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Metropolico.org via Flickr Creative Commons
Whether you are a concerned parent who needs to send money to your Singaporean child abroad or an honorable foreign worker who needs to send money back home, you must employ some strategies to remit.
The act of sending funds is called remittance. Remittance service involves the transfer of money to an individual that is a resident of another country or an individual that is temporarily staying outside of Singapore. To remit funds effectively, you must choose an appropriate type of service, determine the total cost, and confirm all the details.
SWIM THROUGH A SEA OF OPTIONS
The advancement in technology increased the options for global money transfers. To regulate this, the Monetary Authority of Singapore issues license to qualified remittance services in Singapore. You shall not engage and support the services of unlicensed people.
MoneySense advises the public to remit funds by approaching a licensed remittance agent or an established bank. Nonetheless, here are the common options to remit:
a. Cash to Cash
If your recipient does not have a bank account overseas, an ideal option is the cash-to-cash basis. In this service that is operated by Western Union and SingPost, you walk-in with the cash and let the company deliver it to the recipient of a particular destination. Since your funds will be converted to the country of choice, the service fee and exchange rates can vary.
b. Telegraphic Transfer (thru Banks)
Bank wire transfers move funds from one account to another – no matter where the other bank account is. Although this is usually the weapon of choice, it can be the most costly due to the high service fees and exchange rates. For instance, DBS Overseas Telegraphic Transfer charges about S$20. Payments made through this service usually arrive within 1-4 working days.
Please take note that some banks offer services that will let you remit online or through their Smartphone App.
c. Online Services
The most convenient option of them all is thru online money transfer services such as the renowned PayPal. Paypal enables you to send and accept moneys online without revealing all your financial information. In fact, you can send money to almost anyone with an email address or a handphone number.
What is nice about PayPal transfer is that there is no minimum amount and it charges as low as 0.5%.
FIGURE OUT THE TOTAL COST
The total cost to send money is determined by the fees charged by the service provider, the daily exchange rates, and the total funds that you need to transfer. These factors can vary and fluctuate frequently. Thus, you must collect and compare these information as soon as possible.
VERIFY ALL THE TRANSACTION DETAILS
Once you determined the most economical and convenient option, you must confirm that the provider will be able to promptly deliver your money to your desired recipient. Furthermore, you must verify all the information and get everything in writing. Keep all the receipts, emails, and documents in case something goes wrong.
