Complete Guide to Receiving International Remittances with Western Union in the Philippines

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Western Union¹ is a popular provider of international money transfers. In this guide, we'll talk you through the process of receiving money via Western Union in the Philippines, including the costs involved in the transfer process.

Requirements to send Western Union Transfers to Philippines

For this guide we’re looking at Western Union Philippines, and Western Union US, to give examples of the process and costs involved. If your sender is not in the US, they’ll need to check the terms, conditions and fees of their local Western Union service - but this guide should give a good outline to start with.

To get started - a few requirements to remember:

• The person sending you money must be registered with Western Union, and may need to submit documents to get verified.
• If you’re receiving a payment in cash you must have a valid government ID to collect your money
• You must be over 18 to send or receive a payment with Western Union

How to use Western Union to Send Money to the Philippines

If the person sending you money plans on using Western Union from abroad to send transfers to the Philippines, they’ll usually be able to send it online, in app, in person at an agent location, and in some cases by phone.

The most convenient options may be to send online or in the Western Union app - here’s how³:

1. Sign up or Log in to Western Union
2. Select Send Money and enter the Philippines as the payment destination
3. Enter the amount and select PHP as the currency
4. Select how the money should be received
5. Enter the recipient’s details, following the online prompts
6. Choose how to pay, review the transfer summary and submit

Western Union Transfer to the Philippines: How long does it take?

How long your money will take to arrive will depend to a large extent on the exact service the sender selects. As an example, in the US, Western Union customers can select from the following⁴:

• Money in Minutes service - cash pick up option, available almost instantly
• Next Day service - cash pick up option, available next day
• Direct to Bank - deposit can take up to 7 business days
• Mobile Money Transfer - payments to a mobile wallet, usually deposited almost instantly

Ways to Receive Western Union Transfers in Philippines

So - someone is sending you money. Let’s look at how you might be able to receive money through Western Union in the Philippines.

Cash Pickup of Western Union Transfer

If your money has been sent for cash pickup you’ll need to head out to an agent to get you cash. To find where you can claim a Western Union remittance, you can use the Western Union branch location tool to find an agent nearby. You’ll need to ask the sender to give you the MTCN – Money Transfer Control Number - that they received when they sent the payment. Then go to your nearest agent, with⁵:

• The full name of the sender
• The country the money was sent from
• The approximate amount you’re expecting.
• The MTCN tracking number
• Your ID documents

ID documents are government issued documents like a passport or driving license - if you don’t have these, there are many other documents which can be accepted - a full list of documents is available on the Western Union PH website.

Western Union Transfer to the Philippines Bank Account

You can receive money through Western Union to be deposited in your bank account if you bank with:

• BDO
• BPI
• Landbank

All you need to do is to give the sender your bank information, including the account number and your full name. The money will be deposited to your account without you needing to take any further action - this may take a week or so, though.

Looking for a faster transfer - or use a different bank? We’ll cover an alternative that might suit you - Wise - coming up in just a moment.

Western Union Transfer to Mobile Wallet

Western Union supports payment to the following mobile wallets:

• Coins.ph
• GCash
• PayMaya
• USSC
• PERA HUB

As long as you have a fully verified wallet with your preferred provider, all you’ll usually need to do is to give the person sending you money your phone number. The money will be deposited into your account automatically. Ask the sender to give you the MTCN number in case you need to claim or track the transfer.

Fees to Receive Money with Western Union in the Philippines

You will not pay a fee to Western Union when you receive money in the Philippines⁶. If you’re getting paid to a bank you’ll need to check if your own bank will deduct any fee for an incoming money transfer. Similarly if you are receiving money to a mobile money wallet - although with major wallets like GPay and Maya there are usually no fees to receive a remittance.

All that said, it’s not free to use Western Union. The person sending you money will have to pay fees - which can be quite steep. Let’s take a look.

Western Union Transfer Charges

Western Union uses variable transfer charges which depend on the country and currency the sender is sending from, the value of the payment, how you want to receive your money, and how the sender chooses to pay. Charges vary, and can be different online compared to an agent location for example.

The fees can depend a lot on where your sender is, but generally costs rise when there’s labor required - so if the sender arranges the payment in a Western Union location, or if you choose a cash collection. Transferring from one bank to another is often the cheapest option, while paying by credit card can mean very high fees indeed.

Your sender will be able to check and compare the costs of the payment easily either online or when they go to a Western Union location. Bear in mind that the transfer fee isn’t the only cost - currency conversion fees may also apply. More on that next.

Western Union Conversion Rate

When you arrange a payment with Western Union, the exchange rate used to convert the sender’s currency to PHP is very likely to be different from the mid-market exchange rate you usually see on Google. This markup can vary - including varying between sending online or in a store - and can be pretty tricky to spot.

Not all providers use exchange rate markups. Read on for an alternative which may have a more transparent approach to exchange rates, which could mean lower fees.

Meet Wise: Receive Remittances with low fees and the mid-market rate

With Wise, you'll get 8+ local account details including PHP, USD, GBP, AUD, and more. This way, you can receive money directly, in a cheap and convenient manner. All you need to get started is to sign up for a free account, and you'll be able to manage your money with just a few taps of your phone.

After getting your money, you can easily convert it to 40+ currencies, with low fees, and the mid-market rate - also known as the rate you see on Google. This includes exchanging to PHP with a one-time conversion fee from 0.57% that's shown upfront, and no markups or additional fees.

Receive, exchange, and move your funds to your local bank account in PHP in a cheap and convenient manner with Wise.

🚀 Get started with Wise