Paying via Transfer to Foreign Bank Account

[audreyh1]

Very interesting.

 

[deserat]

Just to add - if you are living on the economy in Europe, nowadays you have to send many of your bills electronically -your rent, your water, electricity, etc. Having the account with an IBAN allows them to pull from your account, like the ACH in the USA...so if the account you want to send money to has an IBAN, the amount can be pulled or pushed in Euros - I don't know if this also works that way in GBR, although, I wouldn't be surprised if it does.....you choose the base currencyfor your account (US$) but the credit union manages the exchange, etc, receiving the monies in the currency sent and then converting as it hits your account.

Hope that helps.

 

[deserat]

OK - just went and looked at their website it's even better than I thought. They offer international bill pay in 19 different currencies to 40 different couuntries and they offer a V Card, which is the chip and pin card used throughout Europe - exclusive to Europe. They also have an IBAN and BIC code for your account. This essentially makes your account a European account.

You just need a checking account there. Membership criteria is here: https://servicecu.org/about-scu/become-a-member/

Info in their international services is here:
https://servicecu.org/military-banking/international-services/

 

[bigreader]

Yes. You can either "Send $1000" or "Ensure the other party gets €1000". If you choose the latter, it will say "You need to send us $1145.67" or whatever. The rate is fixed for about 24 hours.

Another TransferWise product is their "borderless bank account". This is kind of like a 2-stage transfer. First you send money (say, in USD) to your borderless account. Then, at any later point, you can send € from that account to a € payee, or £ to someone in the UK, because your borderless account also has Euro (SEPA) and Sterling (BACS) account numbers, as well as ABA and ACH routing numbers. Conversions are done at the mid-rate and their commission is usually a fraction of a percent.

Even better, but not yet available to US customers, is that you can get a debit card for the borderless account. With this, you have a card that works in Switzerland like a CHF card, in Germany like a EUR card, and in Denmark like a DKK card. You can put a balance in each of those currencies on it and convert between them at any time. Every payment is done in the local currency. If you try to pay 100DKK and your DKK balance is only 80, it will convert a few EUR or USD to DKK and charge you a couple of cents. On a trip round Europe this can save a lot of money in card usage fees.

I very rarely get enthusiastic about any consumer item, but I unhesitatingly recommend TransferWise. (They have a referral program. DM me if you want to be my first official referral - there is a bonus for both of us!)

I haven't used TransferWise for very long, but I am a fan. They recently opened the debit card option to US residents as a test. It has limited withdraws (I think $250 a month) but I signed up and will try it out when I travel.


BR

 

[Cut-Throat]

I have a tour that requires payment by bank transfer (they say wire) and will send me the instructions for transferring funds to their company bank. Payment will be initially 30%, the remainder a couple of months later. The total is ~ €6500.

I'm sure Fidelity handles foreign bank transfers. But I don't know the fees involved or yet how to set such a thing up.

Is this something that I should try to do via TransferWise? And do I set up an account with them?

It's all very mysterious to me.

Thanks for any help.

Audrey

I have been in a similar situation and I said I could pay with PayPal in Euros and cover all the Fees..... They agreed and that is how I did it

 

[bigreader]

PayPal also has a service called Xoom for foreign payments that is, I think, a bit cheaper but not as cheap as TransferWise.



BR

 

[audreyh1]

I have been in a similar situation and I said I could pay with PayPal in Euros and cover all the Fees..... They agreed and that is how I did it

I thought PayPal fees to the vendor were like 6%.

I went with Fidelity for the deposit. Compared with the VISA 0% euro conversion rate for the same day I paid like 2.55% for the transfer, no other fees and the recipient got the full amount in Euros.

 

[Cut-Throat]

I thought PayPal fees to the vendor were like 6%.

I went with Fidelity for the deposit. Compared with the VISA 0% euro conversion rate for the same day I paid like 2.55% for the transfer, no other fees and the recipient got the full amount in Euros.

Paypal Fees are around 2.9%

 

[audreyh1]

Paypal Fees are around 2.9%

When I paid some deposits I saw much higher fees.

 

[Scrapr]

When I paid some deposits I saw much higher fees.

We take CC for our business and 2.9% is about right.

You say you paid deposits.Like for tours and such? Maybe the vendor doubled up to capture some margin?

 

[audreyh1]

We take CC for our business and 2.9% is about right.

You say you paid deposits.Like for tours and such? Maybe the vendor doubled up to capture some margin?

Deposit for a B&B reservation. The statement in euros was from PayPal and showed the PayPal fees.

 

[audreyh1]

OK - I have another application. This time a potentially large gift to a family member with a European bank account. I will probably cut up transfers into chunks. I don't intend to use the borderless account feature.

From this thread and another recent one (http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/article-on-transferwise-95948.html), several of you have been very comfortable with Transferwise and used it repeatedly. But the recent online review articles have quite aggressively negative comments, such as this one from NerdWallet https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/banking/transferwise-review/ . At some level the negative comments seem a bit orchestrated as they repeat on different articles, but it's still intimidating.

 

[Alan]

OK - I have another application. This time a potentially large gift to a family member in Europe. I will probably cut up transfers into chunks. I don't intend to use the borderless account feature.

From this thread and another recent one (http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/article-on-transferwise-95948.html), several of you have been very comfortable with Transferwise and used it repeatedly. But the recent online review articles have quite aggressively negative comments, such as this one from NerdWallet https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/banking/transferwise-review/ . At some level the negative comments seem a bit orchestrated as they repeat on different articles, but it's still intimidating.

I followed your link and don’t see any negative comments, let alone aggressively negative comments. Am I missing something?

I made a $20k transfer recently after the UK pound dropped below $1.20 and it was the usual smooth same day experience. I have free wire transfers with my US bank so use the wire option instead of ACH which is cheaper and faster.

 

[audreyh1]

I followed your link and don’t see any negative comments, let alone aggressively negative comments. Am I missing something?

I made a $20k transfer recently after the UK pound dropped below $1.20 and it was the usual smooth same day experience. I have free wire transfers with my US bank so use the wire option instead of ACH which is cheaper and faster.

In the reader comments section below the article:

• Stay away from Transferwise. They are do not care about customers and put you in (awkward) situation (usually called blackmailing)....
• All these 5 star reviews are fake, generated by their PR marketing team so don`t fall for positive reviews as they are fake....
• I've tried to send only 1000 dollars to my partner abroad, after 3 days of waiting and while they are saying that the money should arrive today, suddenly the account has been deactivated and I can't login anymore. no reason, no explanation.
• TransferWise just took $1000 from my business checking account. Their phone number was even on the transaction. I"VE NEVER HEARD OF THIS COMPANY....
• SCAMMERS AND THIEVES, STAY AWAY!
  I have sent all requested documents and info and got my account verified. After that I got two payments for legally and hardworking earned money from well-known company that have impeccable reputation. TransferWise simply deactivated my account without any warning, question or explanation and stolen 680$ that I had on my account....

And those are just the lead-ins on the first comments. It continues in a similar vein.

I see similar reader comments on other TransferWise review articles.

 

[bigreader]

I do see the comments. My experiences, which generally have been the transfer of money to payees in Europe and in Euros, have been great. If you are concerned, you have the right idea in breaking the transfer into more digestible bites. If you are still concerned, you might want to look at Xoom (which is a PayPal company). I have used them in the past. They were very good, cheaper than PayPal or my bank, but more expensive than TransferWise.

I never know who to trust on the internet, but Transferwise's Trustpilot rating is quite good with a huge volume of reviews and positive recent reviews.


br

 

[audreyh1]

I do see the comments. My experiences, which generally have been the transfer of money to payees in Europe and in Euros, have been great. If you are concerned, you have the right idea in breaking the transfer into more digestible bites. If you are still concerned, you might want to look at Xoom (which is a PayPal company). I have used them in the past. They were very good, cheaper than PayPal or my bank, but more expensive than TransferWise.

I never know who to trust on the internet, but Transferwise's Trustpilot rating is quite good with a huge volume of reviews and positive recent reviews.


br

Thanks much!

 

[Alan]

In the reader comments section below the article:

• Stay away from Transferwise. They are do not care about customers and put you in (awkward) situation (usually called blackmailing)....
• All these 5 star reviews are fake, generated by their PR marketing team so don`t fall for positive reviews as they are fake....
• I've tried to send only 1000 dollars to my partner abroad, after 3 days of waiting and while they are saying that the money should arrive today, suddenly the account has been deactivated and I can't login anymore. no reason, no explanation.
• TransferWise just took $1000 from my business checking account. Their phone number was even on the transaction. I"VE NEVER HEARD OF THIS COMPANY....
• SCAMMERS AND THIEVES, STAY AWAY!
  I have sent all requested documents and info and got my account verified. After that I got two payments for legally and hardworking earned money from well-known company that have impeccable reputation. TransferWise simply deactivated my account without any warning, question or explanation and stolen 680$ that I had on my account....

And those are just the lead-ins on the first comments. It continues in a similar vein.

I see similar reader comments on other TransferWise review articles.

Thanks for the summary and explanation on where to look. With dozens of successful transactions I will continue to use them rather than switch back to a more expensive slower company, however I understand reticence to use them with reviews like this, and I’ll certainly stop recommending them to others.

 

[audreyh1]

Thanks for the summary and explanation on where to look. With dozens of successful transactions I will continue to use them rather than switch back to a more expensive slower company, however I understand reticence to use them with reviews like this, and I’ll certainly stop recommending them to others.

That’s what I am trying to figure out. There are obviously plenty of customers who are very happy, so what is the deal with the flurry of aggressively negative comments? Is it a campaign against them? Or has something recently changed?

 

[Alan]

That’s what I am trying to figure out. There are obviously plenty of customers who are very happy, so what is the deal with the flurry of aggressively negative comments? Is it a campaign against them? Or has something recently changed?

I heard about TransferWise from the 2 expat forums I frequent and I just checked back there and still nothing but enthusiasm from those members. Just like this site I don't really know anyone but I put more trust in their reviews than random reviewers elsewhere.

I personally won't worry too much about their trustworthiness until I hear the mainstream press raise issues. In the UK my goto site for such matters is "Money Savings Expert", Martin Lewis who is also a regular guest on BBC money programs and news shows.

His website has the following info on TransferWise:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/foreign-currency-exchange/

Transferwise is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This means any money you send using the service is kept separate from company accounts. See Is my money protected? for more details

There's NO compensation scheme if a firm goes bust

This is crucial to understand - if you use an online transfer company (or any transfer company that holds your money) and it goes bust while it has your money, there's no guarantee you'll get it back. The regulation of these companies has become tighter in the past few years, but the risk of losing cash still remains.

If it's 'authorised' - your money is kept separate.

A large firm trading over €3 million (£2.5 million) a month, must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Each day, at the close of business, these firms separate your money from the firm's own accounts (known as ringfencing). This protects your cash, so you should get it back if the firm gets into difficulty.

If it's 'registered' - there are no safeguards for your cash.

Smaller firms can choose to be registered. This means there's no safety process if something goes wrong with the firm, meaning your money isn't protected.

To check how a firm is regulated (whether it's authorised or just registered), search for its name on the FCA register. For more information on your protection, this Sending Money Safely leaflet from the Money Advice Service is useful.

 

[braumeister]

Personally, I've found Transferwise to be great (as Alan has). But of course you never know.

FWIW, here is another site that rates them 86% Excellent with over 72,000 reviews:

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/transferwise.com

 

[Sunset]

Months ago I did sign up with them, but stopped at the point where they wanted my username and password to my bank account to pull money from.

 

[sengsational]

Months ago I did sign up with them, but stopped at the point where they wanted my username and password to my bank account to pull money from.

I used a card to pay, and didn't need to disclose anything that sensitive, but I got the huge forehead slap when I saw the cash equivalent fee on my card statement. That was just the down payment to a small outfit based in the UK. I'll have to figure out how to pay the balance without disclosing my password because that's a show-stopper for me.

 

[audreyh1]

I heard about TransferWise from the 2 expat forums I frequent and I just checked back there and still nothing but enthusiasm from those members. Just like this site I don't really know anyone but I put more trust in their reviews than random reviewers elsewhere.

I personally won't worry too much about their trustworthiness until I hear the mainstream press raise issues. In the UK my goto site for such matters is "Money Savings Expert", Martin Lewis who is also a regular guest on BBC money programs and news shows.

His website has the following info on TransferWise:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/foreign-currency-exchange/

Yes, that is my conclusion. I'm going to try them based on the enthusiasts here and from other forums.

I see Richard Branson is (still?) an investor. That gives me more confidence.

I'm glad to get feedback about USD to Euros transfers here as that is what I will be doing.

 

[audreyh1]

Months ago I did sign up with them, but stopped at the point where they wanted my username and password to my bank account to pull money from.

I used a card to pay, and didn't need to disclose anything that sensitive, but I got the huge forehead slap when I saw the cash equivalent fee on my card statement. That was just the down payment to a small outfit based in the UK. I'll have to figure out how to pay the balance without disclosing my password because that's a show-stopper for me.

I have an unused checking account that I can use to do these transfers.

I have more checking accounts than I need for precisely this reason of limiting access to funds for a specific purpose.

 

[audreyh1]

Personally, I've found Transferwise to be great (as Alan has). But of course you never know.

FWIW, here is another site that rates them 86% Excellent with over 72,000 reviews:

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/transferwise.com

Thanks much. I will look at that.

I really wondered about the scathingly bad reviews as they just seemed to go overboard and were repeated on several forums. A disgruntled user will go post their complaint on multiple forums, but this looked more orchestrated. Could be generated by an anti-company PR department - that is more and more common these days.