How to transfer money to a foreign countries bank account from India

There are various reasons (like gifts, tuition, expenses) to transfer money from India to any foreign bank account. Many recipients also ask to deposit direct fund to their account. Many options are open for to transfer money to any bank located in abroad from India.

Method of transfer	Description	Fees	Transfer Limit	Time Taken
SWIFT/ Wire transfer with banks	A traditional global network for transfers by banks	Exchange rate & Transaction fee markup	$250,000 USD in a financial year (Depends on the banks)	2-5 working days
Online money transfer with providers	Digital transfer which let you pay and transfer online	Exchange rate & Transaction fee markup	Depends on provider	Depends on provider
Western Union (WU)	WU is an online transfer service	Exchange rate markup and sometime transfer fee	$5,000 USD for other purposes, $10,000 USD for tuition	Next banking day
Bank drafts and cashier’s checks	Send money using foreign check	exchange rate markup and Fee (ranges from ₹500 or more)	$25,000 per transaction $250,000 in a financial year	7-28 days
International Money Order	An Indian post service to send money to UAE & France	exchange rate and fees for sender & receiver	$2,500 per transaction	3-10 days

 

If you want to transfer money out of India, then you do need to comply with Liberalised Remittance Scheme of Reserve Bank of India. Total transfer amount of financial year should not exceed the currency equivalent to $2,50,000 US Dollar also, the money transfer reason must be one of the following,

• Travel outside of India

• Moving overseas

• Travel for business or for a conference

• Going overseas for employment

• Education abroad

• Donations

• Medical expenses for a treatment abroad

• Gifts

• Supporting close relatives living abroad

• Maintenance of close relatives abroad

PAN Card is mandatory for all money transfers made from India to bank accounts abroad.

Transfer Money to Foreign Bank using SWIFT/ Wire transfer

• Is is reliable but money transfer is slow

• For faster transfers, online banking accessibility helps

• High fees can be apply

Wire transfer are commonly known as SWIFT transfers, which is the electronic transfer between two banks that are part of SWIFT global network. On average, it take 3-5 business days to sent money from one bank to another bank account around the world. SWIFT which was one of the popular mode of transfer, getting beaten by the many speedy online money transfer providers available nowadays.

Two different fees charged while doing SWIFT transfer one is transaction fee which is charged by bank and another an exchange rate fee. Most of the bank set their own exchange rate fee which is lower than mid market exchange rate. In this way, they can deduct every rupee converted to another currency. And while it may seem small, that cut can quickly add up.

If you want send money with SWIFT transfer then easiest way to start is through your bank net banking account. Your net banking account usually has a International money transfer option. Here are some guideline to make outward remittance or SWIFT if you have account in State Bank of India,

• Sign in to your SBI account

• Select Profile and then Manage Beneficiary

• Select International Beneficiary and press Add

• Add Beneficiary details

• After adding Beneficiary details, go to Home page and select payment and transfer

• Select fund transfer

• Select International Beneficiary to add your overseas recipient

• Enter all required transfer details including the amount

• Confirm the transaction

• Submit

Online Money Transfer with Providers

• Low cost and quick transfers

• Easy online or mobile app accessibility

• Transactions can have caps

Online money transfer providers become popular nowadays to send money globally due to its speed, low cost. Well known providers are the companies like Xoom, InstaRem, Wise and Remitly which are online or mobile based applications. All these providers are not banks they only act like a service providers which take payment to transfer your money.

You can transfer money at any time with this providers wheather it is a day or night, that is what user like about these providers. Modern technology makes the transaction secure and safe, also cheaper than banks. All these providers uses latest technology in global online money transfer process.

Estimated delivery time committed by these providers is lesser than the tradisional methods estimated time provided by the banks. Abroad to India is one of the popular route for money transfer and can be completed within seconds, on the other hand India to abroad money transfer take a day or two.

Western Union

• Easy online transfers

• Transfers to 40+ countries

• Exchange rate fee can be expensive

Western Union has many agent branches in india at various location, it’s mobile application and website is really easy to use to send money abroad. Western Union can transfer the money to bank accounts present in UK, US, Asia, Europe & Canada with competitive rate and fees.

Western Union allows you to send money upto $10,000 for tuition or education and only $5,000 for remittance purpose. If you want to send money online with western union, then here are the steps to do so,

• Sign Up to Western Union website

• Enter all details and create password

• Provide PAN card and match all the details

• Enter annual income

• Provide Aadhar card details

• Submit to register

• Now, Select send money option

• Enter the transfer amount and receiving currency

• Choose how the recipient should receive the funds

• Select how do you want to pay

• Review the delivery date and fees

• Submit the transaction

Bank Drafts and Cashier’s Checks

• Requires going to a bank

• Physical check or draft to be mailed to sender

• Charges are competitive

Foreign currency bank drafts is the one way to to send money to banks within your network. The bank draft is drawn from your account and physically provided to be sent to your recipient. The bank draft is made in the name of the beneficiary so it cannot be cashed or received by anyone else. Many Indian banks provide bank drafts services but they have limited destinations. The bank may require you to be an account holder first, so check with your current bank about demand drafts.

DBS is one of the bank whcih provides Foreign Currency Deman Drafts, here are the steps how to get one,

• Sign in to DBS online account

• Download the demand draft request form

• Complete the request form with sender, recipient and transaction details

• Submit the form

It might take around a month to be cashed by your recipient if you use Bank drafts or cashier’s cheques.

International Money Order

• Online international money order

• Need a Postal Savings Bank account with India Post

• Can be expensive

International money order can be using India Post website. Similar to bank draft, for international money order you need to have existing account with India post. with the India post we have some restrictions that we can only transfer money to France or UAE. Maximum you can send is 9,000 dirhams or 1,500 Euros.

Here are steps to send an international money order with the India Post

• Open India Post website

• Regiter user account on India Post

• Select financial services

• Select International money order

• Enter money order details

• Pay online

• Submit

• Money order number and Transaction ID provided on the receipt

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