Wiring Money From Home

International students studying in the United States may find themselves needing money from home for a variety of reasons. Students could need the funds to help with some sort of unexpected emergency, or wiring money from home could just be a regularly scheduled part of their family’s contribution to their education. Either way, there are a few main options that students should know.

Perhaps the most well-known method of wiring money from home is through retail money transfer companies like Western Union, RIA Financial Services, and Money Gram. While the exact logistics and fees differ from company to company, these retail money transfer companies let customers go in to one of their locations and transfer money from cash, a credit or debit card, or even a bank account. Delivery options are just as varied: the transferred money can be put directly into a specified bank account, wired to a certain city for pickup at a location with the recipient’s legal ID, or even delivered in cash to a residence. Multiple delivery speeds are also available, with the faster methods incurring higher fees. Also note that transferring money from a credit card tends to cost more, so try to use a bank account instead!

Another option for wiring money from home is to wire money directly through your banking company. This is often possible even when the sender and recipient have accounts with different companies, but check your company’s policy just to be sure. The advantage of a bank-to-bank transfer without a middleman is usually a lower cost and faster delivery time, while the obvious disadvantage is that you need to have an account with the institution involved (whereas with a retail transfer company you can wire cash with no account involved).

Recently, Paypal has also risen as another form of wiring money from home. Paypal transfers function much like bank-to-bank transfers, except they can only go between Paypal accounts and not to multiple financial institutions. Paypal transfers are almost instantaneous and are a great emerging option as more and more people get accounts.

Wiring money from home is a simple process, with plenty of options to make it work best for you!

* Money Transfer Picture From Shutterstock

Posted in Budgeting Tips for International Students