Western Union money transfer

[IamWaldo]

Keep an eye out today;
Due elections the rate spiked up already..

WU = Will take several days
Wise = see below

 

[pmacay]

I think Western Union knows I'm cheating on him/her with Wise.com I just did another transfer with Wise and didn't check WU before I did it. After making the transfer with Wise, I checked WU and they were offering me 33% off their transfer fee. I've been using WU monthly for almost a year and they've never offered me a discount on the transfer fee before, maybe they've noticed I haven't used them in two months? Next month I'll check with WU before using Wise again.

 

[jantango]

I received this email today from Western Union regarding a new U.S. law adding remittance tax on international money transfers.

Hi Janis, Starting January 1, 2026, a new U.S. law will add a 1% remittance tax on international money transfers paid with cash, money orders, or cashier’s checks. The good news is, you have alternatives to paying this tax when you pay with: ​

•​ Debit or credit cards​ •​ Bank accounts​ •​ Digital wallets, like Google Pay™, Apple Pay®, and Vigo Money​ •​ Prepaid cards, like the Western Union Visa® Prepaid Card​

With Western Union, it’s easy to stay tax-free:​

•​ Download the Western Union® app to send anytime, anywhere using your card or bank account.​ •​ Sign up for a Western Union Visa Prepaid Card. Load cash and pay for transfers without the additional tax.​

How does this affect your receiver? It doesn’t. The new tax only applies to senders paying with cash, money orders, or cashier’s checks. The amount your receiver gets will stay the same.​

 

[Filipo]

A while ago I was recommending transferring money from WU to a virtual PagoFacil wallet. This worked fine for me for one year (23 tranfers). Lately I had to pay my taxes in Argentina and had to transfer more than the usual amount. A week ago I got a mail from [email protected] asking for KYC documentation which I prevented immediately. After that I didn't hear back from them, finding this week my account closed and without access to my money and no direct way to communicate with the corresponding department. So in case this happens to someone, make sure to withdraw all your money from you PF account.

Anyway, I found that there are much more ways to send money for a good rate, besides Wise and WU, i.e. Remitly, Instarem etc. Would be interesting your experiences, which services are you using regularly, besides Wise and WU?

 

[steveinbsas]

WU now $1.514.

It's not difficult to imagine what it might be by the beginning of the fourth week in October....

....and it's even easier to imagine what will happen on the 26th.

 

[carride]

I received this email today from Western Union regarding a new U.S. law adding remittance tax on international money transfers.

​ Hi Janis, Starting January 1, 2026, a new U.S. law will add a 1% remittance tax on international money transfers paid with cash, money orders, or cashier’s checks.

This is only a concern if you send money from the physical location. I have done this since the rate is very low, and not a percentage. From some US states, walk into a pharmacy, give cash, and only pay $8 regardless of the amount sent. Unfortunately from your post, this will not work well soon.

 

[Caribbean Cool]

Western Union is 1514 and free this afternoon.

 

[RogerTotal]

Does anyone know if it's a problem receiving western union cash with an expired passport ?

I know the people working there won't care but if something comes up on their computer or whatever

 

[Patrick2006]

If you send money via WISE, does the receiving bank charge a fee?
I know WU no charge

 

[Konner_Long]

If you send money via WISE, does the receiving bank charge a fee?
I know WU no charge

Not that I'm aware of. Last time I sent money, it appeared in the account minus the fees stated by wise. This was with BNA.

More importantly - Don't transfer with Wise at the moment. There is a "Dynamic Fee" that is being charged on any transfer because the currency is unstable at the moment. Seems to be around 26 pound on top of usual fees on 1000 pound transfer.