Remit to India

Current offers on Remittance to India

• This Raksha Bandhan - Do not just send money, Send a Gift along : A new registration & a transfer of USD 250 or more (equivalent in other currencies) within 15 days of registration will get you a free gift of your choice for you or your loved ones in India....from ICICI Bank Money2India
• Citi Online Remit - offer of the month : Register and Remit USD 500 and get a complimentary India calling card worth 450 minutes...from Citibank Online Remit
• The hunt of Gadget Geeks - Send money to India and get into a chance of winning a gadget. : Just send money like you always do and you automatically participate in the Go Gadget Offer.
  For every US $500 you send you get 1 Go Gadget ...from Timesofmoney Remit2India Services

What should you look while remitting money to India

Some of the factors to consider before remitting to India -

• Current USD/INR conversion rate: Due to the current economic uncertainty, the USD-INR conversion rates have been fluctuating a lot. In the last one year (July 2009 – July 2010), USD/INR rate has seen a low of 44.15 and a high of 49.51, a difference of 12.14%. A $10K remittance at the right time would have fetched INR 53,600 more. Currency rates depend on a lot of macroeconomic factors and predicting the precise conversion rates for a future date is difficult. However, applying prudent judgment and keeping a close eye on currency futures can lead to more Indian rupees for the same amount of hard earned US dollar.
• Choice of remit to India provider: Globally, India is the leading recipient of remittance money.. Most of the major India banks and financial institutions provide NRIs with good facility to remit money to India. However these banks and financial institutions differ in many respects:
  
  
    The rates at which these banks/ institutions remit: Each bank or financial institution determines its own rate at which it remits money to India. The rate being offered by the banks would also differ based on the amount of money being remitted by you.
  
  
    Remittance fees: Banks charge certain fees to remit money to India. These fees vary depending on the amount of US dollars being remitted to India and can be as high as USD 70 in the case of remittance through a credit card.
  
  
    The time taken by banks to remit – Remittance transactions to India involves currency changing hands between multiple institutions. Some institutions promise to remit money in few days and some take more than a week. The final rate at which the amount gets remitted depends on the prevailing rate on the day when the financial institution in USA transfers money through RBI to an Indian institution (and not necessarily the day when one initiates the remittance).
  
  
    Convenience of receiving money in India – Remittances are generally done with specific purpose like deposit in parent’s bank account, paying for home loan, purchase of some property and it is very important that one should find it convenient to receive and channel the money for the right purpose.

Major banks and money transfer institutions

• Citibank: Sending money to India from your NRI earnings can be done with the following facilities that Citibank provides: Checks, Wire Transfers/Telegraphic Transfers, ACH Transfers, Citibank Global Transfers, National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) / RTGS - Rupees from your local bank in India to your Citibank Rupee Checking Account, Dial-to-Transfer.
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• State Bank of India: SBI offers SBI Express Remit - US (Direct debit through ACH) and SBI Rapid Remittance (Wire Transfer) for remittances from Overseas to India by Non Resident Indians and others. Money transfers are facilitated through a safe and secure channel and can be tracked through every stage of the transaction. One can transfer money through Wire transfer, Direct debit and SBI instant through foreign offices.
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• ICICI Bank: ICICI Bank offers the facility to transfer money to India through its e-Transfer (Direct Debit - ACH based), Cheque Lock Box (Web Based Cheque Transfer), Power Transfer ( Web Based Wire Transfer) facilities. It also has a partnership with Wells fargo where you just need to enroll in the Wells Fargo Express SendSM Global Remittance Service to India to be able to transfer money from your eligible Wells Fargo checking or savings account to your beneficiary's ICICI bank account
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• HDFC Bank: Quickremit is the online money transfer service from HDFC Bank. Other modes of remittance to India through HDFC are ChequeLockBox, Telegraphic - Wire Transfer, cheques, demand drafts.
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• Xoom: Xoom.com offers bank deposits within 24 Hours to most bank accounts in India. Services are available to our partner Punjab National Bank and to most banks including Andhra Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of Baroda, Citibank, HDFC Bank, HSBC, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India.
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• Remit2India: personalized Remittance service from TimesofMoney. Remit2India facilitates money transfers to India for Non-Resident Indians from around the world. One can use Remit2India to send money through ACH Transfer, Guaranteed rate transfer, check transfer, credit card and wire transfer.
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• WeternUnion: Western Union offers one of the easiest ways for families and friends to send money and stay connected almost anywhere in the world. One can transfer money in minutes to any of the participating agent location across the globe. You can also pay with credit card, send money online, in person or by phone.
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