How to receive money overseas in Malaysia with Maybank

If you’re expecting to receive a remittance into your Maybank account in Malaysia, you’ll want to know how the process works and what fees there may be along the way. The good news is that it’s pretty easy to arrange to have a payment made to you - but there are some costs involved which you should know about.

Read on for our handy guide to receiving international payments into your Maybank account. We’ll cover all the details you’ll need to receive your payment and whether there are any fees involved. And how long it takes until you’ll get your money.

Plus, a quick look at an alternative that could save you money on receiving international payments compared to using your bank - the powerful Wise multi-currency account which provides you account details in 10 currencies.

But first, let’s get you set up to receive an international payment as a Maybank customer.

What details will I need to provide?

You’ll need to give the sender of the payment a number of important details to ensure that the money ends up in the right place. The exact details depend on the sending bank, but here’s what you’ll generally need to provide¹:

• Your full name
• Your account number and sort code
• The address of your bank branch (if required)
• The Maybank SWIFT code - this is MBBEMYKL²

A SWIFT code is an identifying number unique to a specific bank. International payments are usually sent via SWIFT, which is a global network of banks.

What are the fees for receiving money from overseas with Maybank?

Let’s take a look at how it may cost you with Maybank to receive money from overseas. Fees for receiving international payments are as follows:

However, this isn’t the only cost to consider. When payments are sent through the SWIFT network, it often involves a number of other banks along the way. These are known as correspondent banks, and they can each charge their own fees.

If you’re arranging an international payment you might find that you’re asked how you would like the costs of the transaction to be covered. Usually you’ll be given 3 options, which are often expressed as the codes OUR, SHA and BEN. ²

Here’s what they mean:

• OUR means that the sender pays all of the upfront costs of the international payment
• SHA is used when you want the charge to be split between the sender and the recipient
• BEN shows that the recipient - the beneficiary - must pay all of the bank charges associated with the transfer

In most cases your sender will decide how the costs of the international payment are covered. So if you’re going to be receiving money from someone based overseas, it could be essential to agree in advance who will pay the upfront charges, so there are no nasty surprises.

Exchange rate

Another thing to consider is the exchange rate. If the sender transfers money to your account in a different currency, banks tend to add a mark-up to the mid-market exchange rate, which makes the transfer more expensive. This could potentially affect how much you receive.

Check which exchange rate is being used for your remittance, and compare it with the mid-market exchange rate, which you’ll find with a simple search on Google, for example.

You can also use this tool to compare the rate you can get with a bank and the mid-market rate if, for example, you receive a payment from Singaporean dollars to Malaysian ringgit.

Using Maybank to receive money from overseas - how long does it take?

The time it takes to receive your payment from overseas all depends on where the money is coming from, and which bank is sending it.

It’s likely though that the transfer will be made via the SWIFT network. The average time for a SWIFT payment to arrive is 2-5 working days⁴, although of course it could potentially take longer than that.

Receive money locally for free in 10 currencies with the Wise account

If you’re expecting a payment from overseas, both you and the person sending you money could save a bundle with Wise.

Open a free Wise multi-currency account online and you can receive money for free in 10 major currencies, including MYR, SGD, USD, GBP and EUR. This is because you get local bank details when you join Wise, so that anyone sending you money can make the transfer like a domestic payment.

Once you’ve got your money, you can either hold or spend your balance in 50+ currencies, or convert it using the mid-market exchange rate.

And if they use Wise too, the sender will also save money thanks to low transfer fees and the mid-market rate - and no correspondent bank fees.

It could work out much cheaper and faster than using a bank, while being just as secure.

Sources checked on 22-07-2022.