The Ins and Outs of International Wire Transfer Services

Table of Contents

• What is an International Wire Transfer?
• How can I Send an International Wire Transfer?
• What are the Fees Associated with International Wire Transfers?
• How Much Money can I Send with International Wire Transfers?
• How Long do International Wire Transfers Take to Complete?
• Is it Safe to Send Money Internationally Using Wire Transfers?
• The Pros and Cons of International Wire Transfers
• What are the Pros of Sending Money Overseas with Wire Transfers?
• Convenience
• Safety
• International Access
• Sending Large Amounts
• What are the Cons of Sending Money Overseas with Wire Transfers?
• Lower Exchange Rate
• Costly Processing Fees
• Difficult to Cancel
• Slower Transfer Speed
• What are the Alternatives to International Wire Transfers?
• Conclusion

International wire transfer services are one of the best options for sending or receiving money quickly and easily across borders. But there are quite a few factors to consider, and it can be hard to know what the best practices are to maximize your return.

In this article, we will discuss the ins and outs of international wire transfers so that you can decide which options are best for you.

What is an International Wire Transfer?

An International Wire Transfer is specialized bank operated service that allows you to electronically send money from one bank account in one country to another bank account in a different country.

The money is transferred directly from the sending bank account to the receiving one, although there may be intermediary banks involved.

Note that you can also send domestic wire transfers which operate within the same country. But for the purposes of this article, we are going to focus solely on international wire transfers.

Wire transfers can be domestic as well as international, and imply an electronic transfer of money from one bank account to another.

How can I Send an International Wire Transfer?

If you want to send money internationally via your bank's wire transfer service, you will have several options to do so. Most banks will either allow you to send international wires electronically using their website or mobile app, or by going into their branch office, or both.

To make an international wire transfer, you will need to provide the following information to your bank:

• The name and address of the recipient's bank
• The recipient's account number and account type
• The recipient bank's SWIFT or BIC code (when applicable)
• The recipient's full name and address
• The reason for the transfer
• The transfer amount
• Your name as it appears on your bank account

Once your bank has all the requisite information, they will deduct the funds from your account and execute the wire transfer.

Most banks offer convenient ways to send international wire transfers.

What are the Fees Associated with International Wire Transfers?

Wire transfer fees vary, but the average cost for an international wire transfer ranges between USD 20 and USD 50. That, of course, does not include the exchange rate markup which may further reduce your payout.

For example, when we compared several top US banks for sending wire transfers, we noticed the below international wire transfer fees for the banks we looked at:

• Bank of America – USD 45
• WellsFargo – USD 45
• Citibank – USD 35
• Capital One – USD 25-30
• JPMorgan Chase – USD 50 if sent via a banker, else USD 5 if sent via the Chase mobile app or website
• PNC Bank – USD 40 if you send yourself, else USD 45 is a banker helps you
• U.S. Bank – USD 50

You may end up paying pretty high fees, sometimes as much as USD 50, for sending international wire transfers.

Fees vary by bank and your account level, just as with other bank services. Finding a bank that will eliminate these costs or offer free transfers is significantly difficult because international wire transfers still require manual work on the part of your bank (even if you only submit an online banking form).

There are, however, scenarios using which you can reduce, and sometimes even eliminate wire transfer fees. For example:

• If you self-serve your wire transfer using your bank's mobile app or website, it is possible that you will pay a lower fee. JPMorgan Chase is a great example whereby sending your wire yourself with the Chase app or website costs only USD 5. Compare that with USD 50 if you walk into your Chase bank branch and get a banker to assist with completing your wire transfer.
• Sometimes your membership level can reduce the fees you pay for your wire transfer (and other banking fees depending on the service). Citibank, for instance, has numerous account and membership levels, and some of them come with free wire transfers.

Look out for creative ways to reduce or even eliminate international wire transfers fees. Check with your bank for possible options.

All said, compared to credit card payments which have higher transaction fees and generally horrible exchange rates, international wire transfers are often much more affordable for large money transfers.

If you are looking for additional options to send money internationally, you can also consider money transfer companies that specialize in moving money from one country to another. Usually, these services have low fees and much better exchange rates.

You can use RemitFinder to search and compare many remittance service providers easily. This will save you time and money by making you aware of various good options out there. Armed with the know how about various providers, you can pick the best one for your needs.

How Much Money can I Send with International Wire Transfers?

In general, banks allow sending larger amounts using international wire transfers. Sometimes, limits may be in place based on your account history, account age, transfer frequency, etc.

Your bank should be able to tell you how much you can send using international wires.

Below are international wire transfer sending limits for some popular US banks:

• Bank of America – USD 5,000 per transaction
• WellsFargo – Not disclosed; contact your bank to find wire transfer sending limit
• Citibank – USD 50,000 minimum per day with higher or no limits based on account level and type
• Capital One – USD 500,000 or no limits based on recipient type
• JPMorgan Chase – USD 250,000 per day
• PNC Bank – No limits
• U.S. Bank – Not disclosed; contact your bank to find wire transfer sending limit

Most banks allow sending large amounts via international wire transfers.

Very high or sometimes even no limits make international wire transfers an attractive choice to send large amounts of money overseas in a single transaction.

How Long do International Wire Transfers Take to Complete?

International wire transfers require more processing time than domestic wire transfers. Domestic wire transfers depend on local domestic Automated Clearing House (ACH) and are hence faster; money sent via domestic wires might arrive in the recipient's account in just a few hours.

International wire transfers, on the other hand, rely on the SWIFT network (the international equivalent of local ACH network) to clear the transfer. Hence, there are more checks and hops involved which naturally add to the processing time.

In general, international wire transfers can often be completed in around 2-5 working days.

Actual processing times can differ, though, and depend on many factors that include:

• The recipient's country and location: Some countries that are less connected to global financial hubs may necessitate multiple hops before funds can reach the destination. This will slow down the overall transfer.
• Bank holidays: Since wire transfers are done by banks, they are subject to the bank being open and operational. Bank holidays mean more time for the process to complete.
• Bank processing cut-off times: Many banks have cut-off times after which they do not accept wire transfers, or do not send them. For example, your bank may send wires received after 4 PM on the next day. This will add 1 extra day to the overall processing time.

International wire transfers take 2-5 days to finish, but may get delayed due to many factors.

Be aware of the above nuances when sending international wire transfers if you need to move money fast between countries.

Is it Safe to Send Money Internationally Using Wire Transfers?

International wire transfers are typically secure. This is because they are handled by banks that are required to comply with strict security, compliance and regulatory requirements to handle and process money.

Much like all other bank transactions, all wire transfer services also adhere to the same strict rules when sending money internationally. As a result, you can be confident that security measures are being followed by your bank to ensure your money reaches its intended recipient without incident.

International wire transfers are generally safe and secure as banks employ strict security measures as part of compliance and regulatory requirements.

That said, you should research your bank to ensure they are registered, authorized and regulated by the relevant financial watchdog institutions in your country.

To further increase overall transaction security, make sure that you have the correct recipient information, and your recipient is also using a reputable bank in their home country.

Finally, always follow establishes best practices to send money online safely. Always protect your account and information, and take steps to ensure you can spot fraud, phishing and other attacks out there to steal your money and private information.

The Pros and Cons of International Wire Transfers

While there are many advantages to wire transfer, there are also some disadvantages that you should be aware of. In the following sections, we list the pros and cons of wire transfers.

What are the Pros of Sending Money Overseas with Wire Transfers?

When you send money overseas with wire transfers, you tap into some of the below advantages:

Convenience

International wire transfers are a convenient way to send and receive money. Most banks across the world are connected to the SWIFT network directly or indirectly, thereby allowing you to send money easily.

You can go into your bank branch to start a wire transfer or use their mobile app or website to do so. As a recipient, you have no do nothing as the money will simply get credited to your bank account.

Safety

International wire transfers offer greater security as compared to many other options to send money overseas.

Banks must comply with strict security measures as part of their legal and regulatory compliance. This makes international wire transfers one of the most secure methods for transferring money across borders.

International Access

Since banks are everywhere, you can find wire transfer services very easily. All you have to do is go to your local bank branch and you can send a wire. Similarly, you can wire money to any global destination as long as the recipient also has a bank account.

This means that you can pretty much send wires from any country to another. Of course, this excludes countries under sanctions or barred from participation in the global financial ecosystem.

Sending Large Amounts

If you need to send larger sums of money abroad, wire transfers can be a good choice. Most banks either let you send an unlimited amount or have fairly high transfer limits in place.

This is convenient in cases like moving across countries, buying property, investing in a business, etc. Instead of doing numerous small transactions to move a large pool of money abroad, you can simply do a large value wire transfer.

Key advantages of wire transfers include safety, convenience, ubiquitous availability and ability to send large amounts.

What are the Cons of Sending Money Overseas with Wire Transfers?

Everything has pros and cons, and wire transfers are no different. Below are some disadvantages of sending money internationally using wire transfers:

Lower Exchange Rate

Banks generally do not offer a good exchange rate on international wire transfers. This is because they have a high FX Markup and pay much less than real-time exchange rates for currency conversion.

Therefore, a wire transfer does not result in the most optimal payout. You can certainly get a better return on your money transfer if you found other alternatives that provide a better exchange rate.

Costly Processing Fees

Banks charge high transfer fees for sending international wire transfers. For example, sending an international wire transfer from the United States can sometimes cost you as high as USD 50 per transaction.

Fees naturally cut into the payout that your recipient will get in their overseas bank account. Sometimes, even the financial institution of the recipient may charge incoming wire transfer fees, which further lower the money that goes into their account.

International wire transfers are certainly more expensive as a result, especially when compared to other methods to send money overseas.

Difficult to Cancel

The downside of wire transfers is that once you have completed a transaction, you can't go back and change it. You might not be able to recover your money if you accidentally sent it to the wrong person. Therefore, wire transfers can be risky if you make a mistake.

Slower Transfer Speed

Wire transfers can take a few business days to clear. Further, bank holidays and processing cut-off times may introduce additional delays in the process.

So, if you need to send money overseas for urgent needs, consider other options that can move money much faster to your recipient in another country.

The main drawbacks of wire transfers include high fees and low exchange rates. In addition, they can be slow to complete and difficult to cancel.

If you need to avoid one or more of the above mentioned cons of wire transfers, read on to see alternatives.

What are the Alternatives to International Wire Transfers?

The best alternative to wire transfers is sending money internationally with money transfer companies. These providers specialize in international money transfers, also called remittances, as that is there is sole focus.

If you go with dedicated money transfer companies, you can expect to:

• Get a much better exchange rate than that provided by banks for wire transfers
• Pay significantly lower transfer fees, and in some cases, even 0 fees
• Have your recipient access the funds quickly, sometimes within minutes depending on which service you choose
• Be able to send money round the clock without having to go to a bank, or be subject to bank opening hours or processing times

Money transfer companies specialize in international remittances and will help you save a lot of money over wire transfers.

Check out various money transfer companies on RemitFinder, and compare their relative strengths and weaknesses to see which ones are best suited for your international remittance needs.

Conclusion

Wire transfers are an excellent way to send and receive money overseas conveniently and easily. They are fully secure, and you can simply transact with your bank much like you do for other financial needs.

At the same time, it is important to be aware of both the pros and cons on international wire transfers. There are numerous good alternatives available that can help you avoid some of the disadvantages that come with wire transfers.

Choose wisely and make the most of your hard-earned money.