# Transferring money UK to Spanish bank



## Janeym8 (Mar 8, 2013)

I have read how its cheaper to use a service for this but have just been to my TSB branch in UK(formerly Lloyds TSB) where they told me briefly there were no charges transferring money from TSB to Sabadell
Can anyone confirm this
I know they took over the Lloyds International where you got free money transfers and i was previously told in my branch by same person(the manager) there was a charge for money transfers so I'm assuming,if what i was told today is correct,it is fairly new


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## Sandraw719 (Jul 19, 2013)

Janeym8 said:


> I have read how its cheaper to use a service for this but have just been to my TSB branch in UK(formerly Lloyds TSB) where they told me briefly there were no charges transferring money from TSB to Sabadell
> Can anyone confirm this
> I know they took over the Lloyds International where you got free money transfers and i was previously told in my branch by same person(the manager) there was a charge for money transfers so I'm assuming,if what i was told today is correct,it is fairly new


We use Lloyds Bank international to transfer money to Sabadell and it is free!

But my husband had to phone them every time and cannot do online.


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

Check further, true in many cases no obvious charges until you ask for the exchange rate, then no doubt you will find that it is far less than the current rate of exchange. With a currency dealer I get a far better rate of exchange an no commission.


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

Hi

I used to transfer through Halifax but it then became Lloyds TSB. DON´T do it - the exchange rate is appalling - when I could get around 1-20, the rate I got was below 1-13€! 

I now use Smart Currency Exchange but most currency brokers are around the same rate 

Davexf


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## Janeym8 (Mar 8, 2013)

Thanks for the replies
To be honest i didnt think about the exchange rate so think i will be using a broker
Are they easy to use,can you do it online and transfer large amounts all in one go?


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

Janeym8 said:


> Thanks for the replies
> To be honest i didnt think about the exchange rate so think i will be using a broker
> Are they easy to use,can you do it online and transfer large amounts all in one go?



Yes easy to use once you have set up the bank details, all on line, the larger the amount the cheaper it is. However my U.K. bank restrict me to a 6000 transfer daily. I also use Smart Currency in London.


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## Janeym8 (Mar 8, 2013)

Hepa said:


> Yes easy to use once you have set up the bank details, all on line, the larger the amount the cheaper it is. However my U.K. bank restrict me to a 6000 transfer daily. I also use Smart Currency in London.


How safe is using a broker as when ive searched online they all say there is no cover for you if anything goes wrong


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## brocher (Mar 21, 2011)

Last time I tried to transfer money from the TSB they wanted to charge me £30, and it doesn't look like that has changed- TSB - Other services charges.

I think TSB charge is horrendous, especially when I wanted to use it to transfer £10 within yet he UK!

I walked up the street and did transfers via RBS. It was free within UK and about £10 abroad, exchange rate wasn't bad, and saved time and energy doing a double transfer from bank to money service to Spanish bank. It also saved me putting additional bank details online, which I prefer to avoid whenever possible.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Janeym8 said:


> How safe is using a broker as when ive searched online they all say there is no cover for you if anything goes wrong


It's true, there is a risk that if the currency brokerage goes bust, you may lose your money. For that reason, I said in another thread recently that if I were transferring a large sum (to buy a house, for example) I would do it in a series of smaller sums to minimise the risk. 

If you deposit your funds with the currency brokerage and transfer them to your Spanish account the same day, the risk diminishes further as they don't have your money in their account for more than a couple of hours!

I've used two different currency brokers over the last 2 years and haven't had any problems. I think the high street banks' exchange rates and fees are terrible value for money and I think they use the "your money is safe with us" argument as an excuse to rip people off, frankly. If everyone stopped using them they might be forced to offer better deals.

Btw, I now use Currency Fair. Very easy to set up the account, all done online. Standard transfers cost €3 no matter how much you transfer, the money has always been received in my Spanish account the next day (even the same day sometimes if the transfer is made early in the morning). I normally transfer around £1,000 and if the exchange rate was £1/€1.2250 I would get at least €1.22 from CF, sometimes a little bit more.


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## mlka (Sep 5, 2009)

anyone know any if you can setup a standing order transfer with one of the online outfits?


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

mlka said:


> anyone know any if you can setup a standing order transfer with one of the online outfits?


One can with Smart Currency Exchange.


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

Janeym8 said:


> How safe is using a broker as when ive searched online they all say there is no cover for you if anything goes wrong


So far nothing has gone wrong, I have been using the same company for years.


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## zx10r-Al (Apr 8, 2013)

The people behind Skype and PayPal have recently setup https://transferwise.com/, which offers a much better rate and lower fee than anyone else I have heard of.


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

zx10r-Al said:


> The people behind Skype and PayPal have recently setup https://transferwise.com/, which offers a much better rate and lower fee than anyone else I have heard of.


Hola

I just clicked on "Transfer to Spain" and it quoted £50 costs !!! It may well work out at a better rate than banks, but would like to hear from anyone using it on real costs 

https://transferwise.com/transfer-money-to-spain 

Davexf


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## zx10r-Al (Apr 8, 2013)

But you still end up with more Euros for your Pound. The difference in moving £50,000 is an extra €2000+ after all fees have been deducted.


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

Lolito's reply no: 29
http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...g-spain/425826-money-transfer-fees-duh-3.html
£29,85 to transfer 6k & a rate of 1,2254€


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## Relyat (Sep 29, 2013)

I used CurrencyFair for the first time this week and am happy with their service.

Transferred £3000 to them at 17.30 on Wednesday. They confirmed receipt at 12.45 Thursday and I immediately requested a quick trade to Euros and transfer to my Spanish Bank. The rate was 1.2185 and cost 3 Euros for the transfer. They quoted 1 - 2 working days to effect the transfer but it was in my other account by 10.45 today (Friday).


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## zippy-watkins (Mar 10, 2014)

I think you get so caught up in trying to find the cheapest way to transfer money that you forget about the actual exchange rate!

We recently transferred 3k euros and it cost next to nothing via our high street bank, but the exchange rate was really poor. 

Now looking at the most economical way of transferring the rest!


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## Relyat (Sep 29, 2013)

zippy-watkins said:


> I think you get so caught up in trying to find the cheapest way to transfer money that you forget about the actual exchange rate!
> 
> We recently transferred 3k euros and it cost next to nothing via our high street bank, but the exchange rate was really poor.
> 
> Now looking at the most economical way of transferring the rest!


That's what I found, the quoted cost of the transfer attracted me and also meant that I didn't have to take any risk involving a third party (naturally cautious/sceptical). When I looked at the rate they quoted though it seemed to be taking the proverbial ! So, bit the bullet and tried it and it worked - happy Relyat.


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## zippy-watkins (Mar 10, 2014)

Relyat said:


> That's what I found, the quoted cost of the transfer attracted me and also meant that I didn't have to take any risk involving a third party (naturally cautious/sceptical). When I looked at the rate they quoted though it seemed to be taking the proverbial ! So, bit the bullet and tried it and it worked - happy Relyat.


I've just spoken with one of the companies which have been recommended, and was put through to the trading floor :doh:. Had a long conversation with a broker about it and will give them another call when we've got some dates to go.

Have also set up a text alert so I can be astute and keep an eye on the euro now!! eace::lalala:


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## Retired plod (Nov 30, 2013)

Hi Janet, we use hifix, but there are other companies out there when you google. Easy to set up and easy to use. The more money you transfer the better the rate.


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## mlka (Sep 5, 2009)

Transferwise is a fantastic service.


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## Aron (Apr 30, 2013)

Retired plod said:


> Hi Janet, we use hifix, but there are other companies out there when you google. Easy to set up and easy to use. The more money you transfer the better the rate.


My pensions are transferred directly into my Spanish bank account,I get the rate you see in the FT, no charges and the amount you transfer is irrelevant to what rate you get.


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