International transfer

Internationalab 9 J.

Sending money abroad: SEPA (Europe) is free. Outside SEPA: bank fees of €15–50 + a hidden exchange rate mark-up of 1–3%. Wise (formerly TransferWise) is often 5–10 times cheaper than your main bank.

Transferring money abroad can be free or extremely expensive – depending on the method and destination country.

Within SEPA (Europe, 36 countries):

• Costs: same as a domestic transfer (€0–0.50)
• Currency: EUR only
• Duration: 1 banking day (instant: 10 seconds)
• Countries: EU + EEA + Switzerland + UK

Outside SEPA (SWIFT):

• Bank fees: €15–50 per transfer
• Exchange rate markup: 1–3% above the mid-market rate (hidden costs!)
• Intermediary banks (correspondent banks): can deduct an additional €5–30
• Duration: 2–5 banking days

Cheaper alternatives:

• Wise (TransferWise): real mid-market rate + 0.4–1% fee. For €1,000: ~€5–8 instead of €30–50 at the bank
• Revolut: cheap in many currencies, limit on the free plan
• PayPal: convenient, but 2.5–4% fees (expensive for larger amounts!)
• Western Union: for cash pick-up, but high fees

Cost comparison (€1,000 to the USA):

• Sparkasse: ~€35 fee + ~€20 exchange rate markup = ~€55
• Wise: ~€5 fee + €0 markup = ~€5
• PayPal: ~€35 (3.5% fees)
• Savings with Wise: ~€50 per transfer!

Did you know? The World Bank estimates that more than $200 billion a year is paid worldwide in fees for international transfers. Fintechs like Wise have cut average costs by 80% – but most people still use their expensive main bank.

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