Send Money to India

Recommended Money Transfer Companies

There are a great many companies that can provide money transfer services to India for you. We recommend a few money transfer companies below for your convenience. These recommendations are based on a careful review of each company's qualifications, services, and pricing. If these firms do not meet your needs, you can easily find many other options via google.

Xoom

Xoom is a rapidly growing online money transfer agent with worldwide operations. They have extensive capabilities and reach in India, including direct deposit capabilities with all banks in India, a relationship with Punjab National Bank (PNB) for local pickup at over 2,000 locations countrywide, and local delivery via Blue Dart in many areas.

Fees are very low for smaller amounts and larger money transfers are free. Xoom earns most of its money by charging a small exchange rate premium. Practically speaking, this means you pay a lower upfront fee than with, say, Western Union, but your recipient gets slightly fewer rupees. Total fees for Xoom are generally going to be somewhat lower than Western Union.

How to Choose a Money Transfer Company

Choosing the right money transfer company goes arm-in-arm with choosing the best money transfer method for your needs.

Among the questions to ask are:

• How you want to fund the tranfer? with the main options being: bank account, credit card, cash, and existing online payments account balance
• How do you want to want the recipient to receive the funds? with the main options being: direct into their bank account, into their online payments account, on-location pickup, and courier delivery
• How do you want to initiate the transfer? with the main options being: online, by phone, and retail location
• Who should pay for the transfer? with the main options being: the sender or the recipient

Other factors to consider are:

• How quickly the funds need to be available to the recipient.
• Availability of service in both the originating and destination countries / cities.
• Simplicity and convenience of the process
• The cost of the transfer, including indirect exchange rate impact
• Reliability and reputation of the company
• Security and safety of the specific transfer method
• Availability of additional services, such as prepaid credit cards, or bill paying, that may be required
• Is the company and the transfer method safe and secure?

If you match your answers to the questions above against the money transfer options outlined in the prior section, you will have some idea what type of company you should choose. Once you know that, then you can compare specific companies for the best pricing, ease of use, and service availability.

Ways to Transfer Money

There are many ways to transfer money to India. The options vary depending on the type of company you choose to handle your money transfer.

There are 3 main types of companies you can use:

• Money transfer agents
• Online payments companies
• Banks

Below is a description of the types of money transfer options each kind of company offers.

There are also a few other money transfer methods described here.

1. Money Transfer Agents

Money transfer agents are companies whose primary business is helping people move money from one place to another - whether domestically or internationally. Two well known money transfer agents are Xoom and Western Union. There are many other firms, however, even including local neighborhood shops that do business as transfer agents.

Transfer agents can send money in several ways depending on a) how the sender initiates the transfer, b) how the sender funds the transfer amount, and c) how the recipient receives the funds. Not all transfer agents offer all options noted below.

Options for initiating the transfer

Depending on the company used, the sender can initiate a money transfer in 3 different ways.

• Online - Sender visits company's website to open an account. Sender then establishes either direct link to their bank account or uses a credit card to fund a money transfer.
• Retail location - Sender visits a physical location to open an account. Sender funds the money transfer using their bank account, a credit card, or cash.
• Telephone - Sender calls the company to open an account online. Sender generally can use only a credit card to fund a money transfer by phone.

Sources of funds

The sender can typically fund their money transfer in 3 ways using a money transfer agent.

• Bank account - Sender authorizes the money transfer agent to withdraw funds directly from their bank account. Direct debit transfers are usually cheaper than a credit card, but they can take more time.
• Credit card - Sender uses a Visa, Mastercard, or other credit card as the source of funds. Credit card funded transfers are usually completed very quickly, but they cost more.
• Cash - Sender provides the transfer agent cash to fund the transfer. Cash transfers can be completed quickly and may cost less.

With some transfer agents, you may also be able to fund transfers using a Paypal or similar account, or with funds held in a personal account with the transfer agent.

Options for receiving funds

The sender can choose how the recipient will receive their funds. Again, there are three main options, depending on the company used.

• Direct deposit - Sender authorizes funds to be deposited directly into the recipient's bank account. To do so, you need the recipient's banking details.
• Cash pickup - Recipient visits a local bank or other affiliate of the money transfer agent and is given the funds in cash or bank check.
• Courier delivery - Your money transfer is hand-delivered to the recipient via a local courier. Normally, the funds are in the form of a bank check, demand draft (DD), or similar instrument that can be redeemed for cash at a local bank. There may be an extra charge for this service.

Fees for money transfers via a transfer agent are generally paid by the sender. Specific fees will vary depending on which of the above combinations of options are chosen - and which company you use.

In addition to direct fees, money transfer agents may also earn money off the currency exchange rate they use. This is usually not a direct charge you will see, but it will affect the number of rupees your recipient gets. Exchange rate earnings accounts for how some transfer agents are able to offer higher value transfers for 'free'. Any reputable transfer agent will tell you the applicable exchange rate when you as you place your order.

The larger the sum you are sending overseas, the more focused you should be on the exchange rate. For smaller transfers, getting a lower exchange rates will not matter too much, but for amounts of several thousand dollars / pounds / euros or more, you want a favorable exchange rate - a rate close to the Interbank rate.

How long your transfer will take to complete also varies depending on the options selected. Transfers using bank funds will generally take longer than ones using credit cards. On-location pickup by the recipient can be quicker than waiting for money to clear via direct deposit into their account.

A transfer involving a credit card-funded transaction where the recipient picks it up personally could be completed in a matter of minutes. A bank-to-bank transfer could take anywhere from a day to a few days. But there are no hard and fast rules, so you should check with the company.

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2. Online Payments Companies

Online payments companies, such as PayPal, Moneybookers, and ePay, are primarily set up to facilitate payment for goods and services by customers, but they can also be used to transfer money between individuals. This is typically done via an 'email money transfer'.

With an email money transfer, you send money to other people using their email address. You don't actually send any money via email, the sender just uses the recipient's email address as a means to uniquely designate where the funds should be sent. Sort of like how your account number uniquely identifies your bank account.

This approaches requires both the sender and the recipient to have accounts with the same payments provider - and the transfer of funds is basically simply the moving of funds from one account to another within the same company.

As a result, email money transfers are have the distinct advantage of being relatively instantaneous. However, this does not include any additional time that may be required by the recipient to get the money from their payments account into their bank account and then, possibly, into cash.

The sender can fund the transfer via their existing account balance, a credit card, or a direct debit from their bank.

The recipient receives funds into their existing account. From there, the recipient can transfer the money to their bank account or use it to make a payment from their account. In general with a payments company, the recipient cannot receive the funds directly into their bank account or as cash.

Email money transfer fees are generally paid by the recipient - which may be inappropriate in some transfer situations. Fees are usually charged as a percentage of the amount transferred. Charges are in the range of 2%-5% of the principal amount. There may also be an explicit currency exchange fee - typically in the 2%-3% range - and there may be certain per transaction fees, as well. You need to check with your provider for specifics. But as an example, we recently did a US$300 international transfer via PayPal and the fee was US$12.

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3. Banks

Using banks to handle your money transfers is probably the safest and most secure method. However, banks can also be relatively slower than some other means - and, depending on the bank, potentially more expensive.

• Bank-to-bank wire transfer - Bank-to-bank wire transfers are a highly secure and reliable way to send money overseas. Wire transfers can take 2-3 days or more to fully clear and they can cost upwards of US$50 or more if both sender and recipient are charged (which is common). Exchange rates are also a factor. The sender must provide the recipient's complete banking information to route the funds properly.
• Bank check or foreign draft - You can send money overseas using a bank check, or better yet, a foreign draft. A foreign draft is a special type of bank check that is prepared by your local bank, but that is drawn on a local bank in the recipient's country in the recipient's local currency. Foreign drafts normally take several days to prepare, especially if you are working with a smaller bank that doesn't do much overseas business. You then need to physically send the check to the recipient. Once the recipient has the check, cashing it is normally fairly quick - particularly if the check is drawn on their bank. Foreign drafts are normally reasonably priced with fixed prices independent of dollar amount of the check.
• Personal check - Obviously, you can send money to somebody overseas using a personal check. However, this is generally not very expedient and may also be costly. A personal check can be very slow because the check must not only be physically sent to the recipient, but clearing a personal checks between international banks can take many days.

Note that many Indian banks, such as HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and State Bank of India, among many others, have special banking services for non-resident Indians (NRI). These services often include discounted or free money transfer arrangements. Many go well beyond simple money transfers to include prepaid credit cards, joint credit cards, ATM access to your funds to authorized individuals, and so forth. These types of accounts, know as Rupee checking, savings, and other accounts, are well suited to NRI with on-going money transfer and payment needs.

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4. Other Money Transfer Methods

In addition to the above companies and methods, there are a handful of other options that are available from various companies.

• International money transfer - International money transfers are relatively less common nowadays, but are still available in some cases. For instance, the United States Postal Service will issue international money orders, but only for about 30 countries and for amounts of US$700 or less. India is not among the countries currently available. Western Union also issues money orders, but these are not really designed for international use.
• Prepaid credit card or debit card - While not particularly practical as a means for sending money to other people, various companies issue prepaid credit cards and debit cards in your own name for use during overseas travel. Such cards may be sold under names such as prepaid travel cards, and prepaid foreign currency cards. Such cards are available from certain Visa and Mastercard affiliates and from Travelex, among others.
• Prepaid gift card - You may be able to find a bank, credit card company, or retailer that issues prepaid gift cards in the currency of your recipient. However, most such cards, if available, are issued in currencies such as the US dollar or the Euro and so, are not likely to be of much use in sending money to India.
• Bill paying services - Another option in some cases is to pay bills on behalf of another party - e.g., mobile phones, electricity, and other utilities. However, while overseas bill paying services are fairly common (for instance, most major Indian banks operate bill paying services for NRI), they are generally designed for paying bills on accounts held in your own name. Setting these up to allow you to pay for services registered in another person's name may be more difficult and are probably only relevant for on-going payment situations.

Please note that specific transfer options, pricing, and other service features vary from company to company. Please check the directly with companies for their particulars.