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The tiny island nation of Kiribati sits in the Central Pacific Ocean. Made up of 33 coral atolls, Kiribati is famous for its unspoiled beaches, offering a pristine travel destination not yet crowded with tourists.
If you need to send money from Australia to Kiribati, don’t simply settle for the first money transfer provider you come across. If you’re willing to take the time to shop around, you could find a much better deal. Whether you need to send money to Kiribati or anywhere else around the world, think twice before using your bank to handle the transaction.
Banks offer some of the worst exchange rates available on the market, although this doesn’t matter when sending funds to Kiribati because the Australian Dollar is accepted as legal tender there. But banks also charge high transfer fees, so you can find much cheaper transfers if you look elsewhere.
Recent years have seen the rapid growth of a new section of the banking and finance industry: online money transfer companies. They offer better exchange rates and lower fees than the banks, allowing you to enjoy big savings when you send money overseas.
Keith wants to send $1,000 to his daughter Leah, who is spending a month holidaying and volunteering in Kiribati. Leah has spent all her holiday budget just two weeks into her trip, so Keith promises to send her some cash as quickly as possible. In an effort to find the best possible deal, he compares the transfer fees and processing times of two specialist transfer companies.
As the table below shows, using the second company allows Keith to save $7 in transfer fees.
Money transfer company 1 | Money transfer company 2 | |
---|---|---|
Transfer fee | $10 | $3 |
Transfer method | Online bank account transfer | Online bank account transfer |
Processing time | 1-3 days | 1-3 days |
Amount received (in AUD) | $1,000 | $1,000 |
Difference | +$7 |
When you need to get money from Australia to Kiribati as quickly as possible, companies such as Western Union can offer cash transfers within minutes. However, you should be aware that urgent transfers tend to attract higher fees and sometimes lower exchange rates as well, so it’s important to check the full cost of your transfer before you hand over any money.
With hundreds of thousands of agent locations around the world, Western Union offers a huge range of transfer options. Some of the company’s popular cash pickup locations in Kiribati are detailed below. Make sure that you have photo ID and a transaction reference number with you when you go to collect any cash.
Picking up cash from a transfer provider can make you a target for thieves, so keep a few simple safety tips in mind when collecting funds:
You will generally need to do the following in order to send an international money transfer:
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