Staff Reporter
With more Spanish expats living and working in various parts of the world, thousands need to send money back home to support their families, fund investments, and more.
While a majority of the high-street financial services providers offer international payment services, you’ll part with a transfer fee, which will either be moderate or quite high depending on the provider.
If you’re looking to send money to Spain, and keep your costs low, you’ll need to shop around for a specialist funds transfer service provider, or use a comparison site like MoneyTransfers.com which finds & compares these money transfer services for you.
Speaking of service providers, be sure to take note of the fact that money transfer companies are under no obligation to keep their fees predictable. As a customer, you’re left with the burden of conducting proper due diligence before using a transfer service.
To help you make an informed decision, we’ve put together a simplified pocket guide with three things to watch out for when sending money to Spain.
Look out for no fees or 0% commission
When sending money back home in Spain, the first thing you want to do is to ensure that you evaluate how the currency exchange rates compare to mid-market using a tool of your choice or Google. But what works even better is a platform that provides “zero fees” or “0% commission.”
Of course, it doesn’t stop at that: While some banks and transfer services will offer zero fees and commission, they will sometimes impose a mark-up over the mid-market rate.
Rates comparison tools, such as MoneyTransfers, will save you the trouble of manually evaluating transfer charges for individual platforms.
Be wary of fee spikes
It is not unusual for money transfer services to change their fee structures now and then. And as much as they may not be obligated to notify customers of such a change, you deserve to be aware of each addition that is taken from your money due to changes in business terms and conditions.
Unfortunately, most financial institutions choose to quietly implement changes in their fees, making it difficult for one to notice additional charges, especially in the absence of historical data. Others will choose to put the notices out there, but then more often than not, they’re outlined in the fine print.
Take, for instance, a disclaimer notice by Western Union posted on its website indicates:
Western Union also makes money from currency exchange. When choosing a money transmitter, carefully compare both transfer fees and exchange rates. Fees, foreign exchange rates and taxes may vary by brand, channel, and location-based on a number of factors. Fees and rates subject to change without notice.
This practice is widely used by financial institutions, but what is wrong with it?
It capitalises on one of the common human weaknesses; a typical customer will assume they’ll be charged the same amount each time unless notified otherwise. As a result, customers end up paying more without noticing the ‘tiny’ but regular fee increments.
Watch out for differences in route pricing
As economies continue to experience dismal performance owing to the Coronavirus pandemic, you’ll agree that every coin in your possession ought to count. When choosing a funds transfer service provider, you want to take note of routes not being priced similarly in both directions.
Several platforms offer different rates when sending or receiving money in Spain.
Consider an example of an expat in the UK looking to send 2,000 GBP back home in Spain. Compared to several of its peers, Western Union offers a relatively low cost of sending 2,000 GBP to EUR.
Generally, you want to use a service whose rates are consistent when sending or receiving money in Spain. And even if the rates won’t be similar, at least they should be reasonably affordable compared to market standards.
Pro tip: Scout for a platform that offers the same cost both ways.
Clarity
Finding a good deal for international funds transfer is becoming a nightmare for many expats looking to send money in Spain. But that should not be the case if the information is to be relayed to customers transparently. This is why we recommend using rates comparison tools to help you get a bird’s eye view of the Spanish money transfer market.
