Western Union money transfer

[IslandTime808]

Hi! New here. I'm moving to Argentina in a couple months with my boyfriend from the United States. Wanted to know if someone can give a quick rundown on how to use Western Union while in Argentina. Do you just create a WU account, transfer the money to your new WU account then using the online option to choose how much money you want and what WU office you want it delivered to?

Thank you, I know this is a basic question

 

[IslandTime808]

Transferred $1000 today @ 213.50 and bought the blue at 198.

Gain of 15500 pesos, or US$78, or 7.8%, in one day (based on the blue rate), for moving your money from one place to another. I don't call that a small profit. And you should be able to transfer a couple thousand dollars without a problem.

And there's something else to consider. It's hard to get dollars to Argentina. It costs significant money to do so. So if you like to have an emergency supply of dollars here, you can save ALL of those costs as well. I calculated that for my situation with my US bank (using actual numbers from my last trip), for me to bring 5000 dollars from Uruguay costs today 9 pesos/dollar. So in addition to the 15.5 pesos per dollar I gained today, I can count another 9 pesos of savings in getting my dollars here.

Not a bad deal at all.

This large spread between WU and the blue is probably a short term phenomenon/opportunity, but you never know. This is Argentina, after all.

Thought this was a really interesting idea. If you had a smaller budget (say $2k a month) would you just look to do this twice a month given the constant price changing/inflation? I like the idea but probably wouldn't want to hold my pesos more than a couple weeks.

 

[steveinbsas]

How to use Western Union while in Argentina. Do you just create a WU account, transfer the money to your new WU account then using the online option to choose how much money you want and what WU office you want it delivered to?

Go to the Western Union US website and create the account. When you are ready to make a transfer all you have to do is send the money from your bank to yourself, providing WU with all of the details as the sender and the recipient, as well as the amount you want to send You will not actually send the money to your Western Union account.

The funds will be withdrawn from your bank and you will be able to pick up the funds in a matter of minutes at any Western Union agency (provided they have sufficient cash on hand at the moment) simply by showing your government issued ID and providing the transfer/tracking number. The name on your ID and the transfer must match exactly!

Before you make a third transfer you will have to complete an on line form with your details as the recipient. It may include a "declaration" that you are not a polical person (or something like that). As soon as you make the first transfer you should see a notice about doing this. I suggest you complete the form ASAP.

PS: Check this thread often to find the latest "promo code" which will eliminate the transfer fee!

 

[Frank2000]

As Steve said, create your WesternUnion account while in the USA. Follow the instructions on how to validate and link your bank account to your WesternUnion account. Use the same laptop you will bring to Argentina. Also download the WU application in your phone and login from there as well while in the USA. Practice sending a small amount to a trusted friend if you like.

After arriving Argentina, when doing a transfer, you only need to indicate the city of the recipient and not the specific branch or store. You can then pick it up from any branch or store of your choice within that city with your passport. When you start filling out the form make sure to click on where it says Apply Promo.

It is a good idea to bring cash with you in case promo code stops working at some point, or just as an alternative for emergencies. Of course don't bring cash if you are not sure you can keep it in a safe place and do not have to walk around carrying it.

 

[Rich One]

WU related question if one sends a US dollar transfer to be picked up in Colonia WU. Can one request dollar bills instead of pesos Uruguayos

 

[BANY]

I'm a bit afraid of sending money to myself and AFIP watching, I have a DNI and I'm a monotributista, but I send from my US bank to my Argie bank. What do everyone thinks about this? I AFIP's eye watching these transfers?

Continuing with this, I have 3 questions...

1. Can a friend in the U.S. create the WU account in his name BUT send you the money with a debit card that is not in his name? ie YOUR debit card?
2. If not, what about if he uses one of those prepaid debit cards that dont have names on it? Does that work?
3. If neither works then...if you have to send to yourself does AFIP actually see the sender name? Or they just see the sender as WU?

Thanks for clarifying.

 

[ventanilla]

I'm a bit afraid of sending money to myself and AFIP watching, I have a DNI and I'm a monotributista, but I send from my US bank to my Argie bank. What do everyone thinks about this? I AFIP's eye watching these transfers?

Western Union will automatically associate your withdrawals with your CUIL/CUIT if you receive it in your own name.

Your best bet would be to send it as a gift to someone other than yourself. It's unlikely you get in any trouble for sending it to yourself directly, but if you send it to someone else they can easily just say it's a gift/support from a friend. From your name to your name might be a harder sell.

 

[steveinbsas]

Continuing with this, I have 3 questions...

1. Can a friend in the U.S. create the WU account in his name BUT send you the money with a debit card that is not in his name? ie YOUR debit card?
2. If not, what about if he uses one of those prepaid debit cards that dont have names on it? Does that work?
3. If neither works then...if you have to send to yourself does AFIP actually see the sender name? Or they just see the sender as WU?

Assuming the answers to the first two questions are no, you could send your friend the funds and he/she coud send the cash from a Western Union agency in the USA to a Western Union agency in Argentina for you to pick up in person.

When sending funds from the USA for pick up or deposit to a bank in Argentina, the sender does not have to have a Western Union acount and neither does the recipient, but the sender must show a valid government issued ID when sending the funds.. Their name will appear in the details of the Western Union transfer which can be "seen" by AFIP (if they ever actuaclly look).

Of course you would need to have a Western Union account to send yourself funds online, even if you pick up the pesos in person. And AFIP will be able to see that you are both the sender and receiver. No matter who makes the transfer, the transfer details will show both the sender and the recipient´s names and AFIP will "have a record" of the transfer.

Perhaps the transfers from yourself to yourself could be made using your US passport number. However, I believe that, as the recipient of more than two transfers, you will be required to fill out an online declaration with your personal information, including your CUIL/CUIT if you have one.

I am not sure what would eventually happen if you do not include your CUIL/CUIT. I daresay this omission would likely arouse suspicions of tax evasion. It might actually be a crime not to include this information. Sending money to a freind in the US to send to you is legal, provided the funds are legally yours, but at some point it might raise suspicions of money laundering as well as tax evasion.

In the near future your friend might not want to deal with receiving more than $600 per month from you via a bank to bank transfer of any kind as the current US administration wants the IRS to soon begin monitoring all bank transactions over $600 and wants to hire more than 50,000 new IRS agents to do so. If they get their wish, nothing would say "audit me" (for tax evasion) more than receiving unreported funds (even if it is not taxable income that must be declared), especially on a regular basis.

If the funds you want to send to yourself by Western Union are not taxable in Argentina, you really shouldn't have anything to worry about.

On the other hand...

 

[IslandTime808]

Go to the Western Union US website and create the account. When you are ready to make a transfer all you have to do is send the money from your bank to yourself, providing WU with all of the details as the sender and the recipient, as well as the amount you want to send You will not actually send the money to your Western Union account.

The funds will be withdrawn from your bank and you will be able to pick up the funds in a matter of minutes at any Western Union agency (provided they have sufficient cash on hand at the moment) simply by showing your government issued ID and providing the transfer/tracking number. The name on your ID and the transfer must match exactly!

Before you make a third transfer you will have to complete an on line form with your details as the recipient. It may include a "declaration" that you are not a polical person (or something like that). As soon as you make the first transfer you should see a notice about doing this. I suggest you complete the form ASAP.

PS: Check this thread often to find the latest "promo code" which will eliminate the transfer fee!

Thank you for this detailed response!

 

[ventanilla]

I can confirm that THEY CAN FIND YOUR CUIT/CUIL even if you send it to your passport number. When I pick up with my passport, it automatically associates with my CUIL, which is listed on the receipt, even though I never gave it to Western Union. Your passport number is clearly (behind the scenes) associated with your DNI.