Sending money from Japan to another country is really easy nowadays. Although many banks offer this service, using a third-party remittance service is usually cheaper and more convenient. Among many services, we recommend these three to you.
At the end of the article, we compared Wise, Western Union, and WorldRemit to see which one suits you best.
Wise
Wise is a popular option for foreigners in Japan because of the easy set-up, mid-rates exchange use, and low transfer fee. Unlike many other remittance services, Wise didn’t mark up their rate. They are also very transparent about their cost.
For every transfer, Wise applies a flat fee of around 40-70 JPY (depending on currency) + 0,6% of the amount sent. You can calculate through this calculator. The money can be delivered within the same day, but it depends on currency routes, payment method, and if your transfer needs an extra check or not. The limit of transfer differs for each currency.
To register, you can go to their website or download the app. However, you have to do identity verification before you can do any transaction. The process is a bit long, but Wise explains it step by step here.
Western Union
Who doesn’t know Western Union? They have been in this industry for over 145 years. Instead of getting out of date, Western Union keeps improving its service and maintaining its power. Western Union is still one of the best international remittance services out there.
As a well-established service, Western Union facilitates money transfers between more than 200 countries and territories. The fee starts from 200 yen. You can check through the rate and fee calculator.
There is a limit of 100,000 JPY for the first transaction. Nevertheless, Western Union will be an excellent choice for urgent transfer. Unlike Wise, you can use Western Union for the first time without identity verification.
To do the second transfer and forward, you must verify through ID and unique PIN. Western Union will send a four-digit PIN to your address, which you’ll need to input on your second transfer. After you get verified, you can transfer up to 350,000 per transfer.
WorldRemit
WorldRemit is another recommended fast and easy third-party remittance service. They cater money transfers to more than 140 destinations. About 95% of the transactions succeed within minutes.
The WorldRemit transfer fee is considerably cheap. However, it does mark up the exchange rate. It is common practice in remittance service, but it makes WorldRemit not always the most affordable option. The transfer fee differs depending on which country you want to send your money.
To use WorldRemit, you have to verify your identity first. You must submit a Japanese ID card, MyNumber card, photograph, and proof of address. If the ID card or MyNumber card has your address written, it can be used as proof of address. All identification processes can be done online.
Comparison
Let’s compare the transaction using these three services. We will compare the transfer fee, exchange rate, and how much the recipients will get. We will also compare the low and big amounts in multiple currencies.
Sending 10,000 JPY to Singapore
Sending 1,000,000 JPY to United States
Conclusion
Based on the comparison, WorldRemit is suitable for small transfers while Western Union is suitable for big transfers. However, Wise is the greatest of all, whether in small or big transfers. In the big transfer scheme, WorldRemit has a far cheaper fee than Wise and Western Union, but recipients get more through those two services. That is why you have to look at both the cost and rate. If you are concerned about the fee and rate only, we recommend Wise as the most affordable option.
Convenience-wise, Western Union is the best. You can make the first transaction before verifying yourself. Although the set-up process for Wise and WorldRemit is not complicated either, you can’t use them for sudden urgent transfers if you are a new user. If you have already verified, these three services are easy to use, have multiple payout options, and reach various countries.
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