Aside from sending balikbayan boxes in the Philippines, we Filipinos are also known for closed-family ties and hospitality, qualities that are extended to others, to strangers.
So it’s not unusual to see Filipinos in remittance centers standing in queue to send money in the Philippines to financially support their loved ones back home.
I’ve shared the list of remittance centers in Calgary not so long ago. So to reach out and help more of our kababayan to make it easier and faster to send money remittance without spending much, I’ve scoured the Internet.
3 Ways to Send Money in the Philippines from Canada
- Remittance centers
- Online money transfer companies
- Canadian banks
In this post I’ll do my best to convince you how easy it is to send money online in the Philippines. And there are more advantages especially if you live in Canada:
- The fee is cheaper compare to remittance center.
- The rate is higher.
- Your time is spend to something else because you can send money through the web or mobile app.
Of course, there are drawbacks, but I’m here to bring you the good news.
I’ve been relying on PayPal and recently to TransferWise for international money transfer service.
Then I found out more money transfer companies; some of which you are patronizing. There could be more so leave a comment so I can add your favourite company that is missing on the list.
Send Money Online to the Philippines from Canada
I found 11 companies that helps Filipinos and immigrants alike by providing international money transfer service. It is now easier and faster to send money to your family, pay the bills, and order for food delivery especially if there’s a birthday or any special occasion.
1. Family Express
Family Express is one of the money transfer companies that requires a client to be a resident in Canada and send money online ONLY in the Philippines.
How to Pay:
- INTERAC Online from RBC, TD, Scotiabank, or BMO debit card
- Interac e-Transfer or also known as Interac Email Money Transfer (EMT) for all other financial institutions
Fee: You have to register to find out the cost of remittance service and the exchange rate. For reference the fee starts at C$8.00 for cash pick-up and direct credit-to-account.
Processing Time: The recipient can immediately collect the cash within office hours or non-office hours if the remittance is sent to payout centers like Cebuana or M Lhuillier.
Service: cash pick-up, direct credit-to-account, home delivery, and food delivery.
Contact Information:
Family Express Canada Ltd..
Location: 1523 West Broadway Vancouver, British Columbia Canada, V6J 1W6
Phone: (604) 732-8777
Toll-Free: 1 (866) 827-8586 (call/fax)
Email: info@familyexpress.ca
Website
2. Transfast
Transfast offers high locked-in online exchange rates and low transfer fee from the US and Canada. You can use the web and mobile application or send remittance in an agent location.
How to Pay: Debit card and credit card (higher fee due to higher processing costs)
How to Send: Web and mobile application (iOS and Android)
Fee: Transfer fees and exchange rates are priced differently compared to fees and exchange rates on the website.
For fee, processing time, and exchange rate, you can refer to the images below.
The fees are paid through checking or debit card only. You have to log in to find out the fee for credit card that comes with additional charge from card issuer.
Sending Limit: It is based on the length of transaction history so the the credit limit will automatically increase for being a loyal client. All account starts with US$10,000.00 of 30-day sending limit.
Service: Bank deposit, cash pickup, bill payments, cash card, and home delivery
Contact Information:
Transfast
Location: 44 Wall Street, 4th floor New York, NY United States 10005
Toll-Free: (888) 973-6383
Website
3. TransferWise
As I’ve mentioned earlier, I’ve used TransferWise and have written my pleasant experience of its online international money transfer service.
Here’s an overview of my TransferWise review but I sure hope that you’ll read the rest of the blog post:
Minimum fee – $4.00
Sending money (any amount) – 1.2%
Limit – $3,000.00
Debit card fee – 1.15%
Credit card fee – 2.0%
Business debit card fee – 1.15%
Business credit card fee – 2.0%
For now TranferWise is my go-to money remittance company but I’ll definitely try the other companies which I wouldn’t have known if I didn’t write this blog post. So expect more remittance-related reviews.
4.QicSEND
QicSEND is another company that will allow you to send money overseas through web and mobile application. But it differs in so many ways that I’m intrigue of trying it. Let me know how’s your experience.
How to Pay: INTERAC Online from RBC, TD, Scotia, or BMO debit card
Sending Limit: You can send up to $2,500 in total each month. And for a single transfer of C$50.00 (minimum transaction amount) up to C$999.00, you only have to pay the lowest fee that I know of in comparison to other online international money transfer companies .
Fee and Processing Time: The fee is slightly lower than TransferWise yet with faster transaction.
Bank transfer – C$1.99 to C$2.99 (instant/1 business day)
Cash pickup – C$1.99 to C$3.99 (1 hour)
I know what you are thinking. This is such a great deal for a fast service. But take note that the fee varies depending on the transaction amount.
Luckily, you can use the price comparison for more accurate charge . . . and well, fee comparison of QicSEND from 5 online money remittance companies which I also included in this post.
5. iRemit Direct Online
iRemit Direct Online (iDOL) is the answer of iRemit Global Remittance for those who like to send money online to the Philippines. Filipinos should either have deposit account in Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) or Bank of Montreal (BMO).
Fee: I’ve tried different amounts in the calculator and I get the same result. Since it only shows the charge, there could be an additional cost visible only if you log in.
Hmmm . . . why is the transaction faster for those who have RBC account. Which reminds me that I can’t use iDOL; maybe I will in the future if more Canadian banks are added in the service.
6. PayPal
I’ve been using PayPal ever since I learn to shop online (feels like forever) and do freelance writing for several months.
Convenience is the biggest advantage of PayPal for me especially now that I’m an OFW in Canada. The downside of PayPal for most OFW is that the recipient must also have a PayPal account.
For the not-so-younger generation this is not appealing. They would rather go to remittance centers whatever the season is. (Did you remember that it snowed in August and September? My lettuce succumb to the acting-more-weird-every-year weather.)
It’s there choice. For me I’am willing to pay the fee to save time. Then doubt creeps in when I found out that others are saying the fee is too high. So how much exactly am I paying for anyway.
In Canada:
Bank account or PayPal balance – free
Credit card – 2.9% + C$0.30
Outside Canada:
Bank account or PayPal balance – Up to 2% per transaction (based on destination)*
Credit card – 2.9% to 7.4% + fixed fee (based on currency received)*
With this information, I dug in my PayPal activity. I spent C$0.50 to send C$100.00 to my family in the Philippines through the mobile app which I always use.
The cost of sending money to the Philippines through Paypal is 0.5% which I think is not that high but in comparison to what. OK. PayPal deserves its own blog post. There’s more into it than its simplicity that I’m bragging about.
Let’s move on to the Part 2 for more ways on how to send money online to the Philippines from Canada.
Resource: Remittance Prices Worldwide
Photo Credit: transferwise.com
I am an agent of Transfast, on my experienced you can send money through the agent, no limit as long as you can show your source of funds. you can get the money right away,