Remittance flows are a vital source of income for many Indian families. Therefore, instant money transfer is often crucial to the households’ well-being
Instant Money Transfer to India. Source: pexels.com
World Bank calculated that India received $87 billion in remittances in 2021, becoming the top remittance recipient in current US dollar terms. Remittance flows are a vital source of income for many Indian families. Therefore, the speed of receiving money is often crucial to the households’ well-being.
The main advantage of instant payments is that the funds are available and accessible within minutes or seconds. It is essential in emergency and time-sensitive situations. Besides, instant money transfers typically provide a simplified sending process compared to traditional methods.
Xoom
The money transfer service from PayPal allows sending money to the top cash pickup locations, such as Muthoot Finance and Manappuram Finance, and banks throughout India. Both cash pickups and bank deposits typically arrive within minutes. However, large deposits above 5 lakh may take longer. They usually arrive within 2 hours at most major banks in India.
PayPal users may log in to the service with their credentials. Funding the transfer is possible with PayPal, a bank account, credit or debit cards. Xoom also allows transferring money with the receiver’s UPI ID. In addition to the transaction fee, Xoom also charges for currency conversion.
Wise
One of the most transparent remittance services, Wise offers mid-market exchange rates for money transfers to India. It is not always the cheapest option, but there are no additional hidden fees. Thus, you’ll always see the total cost upfront. For instance, you’ll pay a flat fee of 0.28 GBP + 0.63% of the amount converted to send money from the UK to India.
On most occasions, Wise can send your money in seconds. The sender can pay with their debit or credit card or send the money from online banking services. The recipient gets the instant money transfer in their currency directly from Wise’s local bank account.
WorldRemit
In over 90% of cases, bank transfers to India using WorldRemit arrive the same day. If you choose to send money for airtime top-up, transfers take less than ten minutes. Although this time frame varies based on the pay-out method, you will see the expected delivery time before making a payment.
Users can download the app for free to send money online to over 130 countries. All the payments are traceable, and you can always check your transfer history. The drawback is that cash pick-up is not available in India.
Instant money transfers typically provide a simplified sending process compared to traditional methods. Source: unsplash.com
Ria Money Transfer
Ria offers desktop and mobile solutions to send money to over 165 countries worldwide. For Indian recipients, cash pick-up and bank transfer are available as receiving methods. Senders can fund the transfer with a bank account transfer, credit or debit card, or cash.
The Ria app enables customers not only to make transfers but also to check rates, enjoy faster repeat transfers, and find the closest payout locations. You can find a network of Ria stores and authorised agents across the globe.
As for the pricing, it depends on the exchange rate and service fee. The latter varies across different payment methods, destinations, and transfer amounts. Usually, transfers funded with a credit card are the most expensive.
Rapid Funds2India (Bank of Baroda)
If both the sender and the receiver have accounts with Bank of Baroda, they may send remittances free of charge. However, when cash is involved, fees may apply. For instance, the cash handling charge for a transfer of £ 501 to £ 1000 will be £ 10.00.
Money arrives instantly at the beneficiary’s account with Bank of Baroda’s interconnected branches in India. Receivers at approximately 26,000 NEFT/RTGS branches of other banks get their transfers within 24 hours. This payment method is suitable for individuals and corporates remitting salary payments to employees in India.
Money2India (ICICI)
Money2India service is available in 7 countries and enables any bank to any bank transfers. In the U.S., business entities can also use the option to remit to their Indian partners. Besides, individual customers from the USA can also send money to businesses in India. The sender’s bank would not charge for an online ACH transaction, but in the case of a wire transfer, you might face a fee for a transfer.
The service has a convenient recurring transfer feature for all those who wish to support their families in India without additional fuss. Another bonus is the M2I Rewards loyalty programme. It is a tier-based programme where customers receive rewards based on their transaction history.
India received $87 billion in remittances in 2021, becoming the top remittance recipient in current US dollar terms. Source: pexels.com
Remitly
With Remitly, you can send money to India via bank transfer, cash pick-up, or the UPI Virtual Payment Address. The transfer amount arrives in Indian rupees (INR). The service is suitable for personal purposes such as family support, payments for education, real estate, tax payments, or donations to the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund. You can also fund your own NRE account.
Remitly offers two transfer modes: Express or Economy. Depending on the speed, you face different charges. Thus, express transfers arrive within minutes and cost $3.99 when you remit less than $1,000. The transfer is free if you’re sending more. Economy transfers take 3-5 business days. They cost the same, but have a more favourable exchange rate.
Panda Remit
Panda Remit offers online remittances from ten countries to more than 40 countries and regions in Oceania, Asia, Europe and North America. The Hong Kong-based service is young but reputable, backed by Sequoia Capital and Lightspeed Partners.
You can fund your instant money transfer with Poli Payment or PayPal, ACH transfer, debit card, ATM transfer, or selected local payment methods. The receiver would get a bank transfer. While the service has comparably low exchange markups, transfer fees are US$3.99, EUR 5.99 and UK£5.99.
Skrill
Skrill is an online wallet for money transfers and payments. Whereas customers can fund their remittance to India with manual bank transfer, credit or debit card, or cash, only credit card payments incur a fee of £4, €4 when you send money from Europe. Other regions may face different fee structures, though. For instance, a transfer from Australia would cost AUD 10 for debit card funding and AUD 19 for credit card top-up.
The beneficiary in India receives money in their bank account. It might take up to two hours at most. Besides, Skrill also has a loyalty program. True and VIP Skrillers receive bonus loyalty points, lower money transfer fees, and other perks.
Paysend
With Paysend, you can transfer money online to UPI, Mastercard cards or bank accounts in India for only €1.5 or $2. In times of promotions, transfers to bank accounts may also be fee-free. The money typically arrives within minutes, though it might take up to one business day, depending on the sender’s location.
Available delivery methods to India are: Mastercard bank cards, any bank account, paysend link that comes to the receiver’s mobile number, UPI ID. If you use the UPI method, the transfer incurs no fees.
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