Moving abroad, buying a home overseas or sending money to family? Changing a large sum through a high street bank can cost more than you expect. We work with a specialist currency exchange company that sends money abroad for people in the UK. Fill in the form on this page and they will call you with a rate.

What you get

  • No transfer fee from our partner. You agree a rate and that is what you pay them. Your own bank, or the bank receiving the money, may charge its own fee, so it is worth asking them.
  • A competitive rate, agreed before anything moves. You hear the rate and decide. If it does not suit you, you walk away and owe nothing.
  • A real person to talk to. Someone from our partner calls you, talks you through the rate and the timing, and answers your questions.
  • Regulated firms look after your money. Payments go through firms authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

How it works

  1. Fill in the form. Tell us the currencies, roughly how much and when you need it. It takes about a minute.
  2. Our partner calls you. They give you a rate and explain how the transfer works. Rates move during the day, so the rate is confirmed on the call.
  3. You decide. If you go ahead, you open an account with our partner. That includes the identity checks the law requires of every money transfer firm. You then send your money to them, and they send the currency to the account you name.

We pass your request on and then step aside. Your agreement, your money and any questions about the transfer are between you and our partner.

Where you can send money

Europe

Euros go to any of the 21 euro area countries, including Spain, France, Ireland, Portugal, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands. Bulgaria joined the euro on 1 January 2026, so you now need euros there, not leva. Our partner also deals in Swiss francs, Norwegian and Danish kroner, Swedish kronor, Polish zloty, Czech koruna, Hungarian forint, Romanian lei and Turkish lira.

For a payment to a European account you need the account holder's name, the IBAN and usually the bank's BIC, which is also called the SWIFT code.

The USA

US dollars go to any American bank account. American banks do not use IBANs. For a payment from the UK you need the account holder's name, the account number and the bank's SWIFT code. Many American banks also ask for their nine-digit ABA routing number, so get it from the person you are paying.

Canada

Canadian dollars go to any Canadian bank account. Canadian banks do not use IBANs either. As well as the account number and the bank's SWIFT code, you will often need the five-digit transit number and the three-digit institution number, which together identify the branch.

The Caribbean

Many Caribbean currencies are fixed to the US dollar, including the East Caribbean dollar, the Barbados dollar, the Bahamian dollar and the Cayman Islands dollar. Some islands use the US dollar itself, such as the British Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands. The French islands, such as Martinique and Guadeloupe, use the euro.

So the usual way to send money to the Caribbean is in US dollars, or in euros for the French islands. The bank receiving it either pays it into a US dollar account, if the person you are paying has one, or changes it into local currency at its own rate. If you need Jamaican dollars, Trinidad and Tobago dollars or another local currency, choose "Another currency" on the form and say which. Our partner will tell you what they can do.

Further afield

Our partner deals in more than 40 currencies, including Australian and New Zealand dollars, South African rand, UAE dirhams and Indian rupees. The full list is on the form.

How to compare exchange rates

When people talk about a good exchange rate, they mean one close to the mid-market rate. That is the rate halfway between the prices at which banks buy and sell a currency between themselves, and it is the one you see when you look up an exchange rate online. Nobody sells currency to the public at exactly that rate. The gap between the rate you are offered and the mid-market rate is the firm's margin, and on a large sum it usually costs more than any fee.

The fairest way to compare offers is to ask each one how much will actually arrive, after every fee, and compare those figures. For example, on £20,000, a rate of 1.15 euros to the pound gives €23,000. A rate of 1.13 gives €22,600. The €400 between them is the real difference between the two offers, even if neither charges a fee.

Before you ask for a rate

  • Have the receiving account details ready, or know who to ask: the account holder's name, the bank's name and SWIFT code, and the IBAN or local account number.
  • Know when the money has to arrive. If you are buying a property, check the completion date with your lawyer.
  • Expect to show ID and proof of address when you open an account. Every money transfer firm must check who its customers are. It is not a sign that anything is wrong.
  • Never pay new bank details sent by email without checking them first. If a lawyer, an agent or a seller emails you new bank details, ring them on a number you already have and check before you pay.

Questions people ask

Do you charge for this?

No. We do not charge you anything. If you go ahead with a transfer, our partner pays us a commission based on the amount you exchange. We tell you this so you know how we are paid.

Who is your partner?

A UK currency exchange company that specialises in international money transfers. Its payments are handled by firms authorised by the FCA. They introduce themselves when they call, and you can look up any firm on the FCA register before you send money.

Is my money protected?

Money held by a payment firm is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) in the way a bank account is. Instead, regulated payment firms must keep their customers' money separate from their own, so that it can be returned to customers if the firm fails. Our partner can explain how this works for your transfer.

Is this for holiday money?

No. This is for money sent from one bank account to another, usually larger sums. For a few hundred pounds of spending money, a travel money service or a card that does not charge for spending abroad is usually simpler.

How long does a transfer take?

Transfers in the main currencies, such as euros and US dollars, often arrive within one or two working days once our partner has your money. Some currencies and some banks take longer. Our partner will give you the timing for your transfer when they call.

Can I bring money back to the UK?

Yes. Choose the currency you have and Pound Sterling as the currency you want. People do this when they sell a property abroad or are paid a pension in another currency.

Moving abroad? Send your belongings too

Changing money is one part of a move. If you are sending suitcases or boxes ahead, you can get a price for your luggage in a minute. Our guides cover moving to Spain, France or Ireland, sending belongings to the USA and sending belongings to Canada.

Ask for your rate. It takes about a minute.