Transferring Money to India

Many expatriate Indians living overseas face the situation of transferring money to their motherland at least once or many times. There could be many motives or intentions for any Indian to send money to India. It may be due to numerous reasons such as for a wedding, supporting the bedridden parents, education or simply transfer of money as savings.

There are lots of money transfer institutions or services available to Indian remitter to transfer money not only to India but also across the globe. First thing come to anyone's mind is the wire transfer or Western Union when he needs to send money to India; however, it is different today as many other methods of transferring money to India are available at his disposal.

Dollar Rupee Exchange Rate is where they get you!

Look out for Attractive Exchange Rates and low remittance charges

Besides above, before deciding the most suitable money transfer service, anyone should understand how such company operates and related procedures involved in any money movement process. In essence, it's your valuable savings and knowing better about money transfer processes' pros and cons, you can certainly save hard earn money and a little understanding on this topic can surely make you save substantial money or the best deal and unnecessary delays.

So what are the methods to transferring money to India?

There are traditional as well as new popularly used money transfer methods today:

Direct Debit: When transferring money you can deposit or debit to your bank account where you live overseas and give direction to the bank transfer the deposited money to the beneficiary either directly debiting it to his account or via a bank draft.
Credit Card: Using your valid Credit card you can send money or cash to your beneficiary in Indian rupees.

As discussed, one should be aware of the following when choosing any money transfer service:

The reputation of the company and its reliability.
What is the transaction or transfer cost or commission charged per transaction?
Will there be any additional or hidden incidental charges at the recipient's end. Then the method of delivery, whether online or direct debit or bank draft or cheque.
What is the dollar rupee currency conversion rate or parity rate?
It is important for any Indian remitter to get the best rate or negotiate the best rate to save extra money. You should pay more attention to this area as this is very dicey as you may be offered very low fees upfront but eventually you may lose substantial money on the currency conversion or exchange rate offered by the money transfer service.
How is the customer support? Or do they give a friendly and caring customer service? Is there a dedicated customer support service to look into customer issues related to lost or misplaced or delayed money transfer or draft, then tracking or locating the money sent to India?
Do the money transfer service company has 24/7 toll number? This will enable to contact the service provider irrespective of the time zone differences globally.
How long the service company takes to deliver the money. Is it immediate or takes few days or weeks?
Can the transaction is secured and easy to carryout. This is very important when you decide to use any online money transfer company.

In addition to above, you need to find answers to following questions before choosing the right money transfer company to India:

I am a regular remitter of money to India, so which money transfer company offers me the best service and rates?
If I am sending money infrequently, then what are the best services suitable for me?
How can I send money urgently? Then which service is the most suitable and reliable?
I need to send money regular basis for settlement of a loan in India, then what is the best option available?

In addressing the above questions, the best advice are to any Indian remitter is:

Use a Non Resident Indian (NRI) account if he is transferring money to his personal account. The banks like HDFC, ICICI and SBI and many more provide the NRI facilities.
In case he needs to transfer money to India urgently, then the best option is use the wire transfer or Western Union where money can be moved instantly. However, he has to be aware of their charges and exchange rates.
In the case where he has to send money to India on regular basis, it is advantages to send money through personal cheque via post. Though it takes little longer, he can save money by not selecting faster money transfer methods.
Finally the best advice given to any Indian remitter who needs to send money to his motherland is to be aware of his situation and accordingly select the right money transfer solution that meets his expectations.