We give you an estimated delivery time when you set up your transfer. While most transfers arrive on time, delays can sometimes happen at any of the transfer stages:
Your money is on its way to Wise: We’re waiting for your money to arrive. This depends on how fast your bank sends the money to us.
We're processing your transfer: We have your money and are converting it. This is usually where security checks happen.
Your money is on its way to the recipient: Now it’s up to the recipient’s bank to process it. If your transfer is taking longer than expected, your recipient can ask their bank to check on the payment. Share a transfer confirmation to help them.
Here are the most common reasons for delays and what you can do.
Security checks
We sometimes run extra checks to keep your money safe. This is a standard procedure for regulated financial institutions.
If we need more information from you (like ID or proof of where the money came from), we’ll send you an email. We can't speed up these checks, but we work as fast as we can.
Learn more about security checks
The payment method used
Some payment methods are slower than others.
| Payment method | Speed to reach us |
|---|---|
| Card payments | Usually instant |
| Bank transfers | 1-4 working days |
| Swift transfers | 1-6 working days |
We always show you an estimate for each payment method when you set up your transfer.
Weekends and public holidays
Banks don't process transfers on weekends or public holidays. Our estimates only count working days (Monday to Friday).
If you send money on a Friday or before a holiday, it might not move until the next working day. This applies to banks in both the country you're sending from and the one you're sending to.
Mistakes in the recipient's details
If there’s a typo in the recipient's name or account number, their bank might reject the payment and send it back to us.
We suggest you check your activity list. If the transfer status says the money is coming back to us, you can either fix the details or cancel the transfer.
Good to know: Refunds can take a few days to process depending on the currency and payment method.