A company to transfer my money from US to Philippines

Brad
Check with your bank about doing bank to bank transfers. My bank Well Fargo has a low-cost transfer program they call Express Send the fee is $4.50 to $5.00 depending on how much the transfer is. Transfer in the evening pick up the next morning.

XE CURRENCY EXCHANGE will do it also for a small fee. They can manage large transfers because they have a great understanding of the new banking and wire restrictions.

hughes3864 wrote:

I need some help finding a company to transfer my money for me. anyone that could refer me to one they use would be very much appreciated. I want to transfer from my US checking to my Philipine checking.
Brad

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Here's a list with clickable links.
http://www.remitrate.com/money-transfer-companies

Jim

thanks, will do.

Not true Wells Fargo charges me $4.50 to $5.00  per transfer, which I would say is lower or equal to most others

I would just let my bank(s) take care of it. If you want a bit more control of exchange rate you could open an US$ account and you could transfer to it. I have a good relation with my bank and they give me a special rate ~ 0 .29 peso above official rate.
You could also ask your bank in US to make an international check which you could submit to your Philippine bank

i use pre paid mastercard ,i load the money i need from my belgian bank acount on my matercard and with this i can use ATM or pay in shops with the credit card ,it is safe easy and husle free and i have great control on my banking .as the card is prepaid it is interest free haha.(i dont pay interest on my own money as the usual credit cards do)
wy walk around with large amounts of cash? it only makes you a moving target for criminals.
as you ask for a safeway to transfer money ,this is SAFE and not expensif at all

greets Dirk.

I have been using Remitly or Xoom depending on who has the cheaper cost.  Then I ship dollars from USA bank to a BPi dollar account where they give a superior exchange rate whenever I pull out money at the ATM - in pesos.

You can't use dollar account online to pay bills like Globe so if you need that you can also open a peso account.

as many ph banks refuse foreigners to open acounts ,unles they are resident,it is easyer and cheaper to use a prepaid credit card this also allow to pay any bill on the internet.
no huslle no fus no risks.(and no interests as on regular credit cards )
one more advantige is wen you travel it can be used world wide.

greets Dirk

I use Xoom to transfer money from my account in the U.S. to a Xoom office here in Tagaytay.  The fee for immediate transfer is between $7.99 and $10.99 and I send from (U.S. bank account) to myself (any Xoom associate such as the bank BDO or Lhuillier).  I do this at least monthly for my SS check from the U.S..  I found Xoom to be much more reliable than WU.  The fee is only $4.99 if you are willing to wait several days.
Brian

Skyward,
You know you can transfer your money using the service Wells Fargo has called Express Send, for example, I will transfer money on Thursday evening and go to BPI the next morning and pick it up, the cost is between $4.50 and $5.00 depending the amount sent. You get a good exchange rate, in almost 6 years never one problem.

Addendum:  If you use Xoom, the exchange rate is better if you send USD instead of letting them do the exchange to PHP.  Then, at the Lhuillier office that does the transfer for Xoom, you can get a better exchange rate AFTER the transfer.

To MadHatter
Though I have a Wells Fargo account in the U.S., it is not in my home area and I mostly transfer my SS funds from the PNC bank at home.  Also, I can't do a bank to bank transfer since the banks here in the PH won't let me open an account until I've been here for one year (or have a lot more money???).

transfering money from my acount to my mastercard costs about 5usd ,ATM charge is 200 peso ,paying in shops no charge ,paying bils on line 200 peso .i informed on other ways of money transfer and it was always more expensive .
prepaid mastercard is it for me .
greets Dirk

Skyward100. I am moving to the Philippines very soon . 9/21/16. I am very confused about money transfers and my social security. I heard u need 10,000.00 usd to open an account there. I don't have 10,000.00 to do that . Can i transfer from the usa to my fiances account at BDO ? I'm just lost on this issue ? I am a HUNTINGTON customer. They charge 75.00 for wire transfers and i have to be present to do it .Can i use my mastercard debit card to get bank advances ?

BillCollins

My previous post contained this link to a list of transfer companies and their fees. Here is the link:

http://www.remitrate.com/money-transfer-companies

My wire transfers are made on line in about 24 hours to my account here for less than 5 dollars U.S., though you need to have an account here and that is another issue.

Our bank in the Philippines required a $500 U.S. deposit to open an account.  The SRRV visa requires a deposit in a local bank with various dollar amounts depending on your age and status. One of those amounts is 10K U.S.   See link below.

http://www.pra.gov.ph/main/srrv_program?page=1

Yes you can wire to your fiancee's account at BDO.

If you are entering as a tourist without a Filipina wife then you may have a problem opening an account. Many banks will require you to have an address with utility bills and or rent receipts in your name as well as a permanent status such as a SRRV Special Retiree Resident Visa or a 13A visa accompanied by an ACR-I identification card. The SRRV does not require you to have a Filipina spouse but does require a large deposit based on your age in a local bank.

If you are married to a Filipina you can enter the country with her by your side and request the Balikbayan privilege stamp in your passport which will allow you to stay for a year.

Others have used pre paid credit cards that they load as needed on line from their home accounts and use to pay things like groceries, gas, etc.

If someone is charging you 75 dollars for a transfer you are getting ripped off.

I would not advise a move to the Philippines without a firm grasp on the very basics of living here such as how do I access my money and what type of visa will I have and what documents are required to secure the visa, as well as the possibility that opening a bank account on a tourist status many be an issue.

Be cautious, patient and wise in your move to what can be a very unforgiving place to live without your ducks in a row. 

There are a lot of stories here about expats wandering the streets penniless or begging their embassy's for help returning home.

Good luck.

As a tourist you can open  bank account with HSBC.

Dinky,

I see that HSBC lists several branches in and around Manila, one each in both Cebu and Davao.  If you do not live close to one of these branches is there a problem accessing your funds?  ATM locations?

http://www.apps.asiapacific.hsbc.com/1/ … ion=Manila

The HSBC website states that you can use your Debit card at the following ATM locations in the Philippines.
"Global Access to Funds. Use your card at any HSBC and PLUS Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) around the world and at HSBC, HSBC Savings Bank, Bancnet, Expressnet, Megalink and PLUS System ATMs in the Philippines."

What documentation did they require from you to open an account and how much of a deposit. I have an acquaintance who might find this helpful.

Thanks,

Dinky,

It seems I have answered my own question with a little research.

HSBC ATM / Debit cards can be used on any ATM that is part of the international Plus system of ATM machines. 

Metrobank which has locations throughout the Philippines uses plus system ATM machines.

So it would seem that your HSBC ATM / debit card can be used nearly anywhere in the Phil where you can access a plus system ATM machine with a fee for the withdrawal.

Thanks.

Yes you have.To open a premier account you the equivalent of 4m pesos.

Dinky,

Wow!  4m pesos? is that 4 million?  That would be over $80 thousand dollars U.S.  correct?

hi i'm from Belgium living in the Philippines ,my pension go's on a belgian acount and wen i need cash i transfere fonds of it to my prepaid mastercard over the internet it takes seconds and it's free ,the ATM cost's me 2oo peso per transaction so relatvly cheap compaired to money transferes .
to my opinion it is safer this way than opening a local bank acount and deposit money there it is also wayyyycheaper as the prepayd mastercard am using has no interests costs on it .
i have done this for the last 2 yrs  and am very pleased about this solution .


greets Dirk

Dirk.
Is probably right but I needed that amount to buy property quickly four years ago.
I will say that HSBC banking security is very good

as soon the word money show's up ,  volunteers to help managing are jumping in to the spotlights.

must be a very magical word    MONEYYYYYYYY

Anybody use transferwise?

There are rules about foreigners opening a bank account here if you only have a tourist visa, but BDO and BPI will allow it and there is no minimum opening balance.

Brad,
I've  been in the Philippines for almost 4 yrs and I've been successful using XOOM without fail.  Their fees are very reasonable.  I enrolled in their services when I was  still in the USA, so I'm not sure how you can join them if you're already in the PH.  In the beginning, I sent funds to myself here in the Philippines from my bank in the U.S..  Now, I send it to my fiance  here from my  U.S. bank.  The fees are cheaper if you send it from bank to bank as USD, then convert to Pesos here.
Brian

I use world remit from my phone I have USD to the prevailing PH rate in seconds for 3.99, I can talk to my GF and while talking send her what she needs.
If you want to try them
***
I also signed up the the exchange rates I get them daily and again if they change during the day
I have used them about a dozen times never had a problem
I go directly from my debit card and once it is set it is a few clicks and done
this includes phone loads
directly into bank accounts
cash delivery ( not right now cov)
and Cash pick up
sent my GF 5000 P yesterday while she was on way to store the money was waiting
they also notify you when you send it, when your person picks it up
I find it the best service ever

I use OrbitRemit, very cheap and reliable.

skyward100 wrote:

Brad,
I've  been in the Philippines for almost 4 yrs and I've been successful using XOOM without fail.  Their fees are very reasonable.  I enrolled in their services when I was  still in the USA, so I'm not sure how you can join them if you're already in the PH.  In the beginning, I sent funds to myself here in the Philippines from my bank in the U.S..  Now, I send it to my fiance  here from my  U.S. bank.  The fees are cheaper if you send it from bank to bank as USD, then convert to Pesos here.
Brian

While living in the states I tried Xoom and sent money to the Philippines

Several days later they called me to confirm a $3,000 transfer to someplace in Europe?

I cancelled Xoom and never used them again.

I tried to offer a $20 first time user but the mod removed the name of the company
World Remit
Cost is 3.99 usd per transfer
Sorry, but its your mod,
And i do not stay on sites that are so closed minded. I try to give you 5 free transfers $20. And your mod kicks that money in the trash.
Wow
I see. Very little positive here.
Bye

just to toss my hat in the ring, i go old school, i write a paper check from my US bank and deposit it in bank here, dollar account, it takes a month to clear so i stay one month ahead...all free.
i get better exchange rate walking out with dollars and exchanging them to pesos myself as opposed to letting bank do it.
shop around for money changers exchange rates,they can vary pretty good.

This thread is old .. Money transfers have since improved with transfers at the real exchange mid market rates... I hold currency in ¥en, Peso, Euro, US$, GBP , I receive Upwork payments to a Transferwise account. I receive payments RMB from China to my Gcash peso account. I receive just about anything I want to receive from whoever I work for ...


As for paper money and having a physical hard copy bank book  ... Check out the rates for ... ah No .. Oh My Outrage at writing a cheque .. I think i did that in the 19th century

With the ¢/US$ . PHP peso rate ... You need to hold ..... WE have Tump in November , Abe in Japan has just announced retirement ... Guess where the $us or ¥en is going to land ... the poor PHP .. is no longer Poor

ForeignCheque is very expensive to clear!

it doesn't cost me anything to wait for my checks to clear. i have done it at metro and bpi.

"BPI" is the ONLY bank that i can withdraw pesos using my Singapore ATM card...they do charge an additional 250p for every 20,000p withdrawn.
Exchange rates are pretty decent compared to money changers around here.
No cheques for me...thanks!