If I want to use my bank or credit union to send money to someone in another country, do I have any federal protection?

Under federal law, if you are transferring more than $15.00 overseas and are using a remittance transfer provider, then you are entitled to certain protections. Any financial institution that provides remittance transfers for a consumer in the normal course of their business is considered a remittance transfer provider. This includes banks and credit unions, as well as non-bank money service businesses.

However, a bank or credit union is not a remittance transfer provider if it provided 500 or fewer remittance transfers in the prior calendar year and provides 500 or fewer transfers in the current calendar year. If you use a bank or credit union to send a money transfer, but the company doesn’t qualify as a remittance transfer provider, then the transfer is not a remittance transfer and federal law does not require them to provide you with the applicable federal law protections.

Tip

Other protections may be available to you, depending on how you send the money and the laws in your state. Contact your state attorney general or state financial regulator for more about your state’s laws.

You can still send money overseas if your financial institution doesn’t qualify as a remittance transfer provider, but you may not receive the same rights and protections, including:

• Up-front information about certain fees and taxes and the exchange rate.
• A receipt that shows how much was sent and when the money will be available.
• The ability to cancel your transfer at no charge within a certain period of time.
• The right to have errors investigated and fixed.

If you have a complaint about a money transfer you sent overseas and you’re not sure where to turn, submit a complaint to the CFPB. We’ll forward your complaint to the company and work to get a response from them. If we find that another government agency would be better able to assist, we will forward your complaint to them and let you know.

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