The Best Way to Send Money to the Philippines
The Philippines is the third largest destination for receiving money (Pew Research, 2015). This can probably be attributed to the fact that “it is probably the only country in the world that has institutionalized the deployment of its people to work overseas.” (Inquirer, 2013)
Overseas Filipino Workers or OFW’s remittances comprise 10% of the Philippines GDP. It is one of the factors that help the Philippine economy grow. It is a part of the Filipino culture to support your family financially back home by sending money on a regular basis.
Are you an OFW? Do you regularly send money home? Are you looking for the best way to send money to the Philippines? If yes, then you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we will explain the different service providers and their respective costs to make sure that you understand your options and find out the best and most economical way to send money to your family.
2 WAYS TO SEND MONEY HOME:
- THROUGH A PHYSICAL AGENT
You can find money transfer agents usually in Filipino shops around Europe. In Paris, France for example, the Filipino quartier is located at Avenue Victor Hugo, 75016, Paris, France. A money transfer agent looks like this:
To transfer money with an agent, you must go there physically and bring a valid ID. They will then create an account for you and then ask for the details of your transfer eg, beneficiary name, amount you want to send etc. You will then have to pay for your transfer in cash.
Advantages:
+Accessible to those who don’t have bank accounts
Disadvantages:
-You have to bring your ID every time
-Time-consuming
-Some agents only accept cash and carrying a lot of money with you can be dangerous as you always carry the risk of it being stolen.
2. ONLINE
Transferring money online is by far the easiest and fastest way to send money to your loved ones back home. You can do it anytime and anywhere and within a few seconds if you have a bank card.
To transfer money online, you must go to the service provider’s website and create an account. After that, you’ll be able to create your transfer and pay for it using your bank card. There are many service provider’s out there and we’re here to show you the best one in terms of exchange rate and fees.
Advantages:
+Cheaper: better fees and rates
+Available 24/7
+Time-saving
+Safe and secure
Disadvantages:
-Not available to those who do not have bank cards
Let’s compare and contrast 5 providers when it comes to sending 500 euros to the Philippines via bank transfer (fee included) taken as of July 26, 2017 16h30 from their respective websites:
TEMPO Money Transfer: http://tempo.eu.com
Western Union
MoneyGram
Transferwise
WorldRemit
By choosing to send with TEMPO over the competitors, you save, on average, 788 PHP or 14 euros. 500 euros is the average send amount. Let’s say that for example you send 500 euros monthly. Just by sending with TEMPO, you will save 788PHP x 12 = 9,456 PHP a year or 163 euros per year!
Check out their online service to the Philippines here:
