Most people don’t really understand how the money transfer process really works. Most of them lay on the impression that they won’t be charged for an international money transfer. Given the high number of migrant workers, globalization, as well as the internet have helped the Money Transfer industry from the U.S to become a $250 billion per year business.
These industries have developed new innovative methods to transfer money both in the offline and online medium, offering competitive money transfer fees which makes it very difficult or tricky for people to keep up with. That being said, we’ve gathered a few tips that will help you understand how you can get charged and know what to look out for.
Check the Commissions and Fees
When you’ve decided to transfer money the first thing you should look out for would be the 0% commissions and fees. You may either use XE or Google to find out how the exchange rate is compared to the mid-market. A reason why you should start making these comparisons is that most consumers don’t know that their providers tend to hide their fee structure and rate behind the logins, so it might take a while to figure out the markup. This might be a bit more difficult at first sight, but doing this will offer you a big picture on which exchange rate is suitable for you.
Watch Out for The Fee Traps
A good provider should communicate whenever they change their pricing structure, even though they’re not compelled to do so. If a certain provider has decided to change its fee structure in a very short period of time, there is not much you can do. Except if you have historic data, and you may not realize that they’ve added extra charge.
Even though there are plenty of warnings, most of them in fine prints, you can’t have an exact indication of the reasons and time these extra charges have been added. It’s worth knowing that money transmitter services also make money from currency exchange. So, when you choose a provider it might be essential to compare both exchange rates and transfer fees. Everything from fees, taxes and foreign exchange rates are constantly changing depending on the channel, brand and location. Fee and rates are known to change pretty often without announcement which makes customers assume they’ve been charged the same amount as always.
Find a Suitable Money Transfer Service
With all these fee and rates traps it becomes difficult to find a money transfer service that will make you believe you’re getting a good deal. To find the best money transfers in the US, you must search for transparency and the best comparisons between money transfers companies. A transparent money transmitter should provide the best exchange rates and help you avoid risky fees. When choosing a money transfer service would be necessary to be aware of those headlines stating “zero fees” which usually sound too good to be true. If you take your time to dive deeper, you’ll find out that even if the fee is zero, the costs of exchanging your currency are extremely high. Be smart and use a money calculator to find out with exactitude how much money you’ll transfer.
Always Verify the Exchange Rate
It’s worth knowing that oftentimes the exchange rate markup is prone to change with the amount of money you’re sending. No matter where you’re sending money the essential would be to catch the fairest exchange rate possible. Once again you may use independent sources such as Yahoo Finance, XE or Google to find it out. But most people don’t understand when they’re trying to send money abroad, is that they won’t see these rates because the providers tend to take the mid-market rate and add and an extra charge on top. This is the service fee for sending your money wherever you need.
Plan Carefully
A great idea would be to start looking for the best rates in advance instead of waiting for the day you’ll send money. No matter where you plan to send that money it might be essential to build up some plans so you won’t make the same mistake twice. Planning ahead will offer you sufficient time to check out who combines the best exchange rates and offers acceptable fees. Then, when you’re ready to send you’ll have a list with websites you can use to compare.
Transferring money should not be that complicated. Let’s say you’ll have to send money to a family member or a friend located in the other part of the world. When looking for the best money transfer service you should consider the convenience, speed and prices. When we talk about costs, we know that money transfer companies tend to charge transfer fees and they also use to make money through the currency exchange. As mentioned before, you should expect the conversion rate for the money you’ve transferred to be even lower than the current exchange rate. The problem is that many people still aren’t aware of these costs produced by the location, channel and other factors.
It’s important to know that depending on the country, the funds transferred to a certain bank account won’t always arrive instantly but the next day. In some countries, money transfer lasts only an hour or a day. Regardless of where you live and where you want to transfer money, the entire process tends to be delayed due to weekends or various holidays so it’s worth knowing next time when you’ll be worried whether your friend has received the money or not.
When it comes to fees, remember that this will depend on the country you prefer to send money to and from, the mechanism, and the amount. If you’ve decided upon a transfer make sure you check the reviews for transferring funds at the bank you choose to make the transfer.
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