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Best app/account/service for getting some money efficiently from the US to the UK
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wmb194 said:flaneurs_lobster said:Suppose there's Revolut......
..although I've never had the nadgers to move more than £500 with them.
https://help.revolut.com/help/transfers/inbound-transfers/how-to-receive-money-from-another-bank/what-account-details-should-i-use-to-transfer-money-to-my-revolut-account/guide-to-usd-bank-transfers-to-your-revolut-account/0 -
wmb194 said:flaneurs_lobster said:Suppose there's Revolut......
..although I've never had the nadgers to move more than £500 with them.
https://help.revolut.com/help/transfers/inbound-transfers/how-to-receive-money-from-another-bank/what-account-details-should-i-use-to-transfer-money-to-my-revolut-account/guide-to-usd-bank-transfers-to-your-revolut-account/0 -
IanDudley said:wmb194 said:IanDudley said:My wife has recieved an inheritance in the USA, it's not mega-bucks, under six figures, but is large enough that a couple of percent of difference in fees adds up to a large enough sum of money that I'd like to minimise the cost. This is also reliant on family and a solicitor cooperating in the US, so it needs to be relatively straightforward and ideally something we can set up from the UK and just send them simple instructions. It's also going to be a one off and needs to be relatively soon, so it can't be too complex.
The default option is a direct international money transfer, but that's going to cost 3-4% at the sending bank, which is a bit ouchy. I was investigating using Wise, which would allow us to have a US account number, so the sending people just do a regular domestic transfer, and we then move it to the UK ourselves within Wise which was a lot cheaper. But for some reason Wise has stopped giving out US account numbers at the moment so that's a non-starter.
Can anyone recommend a reliable service similar to Wise? I see loads of fintechy companies advertising on Google, but I've never heard of most of them so I'm a bit leery. Also, it's hard to find results for recieving US funds within the US, rather than sending to the US from here.
Alternatively is there another way to do this simply and keeping the fees as reasonable as possible?0 -
Hoenir said:IanDudley said:wmb194 said:IanDudley said:My wife has recieved an inheritance in the USA, it's not mega-bucks, under six figures, but is large enough that a couple of percent of difference in fees adds up to a large enough sum of money that I'd like to minimise the cost. This is also reliant on family and a solicitor cooperating in the US, so it needs to be relatively straightforward and ideally something we can set up from the UK and just send them simple instructions. It's also going to be a one off and needs to be relatively soon, so it can't be too complex.
The default option is a direct international money transfer, but that's going to cost 3-4% at the sending bank, which is a bit ouchy. I was investigating using Wise, which would allow us to have a US account number, so the sending people just do a regular domestic transfer, and we then move it to the UK ourselves within Wise which was a lot cheaper. But for some reason Wise has stopped giving out US account numbers at the moment so that's a non-starter.
Can anyone recommend a reliable service similar to Wise? I see loads of fintechy companies advertising on Google, but I've never heard of most of them so I'm a bit leery. Also, it's hard to find results for recieving US funds within the US, rather than sending to the US from here.
Alternatively is there another way to do this simply and keeping the fees as reasonable as possible?0 -
IanDudley said:Hoenir said:IanDudley said:wmb194 said:IanDudley said:My wife has recieved an inheritance in the USA, it's not mega-bucks, under six figures, but is large enough that a couple of percent of difference in fees adds up to a large enough sum of money that I'd like to minimise the cost. This is also reliant on family and a solicitor cooperating in the US, so it needs to be relatively straightforward and ideally something we can set up from the UK and just send them simple instructions. It's also going to be a one off and needs to be relatively soon, so it can't be too complex.
The default option is a direct international money transfer, but that's going to cost 3-4% at the sending bank, which is a bit ouchy. I was investigating using Wise, which would allow us to have a US account number, so the sending people just do a regular domestic transfer, and we then move it to the UK ourselves within Wise which was a lot cheaper. But for some reason Wise has stopped giving out US account numbers at the moment so that's a non-starter.
Can anyone recommend a reliable service similar to Wise? I see loads of fintechy companies advertising on Google, but I've never heard of most of them so I'm a bit leery. Also, it's hard to find results for recieving US funds within the US, rather than sending to the US from here.
Alternatively is there another way to do this simply and keeping the fees as reasonable as possible?0 -
Hoenir said:IanDudley said:Hoenir said:IanDudley said:wmb194 said:IanDudley said:My wife has recieved an inheritance in the USA, it's not mega-bucks, under six figures, but is large enough that a couple of percent of difference in fees adds up to a large enough sum of money that I'd like to minimise the cost. This is also reliant on family and a solicitor cooperating in the US, so it needs to be relatively straightforward and ideally something we can set up from the UK and just send them simple instructions. It's also going to be a one off and needs to be relatively soon, so it can't be too complex.
The default option is a direct international money transfer, but that's going to cost 3-4% at the sending bank, which is a bit ouchy. I was investigating using Wise, which would allow us to have a US account number, so the sending people just do a regular domestic transfer, and we then move it to the UK ourselves within Wise which was a lot cheaper. But for some reason Wise has stopped giving out US account numbers at the moment so that's a non-starter.
Can anyone recommend a reliable service similar to Wise? I see loads of fintechy companies advertising on Google, but I've never heard of most of them so I'm a bit leery. Also, it's hard to find results for recieving US funds within the US, rather than sending to the US from here.
Alternatively is there another way to do this simply and keeping the fees as reasonable as possible?0 -
Can't you just send to Wise via SWIFT to your GBP details, and (important!) ask the solicitor to send in Dollars? If I understand it Wise will use the same conversion that you'd get if you did an "internal" USD-GBP conversion. There will probably be a one off charge for the SWIFT wire transfer ($20-$30 likely based on historical experience).
https://wise.com/help/articles/2935927/how-do-i-use-my-gbp-account-details
But check Wise will use the same rate in these circumstances.
It's a shame that new USD details are paused - I use this all the time, and I hope they don't shut it down.I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the Credit Cards, Savings & investments, and Budgeting & Bank Accounts boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.
All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.1 -
sausage_time said:Can't you just send to Wise via SWIFT to your GBP details, and (important!) ask the solicitor to send in Dollars? If I understand it Wise will use the same conversion that you'd get if you did an "internal" USD-GBP conversion. There will probably be a one off charge for the SWIFT wire transfer ($20-$30 likely based on historical experience).
https://wise.com/help/articles/2935927/how-do-i-use-my-gbp-account-details
But check Wise will use the same rate in these circumstances.
It's a shame that new USD details are paused - I use this all the time, and I hope they don't shut it down.1 -
IanDudley said:sausage_time said:Can't you just send to Wise via SWIFT to your GBP details, and (important!) ask the solicitor to send in Dollars? If I understand it Wise will use the same conversion that you'd get if you did an "internal" USD-GBP conversion. There will probably be a one off charge for the SWIFT wire transfer ($20-$30 likely based on historical experience).
https://wise.com/help/articles/2935927/how-do-i-use-my-gbp-account-details
But check Wise will use the same rate in these circumstances.
It's a shame that new USD details are paused - I use this all the time, and I hope they don't shut it down.
If the sender sends GBP, it will be the sending bank which does conversion.
If the sender sends USD, it will be the receiving bank which does the conversion.
If you provide your Wise account details to the sender and instruct them to send USD, then it will be the receiving bank (ie. Wise) which does the conversion, netting you the best rate. I suspect you'll be stuck with the wire fees in either case, meaning it makes sense to focus on the best exchange rate as a factor you can actually control.
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IanDudley said:Hoenir said:Who is distributing the money the solicitor ?I expect you will find that the attorney will only send the funds to an account in your own name. Otherwise you could use various services, such as Atlantic Money:I don't know if they will provide USD account details in your own name, or whether the attorney can be persuaded to use such a service if not...
Evolution, not revolution0
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