There are plenty of ways to send money to Uganda from the UK, but it is worth taking into account the safest, cheapest and most efficient methods.
How To Send Money to Uganda from the UK
According to the 2011 UK Census, there were 59.227 Ugandan-born people living in England, alone. As such there is an unsurprisingly high demand for financial services to support transactions between the Uganda and the UK.
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Methods to Send Money to Uganda from the UK
Sending Money to Uganda via Online Money Transfer
There are many online services available for sending money to Uganda. These tend to offer the best exchange rates. Services such as TransferWise, for example, are widely recognised for low transfer fees and the best exchange rate between the British Pound and the Ugandan Shilling. In addition to TransferWise, Remitly and GlobalWebPay are also known for their high-speed, low-cost transactions.
Sending Money to Uganda via PayPal
Paypal is a preferred service for many in Uganda, supported by the company-owned service ‘Xoom’. It is a fast and secure way to send money and provides a lot of flexibility. You can send money to 58 cash pickup locations across Uganda. You can also make payments to mobile wallets and bank deposits. Payments are made through the PayPal account by debit or credit card or via the app. The other great thing about PayPal is the speed, offering transfers in minutes. However, this is not the best offer on the market when it comes to exchange rates. It is also subject to a transfer fee per transaction.
Sending Money to Uganda via Western Union
Western Union is one of the most trusted solutions to send money to Uganda from the UK. They are recognised for their flexible solutions offering you the chance to send money online, from a mobile app or in person. The recipient can, in turn, receive the money directly into their bank account or can collect the cash (more than 600 locations). However, you tend to pay more fees using Western Union than by going through an online money transfer service.
Sending Money to Uganda via Bank Transfer
Sending money to Uganda directly through a wire transfer from a UK bank account is not considered the best method. This is due to the poor exchange rate offered and the expensive transaction fees.
Can I Send Money to Uganda via Cryptocurrency?
Cyptocurrency is not legalised in Uganda and no form of cryptocurrency is recognised as legal tender. Subsequently, no cryptocurrency trade is facilitated nor regulated by the government.
Send money to Uganda in minutes with Western Union or Remitly
Can You Send Money to Uganda For Free?
Transferring funds is never totally free as it always involves some form of transaction fee or exchange rate. However, many of these are extremely low. Sending money via TransferWise is often recognised as one of the cheapest methods. Per transaction, there is a flat fee of 1.98 GBP + 1.64% of the amount that is converted. Thus, the more money sent, the higher the transfer fee. For a lower exchange rate, Nationwide and Barclays offer free transactions.
How Long Does It Take to Send Money to Uganda?
Depending on the service provider that you choose to transfer money to Uganda, funds can arrive into the specified account instantaneously. Online services such as TransferWise and GlobalWebPay typically transfer the funds within 1 day. Western Union promises transfers in a matter of minutes as does Remitly. Bank transfers typically take longer at around 1-3 business days.
What Do You Need to Send Money to Uganda?
Bank transfers offer require you to confirm basic identification details, usually involving a form of photo ID and a debit card. For any online payments, you will need all relevant login details and possibly a card reader. You will also require a BIC or Swift Code. This is a code beginning with a 4-digit bank code, a 2-digit country code, a 2-digit area code and a 3-digit branch code. Uganda uses Swift rather than IBAN.
Is it Safe to Send Money to Uganda from the UK?
When transferring funds, you should always be careful how you are sending them. Be sure to use a service with FCA approval as this means that the accounts are safeguarded. With any legitimate company, their FCA details should be readily available on their website. As with any transaction, it is advisable to be careful with any personal security and sharing any confidential information such as passwords. This is especially true for phone and email correspondence.
