As Diwali is upon us again it is hard not to think of friends and family back at home in India. Many expats in New Zealand will be considering transferring funds home during the festivities. Transferring money from New Zealand to India can be a time consuming (not to mention expensive) process. You need to carefully look at all of your options, whether they be online, in person or via a wire transfer.

The main problem with using a transfer service at your bank is that the amount of time it takes for the funds to arrive in India is unpredictable at best, and they can also be very expensive. Bank transfers can cost up to $25 at each end for even a small amount of cash and, in some cases, taking 10 or more days before the funds arrive safely in the hands of your family members in India.

One of the best choices to get money back to your family is to use an online transfer service. This can speed your transfers up significantly, while cutting out many of the unnecessary costs and fees attached to bank transfers. OrbitRemit is completely transparent with our exchange rates, which means that you know you are going to spend less of your money on hidden fees and charges and more will get where it is needed.

The other serious consideration about any transfer service is how the funds will be received. Is your family member going to have to trudge through the traffic to get to an outlet where they can collect their funds, or will the service you use deposit it directly into their bank account? Obviously direct bank deposits are a huge convenience advantage.

When it comes to online services there are very few options that enable you to get funds directly into an Indian bank account – our service is one of the only ones that will not only do that, but will have it available to the recipient within one business day of receiving your funds. It’s your money after all – in the digital age, there’s no excuse for a bank or transfer company to be holding onto it for a week or more.

Another thing many people consider is the use of purely online payment services, some of which even come with a debit card which can be used in India. The problem with these services again boils down to time and cost. If you are using a service that doesn’t have a debit card then it can take another 5-10 days for the money to be deposited into your family member’s bank account after they withdraw it. Even if you are using a debit card based service, the person receiving the money can look forward to substantial fees when it comes time to make a withdrawal at their end.
OrbitRemit offers one of the only services that can have your funds in an Indian bank account quickly, cheaply and conveniently. Take a look at our handy calculators on this site to know exactly where you stand and if you have not transacted with us before, you can send your first transfer for free.