Outgoing Wire Fees (Domestic and Foreign) fees

[sam]

It used to be foreign Wire fees at banks like $25-35/ transaction (does not matter which county and at Fidelity it used to $15/ international wire (outgoing and incoming was free). At most banks they don't list exact Outgoing wire fees as it varies by location. Lot of dissection required to find out exact amount.

I was looking recently, and now at Fidelity, international wire fees is increased to 3% (for example for $1000 fees is $30). www.fidelity.com/trading/commissions-margin-rates

When this changed? Most bank screw you on exchange rate as well.

What is economical way to send money overseas? Both wire fees and exchange rates?

[catdog]

Slightly off topic, but my wife and I ran a Bed and Breakfast for 17 years. We did not accept credit cards and that made it difficult for European guests to reserve rooms. Our banks would not accept overseas personal checks and the cost for a bank check was almost as much as a room. We ended up trusting them to arrive when they said they would and pay cash or some would send cash in the mail.

Great times, we met people from all over the world.

Catdog

[Norbert]

Jun 11, 2023 0:08:06 GMT sam said:

It used to be foreign Wire fees at banks like $25-35/ transaction (does not matter which county and at Fidelity it used to $15/ international wire (outgoing and incoming was free). At most banks they don't list exact Outgoing wire fees as it varies by location. Lot of dissection required to find out exact amount.

I was looking recently, and now at Fidelity, international wire fees is increased to 3% (for example for $1000 fees is $30). www.fidelity.com/trading/commissions-margin-rates

When this changed? Most bank screw you on exchange rate as well.

What is economical way to send money overseas? Both wire fees and exchange rates?

Hi Sam,

I use a WISE debit card for my foreign travel. It allows you to hold money in about 30 currencies, so payments in foreign countries are made in the local currency with zero fees.

wise.com/gb/travel-money/travel-money-card

You top up the card using a domestic US money transfer, which is free at Fidelity. You then pay a small % fee when converting funds from USD to the foreign currency you require. The actual FX rates are very good with low buy/sell spreads. There's a small, one-time fee for the card.

Your cash earns interest, paid monthly; different rates apply for different currencies.

WISE is transparent about its fees. Nothing is hidden; no surprises.

However, unlike credit cards, there is no delayed payment and no "cash back" feature. The WISE card is just a debit card, debited immediately at the time of purchase.

Security is good. The card can be kept locked using the WISE app on your smartphone, so no panic if you lose or misplace the card. You receive immediate notification of all usage. Online purchases require your approval using the app.

N.

[yogibearbull]

If foreign transfers are to specific countries, there are banks and fintechs offering good services for $ transfers. For example, for India, I use ICICI/IBN free "M2I" or "Money to India" service. My wife travels to India more often than I can, and I have relied on this service, and her ICICI NRI accounts, for her travels. Be aware that American Express Travelers Cheques are not accepted anymore in India. Even dollar cash cannot be converted into Rupee except at a very few banks, and of course at the RBI (the Reserve Bank of India, like the US Fed) if you happen to be nearby. India has real-time money transfers now (vs slow US ACH) and my transfers to/within India happen very fast. I am sure there are many similar country or region specific $ transfer services.

I use Xe for currency quotes. It also offers money transfers but I have never used it.  www.xe.com/

I have also heard of Wise, but never used it.  wise.com/us/

[chang]

USAA charges $25+$20=$45 for an international transfer, regardless of the amount. The exchange rate is never the interbank rate you see on oanda or xe, but there’s nothing you can do about it.

I did one international transfer from Fidelity and they really screwed me. Won’t do that again.

FX wires and transfers always cost. I try to minimize them, but in my situation they’re an occasional, necessary evil.

[Deleted]

Wells Fargo does not charge any fee for wire transfers if you have a premium account with them, I think minimum balance needed is 200,000.

[sam]

Thanks, I am mostly interest in International Outgoing Wire Transfer fees. I don't have $200K to get almost nothing in interest rates at Big Banks. If I keep this money in a brokerage account I can still get ahead just with 5%+ interest rate in a money market account.

As I mentioned earlier, there are 3 wire transfer fees, Outgoing Bank/institution, $ conversion rates and incoming bank fees. There is almost no control over incoming bank fee and conversion rates. You can check as much you want but still banks will sting you on conversion fees as there is always an excuse. You will never get even mid price of currency exchange on the date of wire transfer.

Only fees left is where which we can control is Outgoing bank fees. That's what I am interested in. I think there is variable how you send money overseas, as US dollars or in local currency (it involves conversion). Most banks may charge you lower fees if you want to send money in local currency as they will still MILK you on conversion rates.


In many cases, many foreign banks have branches in USA which is known as correspondent accounts. Technically you are NOT sending money overseas. You only sending money to that account in USA with instructions to send money at its final destination overseas. Does it still count as International Wire and hence fees associated with it?


For $1000 Outgoing wire fees at Fidelity looks like
3% Fidelity fees ($30), perhaps 1% on conversion rates (not sure exact amount as currency fluctuate through out the day) ($10) and $20 incoming bank fees = $60 which is like 6%