5 bonus features to look for in a money transfer provider

Posted: 19 August 2021 1:34 pm

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Top 5 money transfer provider features

This guide is sponsored by Simplii Financial Global Money Transfer, the no-fee international remittance service that allows clients to send money to over 120 countries. New clients can earn up to $650^†‡ with their first global money transfer. Learn more.

Recent years have seen the creation of several companies that let you transfer money abroad. Sending money overseas, once the preserve of large banks and companies like Western Union, quickly became cheaper and more convenient.

Many of these new companies let you send money online from the comfort of your home. When choosing a provider to send money abroad with, there are some basic features you should compare, such as cost, speed and ease of use. We select 5 of the most important below in no particular order.

1. Getting cashback

Online money transfer providers will often offer incentives like cashback or reward points to get you to use their service. These can be offered as part of each transaction, for signing up to use the service or for recruiting others to join.

For example, Simplii Financial clients can transfer funds using the Simplii Cash Back Visa credit card. Because Simplii considers money transfers a purchase instead of a cash advance, you don’t pay any transfer fees or interest as long as you pay your balance on time. You get 0.5% cashback on the amount you send and you can receive additional cashback when you send your first Simplii Financial money transfer. The exact amount depends on how much you send on this first transfer, but the minimum you’ll receive is $50 and the maximum would be $300.

2. Convenience

It can be complicated to send money abroad. This is especially true if you use a traditional bank to make an international wire transfer. In addition to visiting the bank branch, you’ll need to provide information about the recipient’s bank account.

This includes the name of the bank where the account is registered, the bank code, the account number, the bank address and a SWIFT code. However, online money transfer providers tend to offer a simpler process. For starters, you can make the transfer from the comfort of your couch. And you may not need to provide as much information.

3. Speed and number of destinations

How long it will take your money to arrive is an important consideration. Most online money transfer providers say they can complete their transactions within a few days. Of course, cost and location play a role here.

The faster ones will do it in a day, but charge higher fees and offer fewer destinations. Simplii Financial says it can complete most transactions within 1–3 business days. It lists 120 countries to which you can send money from Canada.

4. Daily limits

The amount of money you can send within a 24-hour period can vary by money transfer provider. Simplii Financial has a daily limit of $30,000, although you can make as many transfers as you want, assuming the total does not exceed that amount. You can also send US dollars instead of the local currency.

5. Low transfer fees

As always, it mostly comes down to cost. Many online money transfer providers advertise themselves as being low-cost options, but there are important differences to pay attention to. Some providers like Simplii Financial do not charge transfer fees. This means there is no charge per transaction when sending money abroad. This can be further broken down into whether the provider charges monthly fees, requires you to maintain a minimum balance in your account or offers free access to ATMs. When using such services, it is important to remember that the rate you will pay to exchange Canadian dollars into the local currency will likely be higher than interbank rates quoted online.

Bottom line

There are now many options for sending money abroad. In addition to seeking out the lowest costs, you should also compare bonus features, such as cashback rewards, number of destinations offered and the overall ease with which you can send your money—Simplii Financial offers all of these important features.

Discovering the best way to send money to loved ones abroad can be time-consuming and costly, but you can learn more about sending money abroad with our A-Z listing of country-specific money transfer guides.