NAB International Transfers
If you’re already a NAB Bank customer, you might be wondering whether it’s a smart choice to use them for your international money transfers.
Navigating the world of overseas transfers can often feel unnecessarily complex, with many providers either burying important details in the fine print or not disclosing them at all.
This guide aims to simplify the process, providing clear answers to the most common questions.
We’ll cover NAB’s exchange rates and fees, transfer limits, and how long it typically takes to send money abroad with NAB.
By the end, you’ll have a thorough understanding of how NAB stacks up and whether they’re the right option for your international money transfers.
How much does NAB Bank charge for international transfers?
Regardless of whether you choose a bank or an alternative provider to send money overseas, there are two types of cost to watch out for:
- Transfer fees
- Exchange rate markup
Let’s break these costs down and see what NAB charges for each.
NAB transfer fees
In response to the growing popularity of alternative money transfer providers, most major Aussie banks have reduced their fees, depending on how the transfer is completed.
NAB is one of these.
Sometimes NAB will charge a transfer fee, and other times it won’t.
Below, we’ve provided a breakdown of NAB’s transfer costs:
| Transfer method | Fee (AUD) |
|---|---|
| International money transfer made using NAB app or NAB Internet Banking – if sent in a foreign currency | $0 |
| International money transfer made using NAB app or NAB Internet Banking – if sent in Australian dollars | $30 |
| International money transfer made using NAB app or NAB Internet Banking – if sent in Australian dollars or a foreign currency | $30 |
Providing there is a currency conversion, NAB does not charge a transfer fee for transfers completed via NAB Internet Banking or the NAB app.
This is good, they’re unnecessary fees that customers shouldn’t have to pay.
But, transfer fees are just a small point of consideration.
Many banks, like NAB, use an appealing claim like ‘zero fee international transfers’ to lure you in.
It’s important to understand that ‘zero fee’ doesn’t necessarily mean ‘free’. This is where the exchange rate markup comes into play.
NAB exchange rates
By far the largest expense involved in transferring money abroad comes from the markup added to the exchange rate provided to you.
Banks buy currency at the ‘mid-market exchange rate’. They then sell you the currency at a rate which is worse than this. This difference is known as the ‘fx markup’ or ‘margin’.
Put simply, the higher the margin, the more the bank pockets from your transfer. Banks are known for charging notoriously high markups, which is a big reason why so many cheaper alternatives can operate with a fairer pricing model.
On NAB’s website, their currency converter clearly displays their offered rate, associated fees, and an estimated total your beneficiary should receive.
What is not advertised of course, is the fx margin. Which, by our calculations, is close to 2.54% for a $50,000 AUD to GBP transfer.
But what does that figure look like in monetary terms?
Well, for that particular transfer, this margin amounts to a loss of AU$1,263.
A huge cost!
And that ‘zero fee international transfer’ that might have lured you in won’t do much to soften the blow.
This markup is fairly normal for a large Australian bank, but to NAB’s credit, they are currently one of the least expensive banks for international transfers.
Generally speaking, all of Australia’s ‘big five’ banks charge a margin somewhere in the region of 2.5% to 5%.
Despite being one of the cheaper banks, we can still confidently say that banks, including NAB, are one of the most expensive methods for international money transfers.
How do NAB international transfer costs compare to other providers?
The reality for NAB or any other major Australian bank, is a hard truth.
They simply can’t, or don’t want to compete with alternative money transfer providers.
They prefer to focus on large corporate customers instead. This is true for both cost and service, but let’s stick to cost for the time being.
How much cheaper are the alternatives?
Well, customers of OFX and TorFX report margin savings of 2% to 3% compared to the exchange rates offered by banks.
These percentages are an approximate guide:
| Money Transfer Provider | Guideline Margin |
|---|---|
| NAB | 2.54% |
| OFX | 0.35% – 2% |
| TorFX | 0.15% – 2% |
Alternatively, you can use our free calculator to compare the international money transfer rates offered by Australia’s market-leading payment providers to 50+ countries.
As we’ve discussed, a 2% saving can easily equate to hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars.
What’s more, you could save even more if you trade regularly or need to send a large sum.
For example, if you’re making a one-off transaction and converting a small amount of AUD, you may be offered a rate with a total cost of around 1%.
However, if you need to transfer much larger sums, it’s possible to secure an fx markup as low as 0.2%. This is more than 10 times cheaper than the average markup of a major bank like NAB!
How long does a NAB international transfer take?
NAB confidently states that ‘funds are usually received within 24 hours by the payee’s bank’. This excludes transfers submitted on the weekend or during a public holiday.
They do include a note in the small print that delays can occur that are out of their control, but they seem confident on their own processing speed.
NAB also provides a comprehensive list of cutoff times for transactions to be processed on the same day. This depends on the receiving currency, with 39 currencies grouped into 6 categories, each with its own cutoff time. Popular currencies like the British Pound (GBP), US Dollar (USD), Euro (EUR), and Canadian Dollar (CAD) all have a cutoff time of 5:00pm (AEST/AEDT).
Once a user confirms an overseas transfer, they can track the payment’s progress using the NAB app or Internet Banking by inputting the relevant unique tracking ID. This real-time tracker is an impressive feature that not all banks offer.
What is the maximum amount I can transfer internationally using NAB?
When making a transfer on NAB Internet Banking, you’re subject to a default daily limit of AU$5,000.
If you want to make larger transfers, you have to call NAB to discuss this over the phone.
It’s not clear whether this allows users to increase their daily limit online, or whether you’d need to do this every time you wanted to make a transfer >AU$5,000.
If the latter is true, this would prove very inconvenient indeed. It pretty much rules NAB out as a viable option for sending medium-to-large sums overseas.
There is no mention of a maximum limit for international transfers made in-branch.
But, aside from being highly inconvenient, this means you’d also be charged a AU$30 fee.
Having to visit a NAB branch for transfers >AU$5,000 is far from ideal.
Can you make international transfers from the NAB app?
Yes, making international payments within the NAB app is pretty simple.
First, select ‘Transfer and Pay’ and choose which account you wish to transfer money from. You’ll then see a button that says ‘Overseas’ which takes you to a ‘new payee’ page with specific fields to enter for international transfers.
Once you’ve correctly entered your payee’s details, you’ll see the same currency converter that NAB has on its website.
As a reminder, this clearly highlights the offered exchange rate and any applicable fees, but you’ll need to calculate the fx markup yourself to know the true cost.
The NAB app is available on both Google Play and the App Store, and has more than a million downloads, receiving mixed reviews.
Apple users seemingly prefer the app to Android users, as NAB’s App Store rating at the time of writing, is an impressive 4.7 out of 5 stars, compared to just 3.8 out of 5 on Google Play.
Is NAB a good option for international money transfers?
Like many banks, NAB may initially seem like a strong option for international money transfers. Their website features useful instructional videos and resources dedicated to guiding users through the process. However, while the NAB currency converter appears transparent, users who aren’t aware of FX markups might overlook this hidden cost.
The reality is, when you step back and assess the true cost and practicalities of sending money overseas with NAB, the verdict on their international transfer service is pretty clear.
NAB is not a good option for transferring money abroad.
The overarching factor that led us to such a clear decision is cost. NAB’s exchange rates include a much higher markup to the interbank rate than alternative providers.
This can result in customers unnecessarily losing thousands of dollars. Just take a look at how much you could save by finding the cheapest way to send money from Australia abroad.
To give NAB credit, we were impressed with their real-time transfer tracking feature, especially since it’s available in-app. They also make international transfers simple by allowing users to initiate payments directly through the NAB app.
Unfortunately, these advantages lose much of their value for many users due to NAB’s very restrictive maximum daily limit of AU$5,000.
Even if you decide to call NAB to make a larger transfer, you’ll miss out on the benefits of working with a dedicated account manager.
This is why for transfers over AU$20k we recommend a leading currency broker like Send Payments or TorFX.
They’ll assign you an FX expert as your personal point of contact, guiding you through the process of a large international transfer. Their expertise can help you save even more by advising on the best time to trade and how to use other FX tools.
With NAB, none of this is available. You’re left with generic customer support that lacks FX expertise.
Even for smaller amounts, you’ll still be at a disadvantage using the NAB app. For transfers under AU$20k, we recommend skipping the banks altogether and opting for a leading money transfer app like Wise. You’ll benefit from a sleek mobile app, multi-currency accounts, and some of the best exchange rates in the industry.