Sending money to PI

World Remit with cash pick ups at LBC no issues

Look out for the full launch of https://www.supercard.io/ which will be the cheapest way to send money from the UK to the Philippines, providing you withdraw using an ATM from a non-Philippines bank (my wife uses HSBC at Ayala Mall, Cebu)

I managed to get into the SuperCard pilot and my wife just collected her second SuperCard payment today. There is absolutely no hassle that you can get with World Remit, Western Union, Azimo etc because your card company wants to verify your identity before they will release the funds, that is because of the way SuperCard operates.

You link a SuperCard to your bank account but funds are never actually loaded onto the SuperCard. When you use the SuperCard at an ATM it actually withdraws the funds from the linked bank account at the time of use. As a safeguard, I have only linked the SuperCard to a basic bank account, that does not offer an overdraft facility and should reject any withdrawals that would take it into overdrawn territory. I load the basic bank account by on-line transfer which takes just minutes to do. Before I send my wife the money, I enable the SuperCard via the Smartphone app and disable the card again once she has collected the money, just as an extra safeguard.

SuperCard charges no fees whatsoever. The card is free and overseas ATM withdrawals are free. If the card is lost it is not a big deal if the card is disabled and as the funds are not on the card but on the linked bank account, you never have to transfer funds back from the card to a bank account.

The only time that you will get charged a fee is if you withdraw funds in pound sterling - this is really just an overseas card.

Not only are there no fees but the exchange rate is the best you will get, and that information comes from a source as authoritative as Money Saving Expert...

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ne...ding-abroad-the-free-supercard-launches-today

EDIT: I just checked the exchange rate that my wife got on her SuperCard today with Azimo, World Remit and Western Union...

SuperCard: 71.88 Pesos
Azimo: 71.38 Pesos
Western Union: 71.14 Pesos (pay from bank account)
World Remit: 70.88
Western Union 70.78 (pay by debit/credit card)

So, SuperCard has the best exchange rates and has no fees to boot!

My advice would be to download the SuperCard app today so that you will be one of the first to be notified when it is available on full public release...

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.travelex.supercard
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/supercard-by-travelex/id981065202?mt=8

Re-posted here as originally incorrectly posted to the wrong thread so the RoE's will be outdated:-

[COLOR=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961)]There's also a couple of Philippines issued reloadable/pre-paid ATM cards[/COLOR]
The PNB Global Filipino Card and the iRemit Visa card
Both cards can be loaded online
May not suit everyone but for me I find them very useful.
Since they are 'local' cards there's only the normal P10 transaction charge at ATM's
They can be used in shops etc or for online purchases just as a regular debit card.
Todays current RoE's for remittance are:-
WorldRemit = P71.66
iRemit & PNB =P72.90
Some Facts & Figures on using these:-
WorldRemit

Send amount: GBP100
Fees: GBP 4.99
Total to pay: GBP104.99
Your recipient gets PHP7,166

Send amount: GBP1000
Fees: GBP6.99
Total to pay: GBP1006.99
Your recipient gets PHP71,660
Send amount: GBP2000
Fees: GBP6.99
Total to pay: GBP2006.99
Your recipient gets PHP143,320

Send amount: GBP 3000
Fees: GBP 6.99
Total to pay: GBP 3006.99
Your recipient gets: PHP214980

iRemit

Send amount: GBP100.00
Fees: GBP6.00
Total to pay: GBP106.00
Your recipient gets: PHP7,290

Send amount: GBP1000.00
Fees: GBP6.00
Total to pay: GBP1006.00
Your recipient gets: PHP72,9000
Send amount: GBP2000.00
Fees: GBP6.00
Total to pay: GBP2006.00
Your recipient gets: PHP145,363
Over GBP2000 is charged at GBP12 so GBP3000 works out at:-
Send amount: GBP3000.00
Fees: GBP12.00
Total to pay: GBP3012.00
Your recipient gets: PHP218,700

*NB
The max amount allowed under iRemit for a single transaction is GBP3900 without special dispensation. Could be an important point

hi Micawber,

May i ask if its true that when someone sends money from UK to the Phils or somewhere, which is up to £3000, the sender must report it to the govt here for tax purposes?

im curious on this money remittance matter because there is no such restrictions like this in singapore, im refering to this small amount remittance. somebody has told me about this but Im just thinking the sender has try to avoid sending money to the loved ones in the Phils.

thank you.

You haven't given any specific details or examples. However, in general terms there are no such tax restrictions as you mention when sending money from the UK to the Philippines.
Having said that, UK law does require all financial institutions (including remittance organisations) to comply with regulations against money laundering the funding of terrorism by securing and recording identifying information on their customers.
This would also be compliant with Data Privacy and Disclosure.
There are a number of different ways to transfer funds to benficiaries, or yourself, in Philippines.
Using a remittance organisation is the most popular and cheapest, but not the only option.

I have used a direct £ debit card payment to a UK pre-paid Debit card and withdrawn the card fund in Peso from ATM here in Philippines. I stopped doing that recently for 2 reasons:-

1. Local Philippine ATM's restarted the P200 charge for each transaction using foreign issued cards
2. Virtually all ATM's here in Philippines have now placed a P10k limit per withdrawal

I now have 2 Philippine issued pre-paid cards but can only reload via the associated remittance organisation.

The tax organisation in UK (HMRC) has a focus on any tax liability relating to inflows from overseas as a way of tax evasion.

Hi Micawber,

Thank you for the explanation. now it is clear to me that a british husband is not in danger to send money like £3000 once in a while to the phils for being accused of money laundering. I know what money laundering is but for a small amount like that to be wired is, i dont know. I was told, that sending that amount, the sender needs to report to the tax authority, so it puts the sender in danger of being spied by the tax agency for whatever reason. Im in UK now in the past month and i got no friends here to inquire about sending money outbound expect from this forum. Much thanks and God bless...

@Mari17

It is the money laundering regulations that are the big problem. All too often I have tried to send money overseas via a remittance organisation, only to be blocked at the payment stage because my bank wants to verify the debit card transaction. No such problem when the same debit card is used for withdrawal at a Philippines ATM.

@Micawber is correct that Philippine banks often limit cash withdrawals to 10,000 Pesos but you may find that more than one withdrawal per day is permitted. The downside is that Philippines ATMs charge 200 PHP for EACH withdrawal when using a UK debit card. That means cash withdrawals of over 10,000 Pesos are more expensive than Azimo (the cheapest remittance service) You can avoid this 200 PHP charge if you use a non-Philippine bank (such as HSBC)

There is potential Inheritance Tax when giving money to someone that is not your spouse/civil partner. Even if someone is your spouse/civil partner and you are sending money overseas to that spouse/civil partner there is the same potential Inheritance Tax problem. In practice, it may not apply as there are exemptions...

https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax/gifts

When I have sent Western Union payments I always get the "Verified by Visa" check, where I enter three selected letters from my password, never anything more than that.

When I was last in the Philippines it appeared that Citibank (PI) has been taken over by BDO. As a client of Citibank (UK) I was disappointed to find that the Citibank ATM had been replaced by a BDO ATM.

However, I took a risk and withdrew cash from the BDO ATM using my Citibank card, I was not charged a withdrawal fee despite what it said on the machine, and the rate I got was good, similar to the Citibank internal rate.

I found this to be the case at other BDO machines.

I don't know if all ATM's have that statement pop-up about the P200 charge for foreign issued cards but certainly from memory all the ATM's that I've used do.
Even when using my Philippine issued cards I see that message. I get charged P10 per transaction.

When I used my Caxton pre-paid (£'s) the RoE was usually the mid-market interbank rate minus 1.89
When I first arrived here I didn't get charged the P200 everytime and knew which machines did and didn't.
Lately most of those I used seem to have adopted it again.

If I need some cash on an emergency basis I still load up the Caxton card with my debit card and shoot off to the nearest ATM despite the charge and slightly lower RoE
Still works out cheaper than using my regular debit card.

Not sure if this will be of help or interest to anyone but I see that CaxtonFX FastPay now allows you send up to £20,000

Hi all,
i dont know if this is the proper thread for me to throw in my question about MONEY.

I just arrived in UK few weeks ago, this is my first time here since my british husband and I got married 2 years ago. It took me almost 2 years to process my visa.

My husband is earning good money and he had saved a lot as an entertainer but during our 2nd year of marriage, just lately, few days before I arrived in the UK, he transfered or gave all his entire life savings, cash, royalty to his only daughter who is a special child, Im nit sure if its through a Will but he mentioned his solicitor is doing it for him. This makes my husband's purse almost empty now. And I dont know if he also made a will on his house we are living now To any of his siblings. so despite of the fact that he has got money in the past, he is now really trying to work hard so both of us will survive, as his daughter's future is already secured, all what he got, he already turned over.

Do you think guys, this is a normal things for british husband to do this way, considering im a foreigner wife. well, Im capable of working and what im aiming right now is for me to learn to drive here so I can work.

i do really appreciate any advise
Or comments that this forum can give.

Much thanks.

I use WU when sending any money to Phils BDO acc. From my debit card to her BDO account fixed fee off £2.50

First, no it is not a normal thing to do AT ALL

Second, if he is telling you the truth, what he says he has done is a REALLY REALLY BAD IDEA!!!!

Your husband has been getting very bad advice from his solicitor. He should get a second opinion at once. His daughter's future is NOT at all secure if he does this.

My brother is a special child and my parents had intended to do the same thing, but their lawyer advised them NOT to do it because, if the special child ever comes into the care of the local Government (which she certainly will) almost any money that she has will be taken from her by the Government to pay for her care.

So all that your husband has done, if he is telling you the truth, has been to give all his money to the Government.

I am really shocked that he has done this without taking proper legal advice. I do wonder if he is telling you the truth or if he is actually scamming you?

Get legal advice of your own at once - go to the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Waste no time. Act at once.

I send money direct to my own Metrobank account via Western Union.
I find this the most convenient method for sending.
Average fee is about £2.90 and sometimes there are promo codes available for zero fees.

It's not just about the 'fee'
It's the total cost of the transaction.

I've always believed Western Union to be quite expensive although I know many folks use them as they are convenient.

Hi, i am using WORLD REMIT APP.And it great

£50s are better than £20s and no they don't have to be in all that good condition, although obviously it is better if they are. They are not fussy about the condition of British pounds in the Philippines at all, certainly not compared to US money, especially $100 bills, which they ARE fussy about. I've given them some right dog-eared fivers on occasion although I have learned it is better to give them higher denomination pound notes than that as they blanch a bit when they see them. But they do accept them. They'll take anything.

nobody needs a Filipino 'guide' of any description to perform such a mundane task as finding the best places, to change money. The rates of exchange are clearly shown everywhere. The best place to change cash is Manila, just like the best place to change cash in the UK is London. More moneychangers equals more competition equals better prices, with Malate/Ermita being the part of Manila with the highest concentration of moneychangers and therefore the best prices. Although even the airport, especially NAIA T1, does not have bad rates. You'll get a similar or even better rate even at NAIA T1 airport in Manila than you will on the street in a provincial city like Cebu.