Tips to have in Turkey

Transfer money to Turkey

Transfer money to Turkey: How to avoid unnecessary fees!

This is my guide for cheap transfer money to Turkey.

You have probably already noticed the high fees for international transfers.

You often pay more than € 50 to send € 1,000 to an account in Turkey. That’s a lot of money in the long run.

This is about solutions for regular and one-time cheap transfers to Turkey.

How to transfer money to Turkey cheaply ?

With ongoing transfers to Turkey or from Turkey to UK, the fees add up quickly. I have income from Turkey and, conversely, I sometimes send money to Turkey.

The problem is that most banks’ fees and exchange rates add up to more than 5%. These are fees of € 50 for a transfer of € 1,000. The ratio is even worse for small international transfers.

The costs are even higher if you transfer euros directly to Turkey. In that case, the bank in Turkey is allowed to set the exchange rate and the fees. This causes the wrong amount to arrive, which is a problem for clearing bills.

Cheap solutions to transfer money to Turkey once or sporadically:

The quick answer to questions about sending money to Turkey is Wise.com (formerly Transferwise).

Up to € 5,000, a transfer with Wise.com is the easiest and fastest way to send money to Turkey.

Peter Thiel is behind Wise.com. He is the founder of PayPal and the first investor in Facebook.

Wise.com uses the real average market price as the exchange rate. This is the fairest rate with which two trading partners can exchange money. The fees are calculated based on the transfer value. That is why small international transfers in the three-digit range are also inexpensive with Wise.com.

For a one-time transfer to Turkey, Wise.com is definitely the best offer.

Current transfers with Wise.com cost less than € 10 based on € 1,000. You can see the exact conditions directly on the home page of Wise.com.

You can also create a free account, just like you would with a normal bank. Wise.com has a permanently free multi-currency account that allows you to obsolete more than 50 currencies. This includes an account in Turkish Lira.

How does Wise.com (formerly Transferwise) work

Wise.com is an intermediary between your bank and the recipient bank. The same conditions apply to all banks in France and Turkey.

Wise has an account in Euros and in Turkish Lira. There is money in both accounts.

You deposit euros into the Transferwise euro account.

Wise changes the money internally with the average market price as the exchange rate and pays out the money from the Turkish Lira account in Turkey. (Of course, you are the sender on the account statement of the recipient bank, including all payment details).

As a result, Wise never really changes money. Only the payment information is sent from UK to Turkey. This eliminates all the fees for international payment transactions.

This is how the big international banks do it. They just ask for their own exchange rate and outrageously high fees.

Example, you are transferring € 1,000 to Turkey with Wise:

Transfer fee: € 7.14 for normal transfers to € 10.61 for a fast transfer.

Wise calculates the average market price as an exchange rate – not a rate set individually by the bank.

You can check this directly on the Wise.com homepage. Some banks charge more than 2% of the transfer amount as a “manipulation fee” for changing euros into Turkish lira.

A condition for transfers to all banks in Turkey.

How to do a transfer

Register for free on the Wise homepage.

Enter the desired amount in the exchange rate calculator. You can see directly how many euros are necessary (or arrive) for the transfer to the Turkish Lira account.

Example: You want 4,000 Turkish Lira to arrive in Turkey. The ad tells you how many euros you have to transfer for it.

Follow the process.

Next, you enter the account to which you want to transfer your money in UK or Turkey (including payment information).

You can send the amount with a credit card or a normal transfer to the specified Euro or Turkish Lira account of Wise.

With that your part of the transfer is done.

On average, the money is in the other account within 24 hours.

A transaction of € 1,000 is currently possible with Wise from € 7.14. The first transfer is always free.

That’s all.

The transfer with an ordinary bank costs more than 50 €, because of the poor exchange rate and fees.

That’s a lot of money in the long run!

This  especially applies to emigrants in Turkey or companies with regular transfers.