, etc... It is possible to avoid receiving fees being taken when using IMT companies, they take the fee thiss end but then you know the exact intended amount will be credited to the desired foreign account, as I previously mentioned I use Justeuros.co.uk, they have done this for me before. I must admit I have never transferred to Tanzania, but I'm sure whether or not it's a service they could help with, no harm in asking I guess!! Incidently though, I know their client account, which I have to credit when transferring is with Barclays, so that may help with secure transfer and possibly avoid the receiving costs applicable, just as you would when going through your bank.

Anyway enough waffle from me, good luck in your quest.

The_Cherries

Easy Exchange? Are they still in business?

I used Easy exchange last year without any problems to send money to relatives in South Africa. Last month I logged on to their website again using saved details and sent a similar sum.

The money went from my bank A/C and I eventually had an Email from Easy Exchange saying they had sent it to SA. The only problem is that they never received it! Now Easy Exchange's website is closed for maintenance.

Doesn't look too good? Has anybody heard anything about this company?

Cheers

THRIFTY1_3

It doesnt sound too good, but looking positively at least their site is closed for maintenance, not just shut down!! Do you have any contact numbers on previous documentation from them, best bet is to raise your concerns with a human rather than relying on web respone.

If you are overly concerned you could try checking their status via the Companies house website (though I'm not sure how frequently they update companies that have been wound up).

How long was it since they confirmed the transfer? It may well be a case of them forwarding the funds to the foreign bank and that bank has failed to allocate the funds to the specific account, Easy Exchange should be able to trace that for you.

I hope you get things sorted out.

Good luck

Perpetua_2

I wish to send a deposit in Euros to the owner of a villa in Spain which I am renting and he has asked for a bank transfer (which I would prefer not to use because of high charges). I have been reading the article on sending via Paypal but am not sure how the actual transfer works. Does the money go from my credit card straight to his bank account (details of which he has sent me) and how soon will he know that the transfer has taken place? I need to send this deposit quickly so would appreciate an urgent reply. Thanks.

THRIFTY1_3

It is my understanding that paypal will receive payment from your credit card and accordingly credit your intended receiving bank in the domestic currency. You may want to check what sort of currency exchange rate they will apply and compare that to some of the more competitive online transfer businesses, (better than the banks for sure and quicker!!).

That said though, i'm not sure if any of the transfer companies accept payment via credit card or even debit card. You should also be careful when paying with a card as the card issuer will usually apply a surcharge for the transaction if it is known to be for foreign exchange. Credit cards for sure charge in excess of 3% of the transaction value, deeming the purchase as a cash advance etc...!

Depending on the value you wish to send and the time constraints involved, I would strongly recommend going online and using a specialist transfer business. I use justeuros.co.uk and have had money credited abroad within 2 days. I have previously used onlinefx who worked very well too. Both offer competitive rates and are very efficient. I should warn you though, I know for a fact neither accept card payments. For large amounts I have been able to do sameday transfer from my bank to just euros and they covered the cost.

Its worth shopping about a bit and do a few sums as to whether paypal offering card payment facilities and probably a less preferable exchange rate is better than using a transfer specialist or dare i say use your bank!!! The latter being highly unrecommended as far as I'm concerned.

Well good luck and hope I've helped a little.