Rocket Remit international money transfers in Australia. The fees, rates & how-tos

If you’re looking for a way to send money internationally from within Australia, you’ll no doubt have discovered that now there are a whole range of solutions available to you.

Instead, there are now several alternatives for sending funds to friends and family. Whether there’s a practical need for support or simply a desire to spoil a loved one, sending money overseas need not be complicated.

In this guide, we’ll take a look at one option offered by Rocket Remit, covering how they work, applicable fees, transfer timelines and more.

💰 Wise provides you the mid-market exchange rate and low transparent transfer fees shown upfront.

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What is Rocket Remit in Australia?

Rocket Remit is advertised as a financial technology business that was founded in Australia in 2004 and is focused on the development and provision of mobile payment and billing services. ¹

While initially focused on the domestic market, they now are primarily focused on international mobile money transfers.

Australia-owned and operated, Rocket Remit is operated by mHITs Limited and is registered with the financial regulatory body AUSTRAC¹ and the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).²

This denotes them as an approved and safe provider for international money transfers in Australia.

How do Rocket Remit transfers work?

Unlike many international money transfer services, Rocket Remit does not require extensive bank account details to make a transaction.

After signing up and loading your Rocket Remit account, you can then use either their online dashboard or mobile app to send money to a mobile wallet connected to a mobile number in over 50 approved countries.³

All you need is the receiver's mobile number, their first and last name and address. Using these details and an SMS confirmation code, funds loaded to your Rocket Remit account can then be paid into the receiver's mobile wallet.³

Rocket Remit international money transfer fees.

As with almost all international money transfer providers, Rocket Remit charges a fee for using their services.

Below is an outline of the costs associated with using Rocket Remit compared to Wise as an alternative for context.

Fees (in AUD)	Rocket Remit⁴	Wise
International transfer fee	AUD$0 to AUD$5 depending on the currency and receiving country For example, for AUD$500 to MXN, the fee levied is AUD$5.	From 0.43% of the sent amount, fee varies by currency. With Wise, AUD$500 to MXN the transfer fee is AUD$0.69.
Currency Conversion fee	No currency conversion fee listed. However, a fee in the form of a variable margin is applied to the exchange rate as per the below example.	Variable fee of 0.43% of transaction amount depending on currency. Using the example of AUD$500 to MXN, this equates to AUD$2.93 based on a variable rate of 0.59% for AUD to MXN transfers
Reversal request	AUD$25 admin charge even if the reversal is unsuccessful	N/A all Wise transfers completed by Wise are final.
Account loading	AUD$0 charged by Rocket Remit. NB: Payments made to a Rocket Remit account using a credit card may attract a cash advance fee or interest charges depending on your bank.	AUD$0 to transfer AUD into an AUD currency account. 2% of the amount transferred may apply when topping up e-wallets or external accounts which may be convertible to cash such as cryptocurrencies. Does not apply to all currencies or top-ups.
Account withdrawals to alternate account	AUD$50 admin charge per withdrawal	FREE when transferring an AUD balance to an AUD account.

As seen on 08 March 2024

Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information.

Rocket Remit international money transfers exchange rate

In addition to any fees charged, it is important to factor in the exchange rate used by your chosen international transfer provider.

Often, a margin is charged on top of this exchange rate, acting as an additional fee.

While Rocket Remit does not currently publish its exchange rate on its website, using the below example, we can work out whether a margin is applied.

Example: sending AUD$500 to a friend in Mexico.

Provider	Transfer amount	Exchange rate	Recipient receives
Rocket Remit⁵	AUD$500	AUD$1 = MXN$10.953	MXN$5,476.26
Wise ⁸	AUD$500	AUD$1 = MXN$11.182	MXN$5550.52

As seen on 08 March 2024

Compared against Wise, who uses the mid-market exchange rate with zero markup, we can see that Rocket Remit is adding a margin to this rate as an added fee for the transfer.

While not an uncommon practice, this can see you losing quite a bit more of your funds in fees than expected.

In this case, it means a difference of MXN$74.26 which is equivalent to around AUD$6 based on the mid-market rate today. Making Rocket Remits fees closer to AUD$11, rather than the AUD$5 advertised for the transfer.

Rocket Remit supported currencies

Currently from Australia, you can use Rocket Remit to send money to mobile wallets in the following countries¹:

• Bangladesh
• Benin
• Botswana
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cambodia
• Cameroon
• Chad
• China
• Congo B
• Congo DRC
• Cook Islands
• El Salvador
• Ethiopia
• Fiji
• Ghana
• Guatemala
• Guinea
• Guinea Bissau
• Haiti
• India
• Indonesia
• Ivory Coast
• Kenya
• Liberia
• Madagascar
• Malawi
• Mali
• Mexico
• Mongolia
• Morocco
• Mozambique
• Nepal
• Nicaragua
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Pakistan
• Philippines
• Papua New Guinea
• Rwanda
• Samoa
• Senegal
• Sierra Leone
• South Sudan
• Sri Lanka
• Tanzania
• The Congo
• Togo
• Tonga
• Uganda
• Vanuatu
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe

How to send money internationally with Rocket Remit

Sending money with Rocket Remit is straightforward and is advertised as being able to be completed within a matter of minutes.⁶

Step 1. Sign up

To begin, create your Rocket Remit account via their website. Please be advised you may need to provide some form of identification to complete this step. You will also need a valid Australian mobile number.

Step 2. Load Your Account

Using a debit or credit card or bank transfer, deposit the funds for transfer into your Rocket Remit account.

Step 3. Send

Using Rocket Remit’s app or website, initiate a transfer and fill in the necessary details of the receiver, which we’ll touch on below.

Once you submit the payment, you will receive a one-time SMS confirmation code. Reply with this code to authorise the transaction.³

You’ll then receive an SMS receipt containing the transaction reference number.

What details are needed to send money with Rocket Remit?

While Rocket Remit advertises as only needing the mobile number of the receiver to send money overseas, a closer look at their website indicates a few additional details are required. ³

These being:

• Their mobile number
• First and last name
• Address

Transfer limits with Rocket Remit

Rocket Remit does implement limits on how much money you can send to overseas recipients.

Rocket Remit advises that the minimum transfer amount permitted is AUD$25 and a maximum daily transaction limit of AUD$2000. Maximum monthly limits also apply.⁷

However, these limits can vary depending on the country you are sending funds to and based on the mobile money operator receiving them.

Due to the many variations in limits based on the above, they do not advise individual country limits online.

Instead, they request that you contact them for further information regarding these as needed.

As an aside, there is also a limit on how much money you can keep in your Rocket Remit account at any one time. Your account balance must not exceed AUD$1000 at any time and may be suspended if this occurs.⁷

Rocket Remit money transfer payment methods — In and Out

Rocket Remit accepts debit and credit cards as well as bank transfers as a means of loading your transfer account.⁶

All funds sent have to be received by a digital wallet linked to the receiver's mobile number. Should the receiver wish to withdraw funds from this digital wallet, they will need to refer to their provider's terms and conditions.⁷

This also applies to any funds received by you in Australia via Rocket Remit from overseas.

Note: The receiver is not required to be signed up with Rocket Remit to receive the funds, they simply must have an approved digital wallet linked to the phone number being used.³

Pros and cons of sending money with Rocket Remit

Rocket Remit may not be well suited to everyone, it is important to weigh up whether it is the right option for you before using this service.

Pros

• Allows quick and easy transfer of funds to a variety of countries
• Offers transfers to many developing or high-risk countries that other providers may not cater to due to money-laundering concerns
• Relatively inexpensive when compared to international bank transfers

Cons

• Does not offer transfers to as many countries as other providers
• Can only send funds to participating digital wallet partners, not to bank accounts
• Margin added to exchange rates, increasing the cost of transfers
• Help desk support is limited to AEST business hours

How long does an international money transfer with Rocket Remit take?

Once authorised, funds sent to the recipient should be received almost immediately.⁷

On occasion, small delays may occur due to challenges with local mobile phone networks.

Should the receiver not be sent the confirmation SMS within 30 minutes of authorisation, Rocket Remit requests that you contact their help desk for assistance.

Contacting Rocket Remit In Australia

Should you experience difficulties using Rocket Remit or simply wish to speak with an authorised representative, you can contact them via:

• 1300 696 448 during Australian East-Coast business hours.

Alternately, they also offer a live chat service via their website or the option to email, however, these are also only monitored during business hours.

Transfer money the Wise way

Sending money with Wise is safe and easy. You can send money to over 160 countries, at the mid-market rate and with low fees shown upfront.

With the Wise Account, you can get your own local AUD account details (with other popular currency account details too). This makes it easy to be sent money from home, or convert and send your money back home as well.

You can also order your own Wise debit card to be linked to your account, so that you can spend your hard earned cash anywhere Visa is accepted.

Join over 16 million customers currently using Wise. It’ll only take a few minutes to register and see what’s inside.

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Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information.

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Sources:

1. Rocket Remit – About
2. Rocket Remit – ASIC
3. Rocket Remit – How It Works
4. Rocket Remit – Fees FAQS
5. Rocket Remit – Exchange Rate
6. Rocket Remit – How To Send Money
7. Rocket Remit – Transfer Limits & Timelines
8. Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

Sources checked on: 08 March 2024