Send Money To Philippines

Ways to Send Money to the Philippines

An as overseas Filipino you have several options to send money to your family. You can use bank-to-bank transfers, money transfer service providers, mobile wallets and other methods.

International Wire Transfer

According to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the Philippines financial system comprises 43 universal and commercial banks, 492 rural banks, and 57 thrift banks.

Sending money to the Philippines through the banking system can be cheaper and quicker if the beneficiary bank has branches overseas. For instance, the Bank of America has several branches in the Philippines. In such a case, it becomes easier to transfer money to the Philippines as you only incur one-way charges.

The top five banks in asset size include Banco de Oro (BDO Unibank, Inc.), Metrobank, Bank of the Philippine Islands, Landbank of the Philippines, and Security Bank Corporation.

Metrobank allows you to open a Foreign Currency account that enables you to receive any amount into your account. The cost per inward transfers is $5.00. When you transfer money from non-partner banks, the transaction fee is a little higher. Also, it takes longer for your loved ones to receive the money.

Money Transfer Service

Providers such as TransferWise, XendPay, Western Union, MoneyGram, WorldRemit and Xoom, offer money transfer services as an alternative to the traditional sending methods.

Sending through these money transfer operators (MTOs) is faster, cheaper, and more reliable. All you need is to sign up for an account online; through the website or mobile app. You can then pay for your transfer online or at a store and send.

There are three options for paying for your transfer online. You can use a credit card, debit card, or bank debit. Credit card is the most expensive because of provider fees, but it ensures that your transfer gets to your recipient in minutes.

There are three different ways you can send money through MTOs: bank transfers, cash pickup, door-to-door delivery, and mobile money.

Bank Transfers

This method of money transfer is similar to the interbank transfer only that the MTO comes in between to allow you to move the money faster and cheaper to the recipient’s bank.

Most MTOs have partnered with banks in the Phillippines to offer this service. For example, WorldRemit allows you to send to banks such as BDO Private Bank, Metrobank, Philippine National Bank, Land Bank of the Philippines, and Bank of the Philippine Islands.

Xoom has nine banks on its payout network. It also partners with stores such as Palawan Pawnshop and the SM Store.

MTOs transfer the money the same day or may take up to the following day. Whichever the case, MTOs to Bank Transfers are faster and cheaper than interbank wire transfers.

Cash Pickup

When you send money using this method, your loved ones can pick it up at the nearest location. Xoom, MoneyGram, and Western Union have 10,000+ cash pickup locations across the Philippines. Most of these locations operate 24/7.

Cash pickups are almost instant, especially when you pay for the transfer using a debit or credit card.

Mobile Wallet

Providers like MoneyGram and WorldRemit have partnered with GCash, a leading e-wallet company in the Philippines with a customer base of more than 20 million users and 63,000 partner merchants.

Sending money to the Philippines using this method is faster and cheaper, about 50 per cent lower than the cash pickup method.

Door to Door Delivery

Xoom offers door-to-door cash delivery services at no additional fee. If you send the money before 3 pm, delivery takes less than 6 hours to Metro Manila. For the rest of the 80 provinces including Tawi-Tawi in the south and Batanes in the far north, it takes 1 to 2 days.

International Money Order Service

The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPOST), offers this service to overseas Filipinos in the United States, HongKong, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Singapore, Korea, Qatar, and Malaysia.

The central post office gives guidance on the exchange rates to be used by all the 1,383 postal branches across the country.

Cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrency traders have also joined in for a share of the lucrative remittance business. In the Philippines, virtual currencies such as bitcoins have become popular on the transfer corridors.

In 2015, more than $2 million per month was sent to the Philippines using digital assets. In the first half of 2017, an average of $8.8 million every month entered the Philippines through the blockchain network.

In 2017, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas licenced two virtual currency exchanges. There are 12 more cryptocurrency exchange applications in line.

What’s Needed to Send Money to the Philippines

Sending money to the Philippines is a simple process, especially is you use the money transfer services. The following is what you need to send money to the Philippines.

• A government-issued identity document. If you are sending from the United States, a driving licence, passport, or a social security card can suffice.
• The money you would like to send
• The recipient’s name as it appears on their official documents
• The recipient’s mobile number and physical address for door-to-door cash delivery and mobile money deposits.
• If you are sending to a bank account, you should provide the SWIFT code, bank name, branch name, and the account number of the beneficiary.

You may need to provide additional information depending on the size of the amount or the location to which you are sending. These measures are part of the global anti-money laundering (AML) and financial crime protection.