Send money from Canada to India

In almost every case, the best way to send money from Canada is to use money transfer providers. These platforms offer a simple online-based process you can complete in minutes from the comfort of your home.

The fees you pay will be low, especially compared to direct SWIFT bank transfers, which come with huge charges. International money orders are among the other alternatives, but they are time-consuming and often take days.

The documents might vary on the service you are using, but you'll likely need the following:

• ID check: You pass it by showing or uploading an ID card or another document issued by the Canadian government that contains a picture

• Transaction information: Discuss the delivery method with the sender. You choose the sum to send and don't forget to enter the right destination

• Recipient's data: Most providers require a name and address. If you transfer to a bank account, you'll need relevant details - in India this will be the bank account number, the IFSC code and the MICR code

• Funding the transfer: You can pick the payment method ranging from debit and credit cards to bank transfers. Don't forget all methods might come with additional fees on top of the sum you are sending

The Canadian government shouldn't charge any taxes since you are the sender, indicating you don't earn any revenue from the transfer. The only thing to do is to report transactions above CAD10,000. Most money transfer institutions do this automatically, but it's best to confirm that with them.

Things are a bit different if your sending purpose isn't family support or a gift. If you are buying a property or paying a remote worker in another country, you might have to pay relevant taxes at the destination.

The availability of a delivery method depends on your location in India, but you can choose from the following in most areas:

• Pickup points: Western Union and other money transfer providers have cash pickup branches in most big cities. You might also use local providers like Manappuram Finance. The advantage is that you don't need a bank account since cash will be available at the destination point

• Cash delivery: This involves delivering cash to the desired address, which is convenient for remote locations with no pickup points nearby. However, you'll pay an extra fee for the agent bringing your money

• Bank account transactions. The percentage of adults with a bank account in India isn't high. But if you have one, you can receive the money in that account. And if you have a card, you can collect it via an ATM, indicating there's no need to even go to the bank

• Digital wallets. PayPal and other e-wallets are available in India. But these aren't direct transfers since you'll need to move the money to an actual bank account or card to collect cash

Recipients should prepare the following to collect the money:

• The transaction reference number. Each transfer has a unique identification number that helps the provider identify it. The sender should send you the number after finalizing the transaction

• Matching details with the ones provided by the sender. That includes your name and address, but also the sender's information to verify you are the intended recipient

• ID check. You need to provide a personal document issued by the Indian authorities. The information should contain a photo and match the info the sender entered.

India has an applicable personal income tax whose rates vary from 5% to 30%. The exemption limit is INR 300,000 for residents aged over 60 and INR 500,000 for those aged 80 or more. Exemptions also exist for house rent and leave travel allowances, children's tuition fees, medical premiums, donations, and other purposes. If you have any doubts, please contact a tax expert to clarify them.

If you want to send money abroad using a credit card, you can use a money transfer provider to pay for your transfer to India.

At first glance, it's great to have a credit card. You can borrow money for an international transfer (or other purposes) and pay it back at a later date. Most credit cards come from reputable issuers, such as MasterCard or Visa, so you can rest assured they are secure. And the deposits are instant, so your money will be on its way to India quickly. Some providers will even offer incentives like cashback if you use this payment option.

However you should be aware of the fees involved in using your credit card. Your credit card provider is likely to see it as a cash advance, for which there is usually a fee, on top of the currency conversion fees. You may also have to pay interest on your credit card balance if you don’t make your payments on time, and using your credit card at all is likely to affect your credit score.

You can also send money online to India using your debit card. But before making a payment, make sure you understand all the processing fees in place.

Debit cards have a crucial difference from their credit alternatives – they don't offer the option to borrow money. You can only send the sum available in your account. That means there's no risk of interest, and most issuers don't have a maintenance fee. Debit cards also offer secure and fast deposits when sending money to any destination.

Although more affordable than credit cards, debit cards can still come with fees. Some websites have limitations of only being able to use them to send money to checking or other bank accounts, so read the terms before deciding to use this method.

Bank transfers are the most common ways of sending money India as they are secure, reliable, and convenient. You can use a money transfer provider to send money using a bank transfer at a great rate as long as you’re happy for your transfer to take a little longer to process.

Money transfer providers usually add bank transfers as a potential deposit and delivery option. Using this option to send funds ensures you can use the provider's conversion rate, which is often much more affordable than the one banks offer. Also, direct bank transactions could be more expensive and last for several working days. While money transfer providers might take more time to process a bank transfer than a card deposit, it shouldn’t be longer than 24-48 hours.

A digital wallet is convenient if you have money available in PayPal, Skrill, or another account with an e-wallet service. Mobile wallet transfers process the money instantly, and it's simple to send funds to India this way.

Most digital wallets have large fees. PayPal, for example, can charge 5% for a single transaction. And the money is only available in the recipient's wallet - they need to withdraw it to a card or bank account to collect cash.