Send Money To Egypt

Egypt is one of the top recipients of remittances from its experts living and working abroad. In 2018, the North African country received $25.5 most of which came from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar, and the United States. This trend clearly shows that the bulk of Egypt’s inflows come from the Middle East.

When sending money to Egypt, there are lots of options you have and a quick comparison across them can give you massive saving opportunities. Some of the things to look at include the fees, exchange rates, delivery times, and reliability of the money transfer channels.

This guide will walk you through the various ways you can send money to Egypt, the factors you need to consider when sending, the advantages of using money transfer services, and many other aspects.

How To Send Money To Egypt

Sending money to Egypt is simple and easy. Follow these steps to get started.

Find a Trusted Provider

Use our comparison table to find the best provider for your needs.

Sign Up and Deposit

Sign up with the provider and deposit the amount you want to transfer.

Transfer Money

As soon as you're ready, you can start sending money online.

Ways To Send And Receive Money In Egypt

There are multiple ways to easily send and receive money in Egypt but these will largely depend on the provider you decide to use. Below you will find everything you need to know about sending and receiving money.

Ways to Send Money to Egypt

Whether you want to transfer $200 or $1,000 to Egypt, it helps to know how you can get your money across to the recipient without suffering significant losses in transfer fees. Below are some of the frequently used ways to send money to Egypt.

Interbank Transfers

On the Middle East corridors, banks such as Enjaz Bank, Saudi American Bank, and Al-Rajhi Bank are commonly used by Egyptians to transfer money to their family and friends. These and many other banks in transfer corridors across Europe, Asia, and the Americas allow for online transfers to bank accounts in Egypt.

The biggest challenge with interbank transfers is that they often charge higher exchange rate margins to the tune of 5%+ and some use intermediaries which add to the cost of sending money. The cost per transfer can go up to $40 which means only large transfers are economical.

It helps if the recipient has an account with the same bank you are using in the host country to send the money.

Online Money Transfer

Providers such as Transferwise, Xoom, Xpress Money, Transfast, OFX, Azimo, and Xendpay can help you quickly and safely move money across borders to Egypt. These providers require that you sign up for an account with them, get it verified, and pay for your transfer before they can process it.

Depending on the provider you use, you can pay for your transfer using an online bank transfer, bank debit, credit card or debit card. Once they receive your money, they will send it to your recipient through a direct to bank deposit or cash pickup.

WorldRemit allows you to top up prepaid phones in Egypt on the following carriers: Orange, Vodafone, and Etisalat AT. Most transfers to Egypt are delivered the same day whether you use cash pickup or bank transfer. However, some providers may take up to 3 days to deliver your transfers.

Instore Cash Transfer

Many Egyptians in the Middle East prefer instore cash transfers through money transfer operators like Western Union, MoneyGram, Xpress Money, and TeleMoney. This channel requires you to visit a physical agent, deposit the money, and give the instructions to whom it should be sent.

Western Union and MoneyGram give you the online option if you have access to the internet. The major disadvantage of instore cash transfers is the inconvenience of locating a store and walking in to make your deposit. When sending money from the UK via MoneyGram to Egypt, you can choose a cash pickup option for faster deliveries. The maximum you can send is 6,000 GBP at a cost of 3.99 GBP.

What is Needed to Send Money to Egypt

If you want to send money to Egypt, ensure you have the following documents and information in place.

A government-issued photo ID
The name of the recipient, their address and phone number
The recipient’s bank details if the transfer is to a bank account
The transfer payout method

Online money transfer providers have made the process simple by verifying your information during account sign up. Going forward, you only need to provide the payment details and the recipient information.

Common Reasons for Sending Money to Egypt

Diaspora Egyptians often send money home for a variety of reasons some of which are listed below:

Family Support

Egyptians whose families are still back at home often send money for support with food, entertainment, bill payments, and other day-to-day uses.

Savings and Investments

With most Egyptians abroad looking at coming back in the future when their contracts have come to an end or otherwise, having savings and investments back home is something they treasure. Some of the investments are in real estate or in financial assets at the Egyptian Exchange.

Education And Tuition Expenses

To keep their siblings in school, Egyptians in the diaspora send money to pay for their education expenses and tuition fees.

Income Repatriation

Those with investments or businesses abroad often send money home as part of their regular income repatriation practices. Some of them are partners in international businesses and have directed companies to send in their dividends and bonuses to accounts in Egypt.

Mortgage Repayments

Egyptians having mortgages with local banks at home periodically send money to honour their repayment obligations. This is a common occurrence where they get loans to buy houses and then spread the repayment over a given period.

Business Capital Injection

Some of the money that gets sent to Egypt is to boost the capital base of companies run by Egyptians abroad. The money may help in day-to-day operational expenses such as payment of wages and salaries, supplies, and bills.

Why Send Money with a Money Transfer Service?

Choosing money transfer services when sending money home is one of the best decisions for the following reasons.

Transfer Speed

Transfers get delivered instantly with some taking 1 to 3 days to be completed. This means the beneficiary gets the money faster to sort out their pressing needs. Traditional channels can take up to 5 days to complete transfers.

Ease of Set-Up

Setting up a money transfer account is simple. Many of the providers require only an email address and a phone number to start you off. After the account is set up, you’ll have to verify it by sending in proof of identity and proof of address documents. Thereafter, you are free to send your transfers at any time on the web or on the app.

Transfer Fees

The lower the transfer fees the higher the savings and the amount the recipient receives. Instead of the $40+ per transaction that banks charge, online money transfers charge as a percentage of the amount transferred. Providers like Xendpay even charge you $0 for small amounts.

Exchange Rate Margin

Money transfer providers charge margins as low as 0.5 to 3.5% which means you get higher rates for your transfer. The higher the transfer amount the lower the margins. Providers such as TransferWise charges 0% in margins. All transfers are processed at the mid-market rate.

Security

With money transfer security protocols in place and other measures like two-factor authentication, transfer monitoring processes, Mastercard SecureCode, Verified by Visa, and SSL systems, you can be assured your transfer and privacy are secured.

Multicurrency Support

Apart from the busy remittance corridors, Egypt receives money from places as far removed as St. Kitts and Nevis, Puerto Rico, and Nicaragua. The advantage of money transfer providers is that they support lots of currencies from standard to exotic. You don’t have to send your recipient in a non-local currency or give them a burden of looking for money exchanges in Egypt.

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Things to Consider When Sending Money to Egypt

Before you hit the ‘Send’ button on your transfer to Egypt, there are certain things that you must consider. Below are some of them:

Income Taxation - Egypt’s Unified Tax Law provides for taxation of global income for all Egypt residents. Foreign-source dividends are taxed locally unless the host country has a double tax agreement with Egypt. If services are performed in Egypt, salaries sent from abroad are subjected to taxes.
Strengthening Egyptian Pound - The Egyptian currency has been strengthening against the dollar due to the influx of aid from Gulf countries and international loans. Therefore when sending money into the country and you have the option of using other currencies with a much stronger conversion rate, you ought to consider such currencies.
Foreign Currency Accounts - Banks such as HSBC Egypt allow diaspora Egyptians to open accounts denominated in the Egyptian pound or other major currencies. This is an opportunity for Egyptians abroad to transact with entities and individuals in Egypt without the hassle of interbank transfers.

While there is more to sending money to Egypt, this guide gives you all the information you need to initiate your first transfer with whichever provider you choose.

Your Questions Answered

What’s The Fastest Way To Send Funds To Egypt?

The fastest way to transfer money online to Egypt is through Ria Money Transfer’s fast option. Ria Money Transfer’s fast service will see to it that your money arrives in Egypt in a matter of minutes. It is also a very cheap service, given how fast it is. Ria Money Transfer’s fast service usually costs far less than the slower competition.

The only real competition to Ria Money Transfer’s fast service in Egypt is Western Union’s. While Western Union’s fast service should be about as fast as Ria Money Transfer’s, they usually charge over twice as much, depending on the country you are sending from and the amount being transferred.

What’s The Cheapest Way To Send Money Online To Egypt?

The cheapest way to send cash online to Egypt is through OFX. OFX is a currency exchange company that can send money internationally. They have a unique offer that keeps them extremely affordable, especially when you are planning to send a lot of money in a short span of time. OFX charges you based on the amount of money you send. If you send the minimum transaction amount, you will pay around 1%, and if you send a huge sum of money, you will pay around 0.4%. These rates are simply the best in the market for Egypt.

What’s The Easiest Way To Send Money To Egypt?

The easiest way to transfer money online to Egypt is through TransferWise. TransferWise is a peer-to-peer money transfer system that makes sending money simple. All you need to do is punch in the amount of money you need to send and its destination. Beyond that, all you need to do is pay them for the transaction and wait a day or two for your money to reach its Egyptian destination.

Current Exchange Rates For Egypt

The current exchange rate for the Egyptian Pound (EGP) is 0.9070 per American Dollar (USD). The EGP reached a high of 15.8284 EGP per USD and a low of 15.7696 EGP per USD during the last 90 days. The average exchange rate for the last 90 days was 16.0564 EGP per USD.

The EGP had an average volatility rate of 0.18% over the last 90 days. This is relatively low volatility, though it should be noted the EGP took a slight dip against the USD earlier in 2019. Going forward, you can reasonably expect only minor fluctuations to continue, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

What’s The Overall Best Way To Send Money To Egypt?

The overall best way to send money to Egypt is through TransferWise. With TransferWise, you simply get the most well-rounded deal available. TransferWise is relatively cheap, and it is very easy to use. When it comes to waiting times, they also perform at better than average levels.

How we compare

What do we mean by the top provider?
The top provider is the money transfer service that we believe is the most suitable for the country you’re sending money to. In order to keep our service free we factor in the commercial agreements we have with partners into this ranking.

How do we choose providers to display?
We make sure that each table displays the most relevant brands to the country you are sending money to and from. We consider many factors when choosing the providers to display in the table.All of the providers we display are fully regulated to provide money transfer services in the jurisdiction you are searching, relevant regulatory authorities are the FCA, ASIC, Fincen, FINTRAC & AMF. Alongside being regulated the services are manually checked by our team for both quality of service and online trust from such platforms like Trustpilot and Google reviews.We base our rankings primarily on the quality of the service provided, the benefit to the consumer and to keep our service free - the commercial agreements we have.

How do we order our comparisons?
We are affiliated with some of the partners displayed in the tables. However, the order of the providers is based on the quality of the service for the particular country corridor followed by the commercial agreement in place. You don’t pay any extra and the deal you get isn’t affected by our commercial agreement with the money transfer provider. We may receive a commission when you click through to a listing or when you make a transaction.We aim to find the balance between the quality of the service, customer satisfaction and the commercial agreements we have, and continue comparing services in a transparent way.If you have any questions about our listings, please don’t hesitate to email us at contact@moneytransfers.com

Looking to Send Money Somewhere Else?

Sending money anywhere else in the world is as easy as sending money to Egypt. If you're looking to send money to another country, here is the list of the most popular destinations.