Money Transfers

Wise (formerly TransferWise) and Remitly are both apps that offer really low transfer fees. I personally use Wise for online transfers and the money arrives in my account in less than 48 hours in most cases.

Charles Schwab checking account maybe a good option.

-they don't charge atm fee

-they reimburse atm fees from other banks

-no foreign transaction fee

Their exchange rate is usually competitive and fair.

01/17/23 @Alstromeria55. Good morning! You'll find an extensive discussion of the pros and cons of the various ways to transfer funds to Brazil in this thread.  I'd suggest starting with the oldest posts and reading to the newest.  It's only two pages:

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … =2#5580842

Once you have registered with the Federal Police and they have given you a CRNM, you Residence Card, you'll be able to open your own account at a bank in Aracaju.

@Alstromeria55

Hi, I am also a foreigner living here in Rio de Janeiro. If you have a wise application you can transfer from your account to the wise application and convert USD into Brazil raise. I think a little bit amount charge on it.

I too love Wise. But one draw back that I've read, but haven't dealt with yet is that if you lose you card they only send replacement cards to US adresses. Which can be a pain if you need it fast. Once I get residency I was thinking of doing what some suggest and get a Brazilian bank account, but one of the newer online banks like Nubank or C6, because Bradesco, BoB, etc have high fees. My two centavos.

@Zain Awan My wise app doesn't have brl on the list as currency to convert. I can transfer $ in brl to individuals, but all my purchases and ATM withdrawals are converted from dollars and carry a small transaction fee.

@orlandocolon7 I am looking into this, but you have to prove at least 6 months residency in a foreign address.

@Alstromeria55

Hi:

Re Soc Sec: once you have a bank account opened in Brazil, you have the option- repeat option to have your monthly payment deposited directly into your account in Brazil. It's handled by the US Embassy in Lisbon- google their website- then services for US citizens. Also once you advise Soc Sec that your permanent residence is outside the US, regardless of where you instruct them to deposit your funds, your monthly payments will be on the 3rd of each month.

Good luck

I recommend that you use the Remessaonline platform to bring your money to your account directly in Brazil.

it is the least expensive way.

Competitors like western union or even traditional banks are too expensive.

go to the site to do a simulation for yourself and you will see that this is the best solution.

I did a simulation for you for an amount of $1000 and see for yourself and compare with the other services in place.

welcome to brazil

Você envia : 1.000,00 USD

Beneficiário recebe: 5.200,93 BRL

Câmbio: R$ 5,12

@Alstromeria55

I live in Ceará and I collect social security monthly. My monthly money is deposited into PayPal. This money can be transferred into a Brazilian Bank in Brazilian 💰 Their is a set-up on PayPal that is literally one touch.

Roddie in Retirement🕵🏽

@abthree

FYI. I only had a CPF, passport and a utility bill, but my Brazilian Wife of 23 years aka “the smartest wife in the world” who had a Bank of Brazil Account opened up a joint account in our names to deposit my money in. It will become my account later on.

Roddie in Retirement🕵🏽

01/17/23 @abthree
FYI. I only had a CPF, passport and a utility bill, but my Brazilian Wife of 23 years aka “the smartest wife in the world” who had a Bank of Brazil Account opened up a joint account in our names to deposit my money in. It will become my account later on.

Roddie in Retirement🕵🏽
-@Roddie Simmons

I've heard that a foreigner could become a co-signer on a joint account without having a CRNM, but I've never had confirmation before. 

Thanks for that.  This kind of thing is why I try never to say "never" about Brazil! 😂

Hello. I just joined this group and will be moving to Aracaju, Brazil in less than two months. I will be keeping my bank account in the USA and was wondering about what to do about transferring funds. internatinal wire transfers are expensive. My monthly income will be from Social Security and retirement funds and the money can only be deposited into a bank account in the USA. Any suggestions about how to best avoid these transaction fees?
-@Alstromeria55

You are that gal who plans to move to Aracaju....

Ok here is what I would do.

1.Keep your checking account in the US. Make sure you tell your branch manager you will be making withdrawals from time to time to meet expenses, so you don't get blocked.   

2.Draw money from your checking account on debit charges.  If you carry a VISA or Mastercard, then it should work. You will need a bank that can allow you to take cash out of local  ATMS. My gut feeling is that Santander will do this, but you may as well try Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Itau.

3.Rent money.  Work some agreement with the landlord to pay in cash and get receipts. So, if you plan to have your own place, don't splurge.  Get a walkup pad  in a decent part of the town, , save money.  Frugality is your best friend.  A walkup here would be a Sobreloja or something to that extent.

4. Withdrawals have ceiling limits , sometimes established by local banks, or by your personal bank,  so learn about those beforehand. .

5.Make sure you get the rundown on your transaction fees.  Those are not supposed to happen anymore ( foreign exchange fee ). I recall, Ralph Nader took some US Banks to court for gouging consumers on this.  if you have no such fee, light up a candle for the old man.. 

6.You are going to be flooded with local solicitations on your e-mail inbox you never thought you would've gotten.  So invest a little money on a VPN to go with your broadband connection.

7.Paying utilities.... No direct deposits!  Every time you get a bill due, print it, and pay at the ATM ( it's called a Boleto ). The ATM will read the bar code and make the transaction.   Make sure it works in the first place. if you can't manage this to work with your US account, then, you will need to get a local checking account.

01/17/23 @Alstromeria55.  With your son and his family already living in Aracaju, you have something that a lot of expats would love to have starting out:  a built-in, onsite network of people you can trust.  Don't forget to ask you son about he manages his finances.  You may just want to do the same until you settle in.

@Owen TODAN Thanks for the info. I have to say, Brazilian banking and cell phone payments are exercises in frustration. Having said that, I am completely in favor of any easy method that will maximize my transfer. I looked at Remessa online at your recommendation and it appears to be set up to transfer BR reais to elsewhere, but not to transfer US$ to a Brazilian bank. Am I missing something?

I do like Wise's transparency. It even tells you it's competitions' rates, which are often better than its own.

Now I have to figure out how to obtain the routing information for the Brazilian banks. Does anyone have experience transferring US$ to Iti and/or Nubank?

BTW, I remember in the 1980s there was a black market for US$ in Brazil and no US bank would exchange Brazilian cruzeiros for US$. I still have some cruzeiros that I imagine are nothing more than note paper now.

Now I have to figure out how to obtain the routing information for the Brazilian banks. Does anyone have experience transferring US$ to Iti and/or Nubank?

BTW, I remember in the 1980s there was a black market for US$ in Brazil and no US bank would exchange Brazilian cruzeiros for US$. I still have some cruzeiros that I imagine are nothing more than note paper now.
-@ibdegen

To obtain your routing information, ask your Brazilian bank manager for the International Bank Account Number(s),  the IBAN(s), of your account(s).  The IBAN is unique to each account, and is a 29 digit identifier starting with the letters "BR" for accounts in Brazil.

We're several currencies and several bouts of hyperinflation past the pre-1993 Cruzeiro, so all comparisons are approximate.  The estimated value of Cr$10.000 in 2023 Reais is R$0,004, according to this internet calculator:

https://calculareconverter.com.br/conve … para-real/

You may be able to sell your cruzeiro notes in an antiquary shop, but you're right:  as money, they're strictly decorative. 😂

BTW, I remember in the 1980s there was a black market for US$ in Brazil and no US bank would exchange Brazilian cruzeiros for US$. I still have some cruzeiros that I imagine are nothing more than note paper now.
-@ibdegen

Trust me, there is still a HUGE black market in Brazil for buying US dollars, and not difficult to find if you know where to look, starting right inside of every international airport along with a number of other places.

Hello. I just joined this group and will be moving to Aracaju, Brazil in less than two months. I will be keeping my bank account in the USA and was wondering about what to do about transferring funds. internatinal wire transfers are expensive. My monthly income will be from Social Security and retirement funds and the money can only be deposited into a bank account in the USA. Any suggestions about how to best avoid these transaction fees?
-@Alstromeria55

You are that gal who plans to move to Aracaju....

Ok here is what I would do.

1.Keep your checking account in the US. Make sure you tell your branch manager you will be making withdrawals from time to time to meet expenses, so you don't get blocked. 

2.Draw money from your checking account on debit charges. If you carry a VISA or Mastercard, then it should work. You will need a bank that can allow you to take cash out of local ATMS. My gut feeling is that Santander will do this, but you may as well try Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Itau.

3.Rent money. Work some agreement with the landlord to pay in cash and get receipts. So, if you plan to have your own place, don't splurge. Get a walkup pad in a decent part of the town, , save money. Frugality is your best friend. A walkup here would be a Sobreloja or something to that extent.

4. Withdrawals have ceiling limits , sometimes established by local banks, or by your personal bank, so learn about those beforehand. .

5.Make sure you get the rundown on your transaction fees. Those are not supposed to happen anymore ( foreign exchange fee ). I recall, Ralph Nader took some US Banks to court for gouging consumers on this. if you have no such fee, light up a candle for the old man..

6.You are going to be flooded with local solicitations on your e-mail inbox you never thought you would've gotten. So invest a little money on a VPN to go with your broadband connection.

7.Paying utilities.... No direct deposits! Every time you get a bill due, print it, and pay at the ATM ( it's called a Boleto ). The ATM will read the bar code and make the transaction.  Make sure it works in the first place. if you can't manage this to work with your US account, then, you will need to get a local checking account.
-@sprealestatebroker

A kindred soul I see. You'd laugh if you saw how wide my smile was a few minutes ago, finally found someone outside of our family that does this. This is the best way to live in Brazil without having to worry about taxes. Having your monthly income being transferred to your Brazilian account makes you available to be audited by the PF.

Our family has various rented property and monthly incomes all coming from abroad. We set our account to ''international withdrawals'' and each month we withdraw the max limit allowed at Bradesco being currently R$2.500,000 each time with the lowest fee of all the banks for us. We pay our rent monthly and all other services / needed products only with boleto.

Everything we pay and do, goes through boleto, PIX/PICPAY (CPF needed) or Paypal if they accept. We all have a various bank account, but only savings because < R$140k reais is allowed and you're not audited or pay any taxes.

Important for everyone! As of 2023 month unknown, those that receives 1,5 x the minimum salary (R$1.903,98+), will have to declare their taxes.

Link --> https://www12.senado.leg.br/noticias/materias/2023/01/16/salario-minimo-se-aproxima-do-teto-da-isencao-do-ir

01/22/23 I agree that it's not a good idea for expats to have their entire income deposited in their Brazilian bank accounts in Reais. The reason isn't because of any tax exposure to the Receita Federal: the RF and IRS have been exchanging taxpayer information since 2015. If they want an American expat's info at least, all the have to do is ask. The reason that it's not a good idea is that it exposes 100% of the expat's income to exchange rate fluctuation, when the person may still have bills to pay at home and want to keep some money in a dollar account in the US or Canada, or a Euro account in Europe. Especially until they know whether living in Brazil will even cost them their whole income (for a lot of us, it doesn't), that's just good sense.

I've never understood the preoccupation that some expats have with taxes. Even though Brazil and the US don't have a tax treaty, Brazil is still very good about not double taxing income; Canada and Brazil do have a treaty, so for Canadians the deal is even better.  When my Brazilian accountant prepares my Brazilian taxes she has my completed US tax return in front of her, and the ~3% of my total income that I end up paying to Brazil when she finishes doing her magic seems fair to me -- and certainly a lot more convenient than needing a lot of cash handy all year to pay ongoing expenses like rent and groceries, paying boletos in loterias, or timing ATM withdrawals against charges and limits to keep cash flowing.

When I have to update my documentation at my Brazilian bank periodically, I just give them a copy of my Brazilian tax return. I always offer them my US tax return, too. Sometimes they want it, sometimes they don't; it never seems to make a difference either way.

A lot of middle class and upper class Brazilians treat tax evasion as if it were a game. It's not a game, it's a crime. Foreigners in Brazil are uniquely visible, and uniquely unlikely to receive much sympathy if they get crosswise with the law. Everybody has a different level of risk tolerance but for me, that's a sucker bet.

I don't understand picpay vs pix? You can pay bills with both or does picpay offer Pix? Also, does wise offer Pix? Does Nubank allow you to transfer funds from a US bank? Is that a wire transfer or a regular transfer without fees?

@orlandocolon7 I have been turned down from Wise and Remitly, I already have a Charles Schwab account. Sounds like a good idea.

The only thing I would add is that sometimes a Brazilian Bank is necessary.  We just finished my house on my wife's property (she has a lot of property).  Most of the time we were paying contractors, so easy access to Brazilian money is vital.

Roddie in Retirement

@Alstromeria55 Your fees will be the least of your worries when you get here. Banco Do Brazil does not accept wire transfers and Wise and Remitly turned me down on wire transfers for regulations.

The most important thing is having access to Brazilian money, preferably at a Brazilian Bank.  It is very Brazilian here and no number of resources in USA will matter in most instances. I just finished building my house on my wife's property and we had to transfer thousands of dollars to pay the contractors in Brazilian money.

Also, I was scammed at a Brazilian Grocery Store, so they used my Pay Pal card in Rio (i live way up north), so I leave it at home and just carry Brazilian cash, maybe a small visa, Mastercard debit card with little on it.

FYI. My social security is deposited into PayPal, but when it was time to transfer to pay Brazilian goods and services things got really hard.

Find some way of establishing a Brazilian financial base.

Roddie in Retirement

@BrasilNY Good to know, I have not told them yet. I go thru PayPal on the 2nd. Wednesday of the month.

Roddie in Retirement

I just transferred money from Wells Fargo to Banco do Brasil via Wise. The transfer took 7 seconds.

I have been exchanging funds via Remitly to Banco Iti (Itau) without problems. If you don't need an immediate transfer, the exchange rates are better than Wise.