UAE businesses frequently send and receive international wire transfers for trade payments, salary remittances, and investment transfers. Here is a complete guide to how UAE wire transfers work and the costs involved.
UAE Domestic Wire Transfers (UAEFTS)
UAEFTS (UAE Funds Transfer System) is the UAE Central Bank’s real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system for UAE dirham (AED) transfers between UAE banks. Transfers between UAE banks via UAEFTS: near-instant (typically settled within 30 seconds to 2 minutes during banking hours), AED to AED only, and fee: AED 0–50 per transfer depending on the bank. Free between accounts in the same bank (e.g., ENBD to ENBD). Low fee (AED 10–50) for inter-bank AED transfers (e.g., DMCC company at WIO sending to supplier at ENBD).
International Wire Transfers (SWIFT)
International wire transfers from UAE go via SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication). The UAE dirham is not universally accepted in SWIFT transfers — for most international payments, UAE banks convert AED to the destination currency (USD, EUR, GBP, etc.) at the spot rate, then send via SWIFT. Typical costs for UAE outgoing international wire: bank transfer fee: AED 50–300 per transfer (varies by bank and destination), FX conversion margin: 0.5–3% spread above mid-market rate, and correspondent bank fee: USD 10–30 deducted by the recipient’s correspondent bank. Total cost for a USD 10,000 international transfer: AED 200–600 in fees + FX margin.
Cheapest UAE International Transfer Options
Wise Business: Mid-market rate + 0.5–1% transparent fee. Saves AED 100–500 vs. traditional banks on large transfers. Airwallex: Similar to Wise for business use. WIO Bank: Competitive international transfer rates among UAE banks. Al Ansari Exchange: UAE exchange houses (Al Ansari, Al Fardan, LuLu Exchange) offer competitive FX rates for UAE-to-India, UAE-to-Philippines, and UAE-to-Pakistan remittances specifically.