How to transfer money to Nigeria
Sending money to Nigeria these days should be fast, safe and inexpensive. Here are a few helpful tips for how to transfer money to Nigeria and make sending Naira to your friends and family safer, quicker and cheaper.
How to send money to Nigeria from the UK
If you send money to Nigeria from the UK you are one of many people who do so regularly. Last year more money was transferred to Nigeria from the UK than to any other country. Whereas once upon a time, Nigeria money transfers required waiting in line, left a hole in your pocket and often took several days for the money to arrive, these days money transfer apps have made Pounds to Naira transfers faster, cheaper, safer and more convenient with more and more people opting to send money via their mobile phone.
Oya is the UK’s first money transfer service designed exclusively for people who send money to Nigeria founded with a vision of making sending money to Nigeria faster, fairer and safer 24/7 to any Nigerian bank using a simple mobile app. Oya was developed in partnership with Wema Bank, our Nigerian partner, under a licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
How long do money transfers to Nigeria take?
With the Oya App, money transfers to Nigeria take less than 15 minutes, with your money usually delivered in under one minute to any bank in Nigeria and in your recipient’s account a few minutes later depending on your recipient’s bank.
Sending money to Nigeria using a UK bank, by comparison, can take up to five business days, is less transparent and much more expensive.
How much does it cost to send money to Nigeria?
At Oya we really care about being transparent about how much we charge our customers. That’s why we don’t add any hidden fees to our Pounds to Naira exchange rate and we also offer our customers a clear, fixed transfer fee of £1.99 irrespective of how much or how often they transfer.
Our rate regularly beats the likes of Western Union, Money Gram and other major providers. Don’t just take our word for it, see how our rates compare to other major providers here.
What’s more, the first two transfers with Oya are 100% fee-free.
How to pay for money transfers to Nigeria
We know how important it is for our customers to make fast money transfers to Nigeria. With Oya you can pay your money transfers to Nigeria using a debit card in your name. This way we can ensure that your transfer is processed right away and your money is delivered to your recipient faster, as we don’t need to wait for your money to arrive as would be the case if you paid using a bank transfer.
Oya instantly verifies that your debit card holds the sufficient funds and your transfer is processed right away. Oya keeps you updated on the status of your transfer every step of the way on the app and by email so that you know exactly where your money is and when the transfer is complete.
Oya’s top tips for sending money to Nigeria
We’ve put together a list of tips and suggestions to help make your money transfer to Nigeria from the UK smoother and faster.
Singing up for Oya
Signing up for Oya usually takes less than 5 minutes using the Oya app. We will ask you for some personal details such as your full name, date of birth and residential address in order to set up your account. You can check the whole application process in our video here >>
So that we can process your application right away and avoid any details with setting up your Oya account, please double check that the information you provide is correct. When providing your name, please don’t use any nicknames, as this may delay your application.
Setting up a new recipient
You can start using the Oya app to send money to Nigeria as soon as your application is successfully completed. The first thing you’ll need to do is to set up a recipient for the transfer.
You will be asked to provide some details about your recipient so make sure that you have these to hand including their first and last name, the name of their bank in Nigeria and 10-digit account number. So that there are no issues with your transfer later on, Oya will verify your recipients details and notify you if these don’t appear to be correct.
Have proof of ID on hand
As Oya is a regulated financial institution, we are required by law to ask for proof of identity under certain circumstances. Once you start using the Oya service we may ask you to verify your identity in order to help us keep your money safe. We take two simple steps using the Oya app to protect you against financial crime and ensure that it is really you who is making the transfers. This should only take a minute or two and you will only need to do this once. Here is what you will need:
- Your UK Passport, Full Driving Licence or Resident’s Permit to hand
- To take a selfie using your phone
So that your Proof of Identity document isn’t rejected, leading to delays with your transfer, please ensure that all of the details are clearly visible and the picture is not blurry, the picture is not in black and white, the document has not expired and that the information on your document matches the details on your Oya account.
Rest assured, we always take the upmost care to ensure that all your personal information is always kept safe and secure.
Transfer money to Nigeria now with Oya’s market-leading rates and low, transparent fee. Download the Oya app on iOS or Android and make a difference to someone back home today.