Nov 25, 2015 03:08:32 AM Edited Nov 25, 2015 03:37:28 AM by Vladimir G
Hello,
I was wondering if anyone would like to have TransferWise** as a payment method option in Upwork?
Last week alone I lost $54 because of the transfer to my bank and the exchange rates they use, and I'm sure I'm not alone. So, in essense, every month I lose over $200 from my hard earned money on Upwork, just because the bank handles the currency exchange from USD to RON (I'm based in Romania), even though the banks boast in 0% charges per transfers.
Even if I set up a USD payment method in Upwork and create a USD account with my bank to receive USD in my bank account, I still have to exchange the money in my currency in order to use them. Not to mention that it makes my accounting more difficult.
I contrast, I went to TransferWise** and inserted the same amount of money I transferred last week and based on their reported exchange rate, I would save up to $49.23 for a transfer of $1500, their fee being only $14.85, which is a HUGE improvement. $200/month lost from using the bank, compare that with $60/month (estimated) the TransferWise** fee. Can you sense how angry I am?
I was able to actually test their system with a client from Holland (unrelated to Upwork, they found me through LinkedIn) and they would pay my invoice through TransferWise** monthly and the amounts that would enter in my bank account were close to the amount of dollars I had calculated beforehand. So, it wasn't lacking something like $200 from the amount, only a small percentage fee (0.5% - 1%).
So, it would really be beneficial for us, freelancers at least, to use the TransferWise payment system! Is there anyway that the TransferWise** payment method can be implemented at least at the start of 2016?
Has anyone else been experiencing this?
Andrei
**Edited for Community Guidelines**
Nov 25, 2015 03:41:07 AM Edited Nov 25, 2015 03:41:25 AM by Vladimir G
Hi Andrei,
Thanks for the suggestion and feedback, I will share it with the team.
Jan 18, 2016 06:19:13 AM by Francesco C
Bumping this just to know if we should expect TransferWise to be added at some point in 2016, or if it's better to forget it and stick to the currently available payout methods.
Jan 6, 2019 12:45:51 PM by Avery O
Hi James,
If this becomes available as a payment method, we'll make sure to announce it here in the Community.
Jan 10, 2019 06:36:54 AM by Andrei C
Jan 19, 2016 03:03:42 AM by Iftikhar I
It really make sense!Upwork must try it for the sake of freelancers.
Jan 19, 2016 05:57:52 AM by Claudia S
Have you tried Paypal? I think is the best option for RO now. The currency exchange is advantageous - much more than the bank one.
Jan 19, 2016 06:09:43 AM by Andrei C
Yep, I tried PayPal. In fact, I use only PayPal. The process is like this: Upwork -> PayPal -> Bank, which in turn transforms USD into EUR which then transforms EUR into RON. In this transformation process I lose over $200 per month. Unfortunately, PayPal doesn't offer me currency exchange from USD to RON when I use the Withdraw functionality. PayPal simply transfers the money with no exchange involved.
Jan 19, 2016 06:16:39 AM by Andrei C
From PayPal website:
"PayPal will always provide information on transactions that include a currency conversion. The currency conversion rate will be displayed each time you:
"There is no currency conversion for transactions where you:
Jan 19, 2016 07:21:54 AM by Petra R
Do you have your main currency on PayPal set to US §?
That way you only lose on one currency exchange between PayPal and your bank
Jan 19, 2016 07:29:18 AM by Andrei C
Yes, USD in my main currency. Unfortunately, USD is always first converted to EUR before it gets converted to RON. Probably since I'm in the European Union.
Jan 24, 2016 08:52:09 AM by Mihai O
Would love to have TransferWise as a payment method. Hope Upwork will find a way.
Kind regards,
M.
Jan 24, 2016 09:51:41 AM by Claudia S
Feb 5, 2016 06:07:30 AM Edited Feb 5, 2016 06:14:43 AM by Kieran C
You definitely are losing money. If you're using Paypal to convert ANYTHING, you're losing a fair bit.
Any update on this? Selfish bump.
Feb 5, 2016 01:27:14 PM by Kholleras I
What about using the Paypal debit card instead of transferring to a bank account? Is that feasible in Romania?
Feb 5, 2016 04:28:17 PM by Preston H
Been reading about TransferWise... It actually seems pretty great. I can see why some contractors are asking for it.
Feb 6, 2016 04:11:31 AM by Andrei C
@Heaven H
While my Paypal account does have the option of adding a bank account, it will only let me add a US bank account. So, I do use a debit card. When this transfer occurs, the bank converts USD to EUR and then to RON. In this conversion process, because the banks use their own exchange rate, I lose money. That's where TransferWise comes in.
Feb 6, 2016 02:38:24 AM by Michael D
I fully support this suggestion. Transferwise is the #1 international money transfer mechanism. It's foolproof, safe, and extremely efficient. Bank transfers are something of the past.
Mar 29, 2016 06:18:32 AM by Evelyn H
Upwork, any updates on whether or not this Transferwise payment method is going to be available anytime soon? Please make this a reality. Wire transfer fees are crazy, and bank's currency exchange rates are even worse 😞
Mar 29, 2016 07:08:22 AM by Vladimir G
Hi Evelyn,
We don't have an update at the moment but will share more information once we receive more details.
Apr 16, 2021 04:40:22 PM by Lino G
Hello
Besides WireTransfer, there are other similar services like XE.com. Has anyone used it ? I believe it is another option
Thanks
Jun 22, 2016 12:38:02 PM by Vadims K
TranswerWise will be a GREAT option and I beleive WE ALL need it!!!
UpWork - please make it available to us!!!
Jun 23, 2016 01:18:21 AM by Gabriel S
Yes we want transferwise please, because of your fees i already lost a lot,that i have to deal now with banks and exchange rates... thanks!
Jun 27, 2016 11:15:04 PM by Vibol T
Good idea, I also lost lots of money just to withdraw my payment.
Jul 11, 2016 05:58:43 PM by Thiago C
Upwork Engineers please, implement a way to use transferwise. It would be nice to have it here.
Aug 10, 2016 12:34:33 PM by Valeria K
Hi Francesco and Vadims,
We don't have any new information or timeline regarding TranswerWise being added as a payment option. We'll let the Community know if there are any updates.
Aug 10, 2016 11:41:23 AM by Vadims K
I would also be very interested to know what is the status of it. Thank you.
Sep 22, 2016 05:03:13 AM by Haroon D
I'd also like this added. It'll be the best thing to happen to Freelancers
Oct 4, 2016 06:47:57 PM by Isuru R
I'm also thinking having transferwise I'm loosing so much money during trasfer 😞 😞
Dec 16, 2016 11:30:04 PM by Valeria K
Hi Waqas,
Unfortunately, we don't have any new information yet.
Jan 26, 2017 01:26:23 PM Edited Jan 26, 2017 01:28:09 PM by Ahmad K
It would be great if they offer transferwise. Or anything that doesn't deduct so much fees from our hard earned money. Its frustrating how the conversion rates are applied and the fees are deducted in between.
Mar 19, 2017 10:09:59 PM by Eric R