28 Oct 2024
You will be surprised to learn that Gambia’s expatriates in the United Kingdom remit i.e. send money to Gambia more than £100 million annually. Yes, that is a lot of money but it is worth realizing that a massive chunk of it goes to things like transfer fees, exchange rate markups, or hidden charges. Today living in the UK brings a lot of challenges when it comes to expenses; it is therefore imperative to save every penny.
In this case, the foreign Gambian expatriate living in the United Kingdom desires to remit more of his or her income back home. However, transferring money from one account to another can be provided at a steep cut from every transaction. Fortunately, it is possible to use some of the more innovative strategies to avoid being charged these fees and to get as much money back to Gambia for as low a cost as possible. In today’s blog, there are practical tips and recommendations regarding minimizing transfer fees and getting the best value for the money spent.
If you want to begin saving on transfer fees, you need to learn about them. When sending money abroad, most providers charge two types of fees: carriage and delivery charges and exchange charges.
This is a fixed fee or percentage that the money transfer service levies. The fee may differ depending on the specific service provider you choose and whether you send money to Gambia online, such as the transfer type—bank transfer, mobile money, or via an online application.
Some other ways through which money transfer services make their money include charging service fees as well as providing customers with a less desirable exchange rate than the prevailing market rate, making the hidden cost in the form of the interest clip. These small fees and markups can all build up, confusing your family in Gambia when you assert very little of what they anticipated to obtain from their foreign cash.
Even the transfer fees vary with some conditions – the velocity or the volume and the destination of the transfer. There are always high charges when you transfer money quickly, whereas taking time is cheaper in most circumstances. Also, some of these services provide higher percentages for less amount. Therefore, you need to be very considerate about which transfer method to select.
Another bad decision expatriate Gambians make is the trade-off between convenience and reasonable price. For instance, it is easier to make payments via bank transfer, but it often costs a lot of money and has an unfavorable exchange rate. Some of the most likely mistakes people make include failing to consider other charges, such as the cost of transferring money on the same day or buying the transfer with a credit card.
Following are six tips that can help you to make your transfer fee as low as possible and enable you to send money from the UK to the Gambia as much as possible:
The most effective method of paying less for transfer fees is therefore compiling a list of service providers. As it turns out, when walking to more conventional avenues of securing a foreign exchange service, such as approaching a traditional bank, one can quickly realize that such institutions provide some of the most expensive services as well as some of the worst exchange rates. ACE Money Transfer is among the many online money transfer services that tend to charge lower fees and give better rates.
Compare using tools available online so as to determine on the charges each provider to offer the same amount. For instance, on the West African ACE Money Transfer, you can easily transfer money to Gambia with hardly any charges or additional unspecified charges on the transfer and therefore pass on more of the money sent to its intended recipients.
As you will see, a lot of services have special discounts, such as no-fee transfers for newcomers or if you are going to transfer a large sum of money. These offers are usually around, especially during the holidays or remittances. ACE Money Transfer often has offers where transferring money to Gambia is free, in fact, it is one of the cheapest ways.
But when fees are charged, they are among the lowest transfer fees in the market, allowing customers to save on their remittance charges constantly.
The other way that can be used to minimize transfer fees on your money transfer to Gambia is by making transfers of larger amounts but fewer times. Some even charge a fixed price on the amount sent regardless of the amount being £100 or £1000. If you time it right, you save more since you put the transfer fee with other large sums, hence dividing the cost in terms of the amount of money that was transferred.
For instance, weekly remittance of £ 100 per week costs £5 for the service, it is cheaper to remit £ 400 per month and pay only £5 for the service, saving £ £15 for the period.
Here are ways that help you to make the best of benefits while you are doing transactions back home:
Differences in rates appear daily, and even the smallest differences can significantly affect the received amount in Gambia. By observing the exchange rate and using high rebates, one can end up with a considerable difference when making transfers. Through the provision of real-time exchange rate notifications, you can transfer your money at times when ACE Money Transfer has the best rates.
With this in mind, you need to be smart in regards to timing when you are transferring cash so that they get the most out of each money you send.
Remitting money through wire transfers tends to be expensive, and it takes a long time for your online money transfer to Gambia from the UK. However, consumer apps and digital wallets offer efficient and cost-effective solutions. ACE Money Transfer’s mobile app lets you transfer money to Gambia in a hurry, to anyone with a mobile money account, and at lower costs than many other options you will find. It also comes with a great user interface, thus ensuring that you are able to manage your transfer and track your exchange rates easily.
In addition, there is increased adoption of digital wallets in the already identified recipient countries, including the Gambia, as the beneficiaries can easily access their cash without making a trip to the bank.
However, credit cards are convenient when it comes to making transfers and this is because the fees charged are high as well as the interest rate on the money to be transferred. If you use a credit card to send money, you will be charged extra charges of about 2-3% apart from the transfer charges. Rather, they prefer integrating options like bank transfers or direct debit since they attract fewer costs and no interest added to the bill.
For a Gambian now living in the UK, every penny saved or gained translates to more money that you send back to your family, i.e., send money to Gambia online from UK. If you take some time to compare the transfer providers, choose the low-fee options, and use digital services such as ACE Money Transfer, you increase the value you derive per transaction. Also, proper tracking of the exchange rate and sending of large amounts with less frequency is another way of cutting your expenses.
Are you ready to pay less for the money transfer? Budgeting according to fees and expenses can sometimes lead to cutbacks and necessary charges, eating up all the money a family should have. Join ACE Money Transfer today to enjoy our low costs, better exchange rates, and fast money transfers so that more of your money gets to Gambia. When it comes to sending money home, it has never been easier or cheaper with ACE Money Transfer. Start saving today!
These fees may differ but may go as low as 1% up to 5% of the transfer amount charged by the service provider.
When using such services, use the internet facilities in comparison to the fee charges, the time taken, or the exchange rate charged by the various firms.
Watch out for currency differences and remit whenever possible when the currency is low against yours.
It is very true to point that many providers charge less for larger amounts of transfers to make it cheaper.
Of course, the integration of the use of a digital wallet provides lower fees and faster processing time compared to other modes of payment system.
