Finding the best exchange rate will ensure you get more foreign currency for your Indian Rupee currency (INR) that you shell out while doing international money transfers from India and it's also extremely important to know how and where to get the best exchange rates.
When doing an international money transfer, it's really advisable to search around and compare your alternatives. You must spend some time checking out all the online international money transfer platforms and pick the one that suits best according to your need.
Here are a few tips that you can follow and keep in mind while trying to get the best exchange rates for international money transfer from India:
- Comparing different money transfer platforms: A customer must compare a lot of online money transfer services. This won’t take much time but it will prove extremely beneficial for you. This will certainly assist you in finding the best exchange rates and lowest transfer fees.
- You must also read the platform reviews by past customers and choose the one which provides the most reliable service. You can use expert service provided by online forex marketplaces which aggregate rates provided by banks and money changers and come up with the best rates accordingly.
- Avoiding multiple small transfers: It’s highly advisable to send a large amount in one single transaction rather than sending it in smaller forms and multiple transactions. This can save you on a lot of bank commission charges and the GST charges which get applied on currency conversion.
- Knowing the transfer limits: The transfer fees that get applied on the transactions directly depend on the amount you are looking to transfer abroad. You must also check the online money transfer platform’s limit as well since it may vary from platform to platform on how much amount you can transfer abroad in a single go.
- Checking the total transaction costs: Sending money abroad can prove to be an expensive process if you don’t give enough attention and detail on the currency rates and the types of charges involved. There will be platforms where the incurred fees will be low but exchange rates will be higher and vice versa. So, you must calculate the total transaction costs by counting everything and go with the one which saves you the most.
- Also, you should not pay extra charges to speed up the money transfer process unless it’s an urgent need. When scheduling a cash pick-up, it is crucial to confirm the refund policy in cases the collector is not able to pick up the funds on time. You also must verify whether or not the recipient will be obliged to pay the receiving charge or any other unknown service charges that may be imposed on the payment by the bank of the recipient.
- Keeping a sharp eye on the currency rate fluctuations: The foreign exchange market is one of the most liquid markets in the world. The rates are always changing and if you can get a hang of how the forex markets work, it will be really valuable for you to buy currency at the best time possible. There’s a lot of volatility in the market and you can use it to your advantage by buying foreign currency when the prices are lower.
- Even a small paisa difference in currency rate while doing a big transaction can save you a lot of money. In case there’s a big sudden drop in the currency, you can buy the currency in case there’s someone in your family who’s staying abroad and constantly needs foreign currency.
- You can use the expert service of online forex marketplaces which also have an option to lock or freeze the rates for up to 3 days which can be useful in many cases.
- Staying aware about procedures and liabilities: It’s extremely important that you are aware about the procedures of the money transfer platform that you are choosing to send money abroad from India. In case there is a mishap during a money transaction, what happens then and who do you contact?
- This is a major concern and you should go with the money transfer platform that has good customer care support. In case there’s a delay in money transfer, it can cause anxiety and a good customer support can always clear all your doubts and make you at peace.
Since the best option changes depending on so many factors, there's no simple alternative to determine the best exchange rates. But then you can save cash, and maybe even obtain the best exchange rate, by recognizing what to avoid and how to compare the options while sending money abroad.