Receiving or sending money overseas could result in hefty costs and may come with a host of fees that are not included in traditional banking, regardless of whether you are using ex-pat banking and have a multi-currency account. If you have to make this a regular requirement, you’ll soon discover that you require a less expensive and quicker solution than the majority of banks.
Here are the four most well-known, cost-effective, and reliable ways to manage international payment in Turkey.
Wise
TransferWise (now Wise) is among the most cost-effective and simple services that allow you to transfer and receive money abroad. It’s available in over 50 countries and allows users to transfer money to more than 60 countries.
Wise’s multi-currency account is their most well-known service. It was previously known as a “borderless” account; it allows its customers to have accounts in local banks for a select number of currencies and hold up to 40 currencies.
These currencies have the local bank account information, including the British euro, pound US dollar Australian dollar, New Zealand dollar, Singapore dollar, Romanian lei, Canadian dollar, Hungarian forint, and the Turkish Lira.
The great thing about this option is you can open multiple accounts with different currencies without paying an additional fee for account opening.
Wise also offers debit cards if you’d like to take funds from your account; however, this is only available to select markets. For instance, you can’t purchase a debit card in Turkey; however, you can do so in the UK. If you own the Wise account, you can use it in more than 200 countries.
With Wise, you can convert multiple currencies at low rates in real-time and without the commission.
This “zero” exchange rate policy has allowed it to make a mark against its rivals and is popular with travelers and digital nomads, ex-pats, and freelancers.
Wise is approximately seven times less expensive to send money overseas via Turkey than traditional ways. It’s also transparent in the costs it charges to exchange or send money so that you don’t have to be worried about sudden cuts.
Transfers can be immediate or same-day transfers, with the latest by the next day. Limits for transfers depending on the currency you’re sending it to. For example, it amounts to 1,000,000 GBP per pound.
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Papara
Papara is a Turkish digital banking app and an online wallet.
The app doesn’t charge users commissions for daily transactions or cash withdrawals. Additionally, you can transfer money or receive it anytime, any time. Has led to its popularity growing in Turkey.
Most of the time, it is possible to send money, be it in Turkish Lira or foreign currency, to Paparo customers is completely cost-free. The service comes with a transaction limit of TL5,000 (or equivalent in any other currency) from five different users.
Fees are also applicable after 10 transactions regardless of how much paid. The fee from that date will be 3.4 percent of the transaction, including tax.
To transfer money using a debit or credit card, verified users can only make 50 transactions per month. However, you can make transfers to other Paparo customers and bank accounts for TL and foreign currency accounts to 300 transactions.
The biggest drawback of this application is that you can’t currently transfer or receive money from overseas. You can use it to transfer foreign currencies into the Turkish Lira or other foreign currency IBANs within Turkey.
It is possible to make U.S. dollar or euro transfer in the Garanti BBVA, Akbank, Yapi Kredi and QNB Finansbank and pound sterling transfers to Yapi Kredi and QNB Finansbank.
Western Union
With more than 500,000 agents worldwide, Western Union is the world’s biggest provider of money transfers. It can accept 130 currencies and facilitate transfers to more than 200 countries.
By using Western Union, you can transfer money to countries outside of Turkey, even without an account at a bank. You can also arrange your transfer online, in person, or via telephone.
If you want to transfer cash in person, You will need to go to an agent’s office.
After filling out a questionnaire (offered with the option of Turkish or English) filled out with all the required details about the recipient, presenting your ID, and paying for the transfer cost, the agent will give you an MTCN tracking number or code to give to your recipient. They will then be able to take the money you have transferred.
There are a variety of transfer options when you use Western Union, including via the bank account and a wallet, prepaid cards, or cash. All of these offer different speeds for trade-offs and charges.
*There is a limit to an amount of $2,500 for each online money transfer.
The country to which you’re making the transfer, as well as the sum you send and whether you’re directly transferring it to an account at a bank or collection location, will affect the number of fees. The process can take a couple of minutes to six business days.
MoneyGram
Shy of 350,000 agent locations across the globe, MoneyGram is the second-largest provider of money transfers, second only to Western Union, and allows transfers to more than 200 countries.
Unfortunately, it’s only possible to transfer money directly in Turkey, not via wire transfer.
In this sense, MoneyGram operates the same way as Western Union, and it requires you to visit an actual bank branch and sign the form required to send money. Contrary to Western Union, though, MoneyGram does not have any agents in Turkey, which means you must go to Kuwait Turk Bank or Denizbank to transfer money.
The transfer process follows identical. After filling in your form presenting your ID or residence permit after paying your transfer cost, you will be provided with an 8-digit number that you can provide to the recipient.
You can transfer the funds to an account at a bank or mobile number.
The fees for money transfers vary significantly based on the country; however, on average, it is between $10 and $40. For a larger amount of money, fees can go up.
The app also comes with an amount limit of $6,000 for online transfers and $6,000 for every 30 days. However, it’s possible to transfer more money through the MoneyGram place.
4 Things to Consider When Choosing a Provider
If you’re planning for a money transfer service in Turkey, There are a few aspects you must be aware of.
Cost
In the case of large or small amounts, the cost of paying money is among the main factors to consider when deciding on a service.
It is via a charge and commission for the exchange of currency.
In general, how the transfer cost will be contingent upon the destination, amount, and the method of transfer used.
For example, MoneyGram charges around TL 80 for sending TL 1000 to the UK for cash pick-up. Western Union has fixed rates for different amounts of money. It charges TL 65 for amounts ranging from TL 1,000 and 1,500. The bank account in a matter of 15 minutes. If you’d like to perform an ordinary transfer using Western Union, the fee varies between TL 95 and $20, based on the currency that you would like to transfer it into.
By contrast, Wise costs just TL 17 for a transfer of this sum in Turkey into the UK.
Another important aspect that affects costs is exchange rates. The common Western Union exchange rate is about 6% more than the market average. In addition, with TransferWise, the user receives the current average exchange rate, as long as you ensure that you exchange within the first 24 hours.
Speed
The speed at which you transfer money could be a major factor for many users. Particularly if the transaction is urgent, you’ll require a company that you can trust to pay the funds within a matter of the timeframe.
Transferring money to a different bank account is usually the fastest method, whereas cash pick-up may take 2-6 days for business.
Convenience
How easy the service will depend on how easy it is to use.
It is crucial to have a simple interface for transactions that require multiple transactions. You’ll need an easy-to-use website mobile app, the payment process.
Inviting customers to sign a myriad of documents before making a purchase or not providing them with the choice of sorting everything online may deter customers.
Wise and Western Union have received the most favorable reviews for this.
Customer support
An international money transfer service might meet all the transfer speed, cost, and ease of use criteria. However, if you cannot contact customer support in the event of an unexpected issue, likely, you won’t ever return to that service as a client.
Check that the service provider you select has a phone number to answer your questions and an email address or the live chat option to promptly assist you in resolving your problems. A variety of languages available is another feature to consider when your primary choice of language is not English.
Western Union has the most extensive and reliable customer service channels. Wise is also acknowledged for its online help tools and its free call-back services for its customer helpline.