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Sending an International Wire

An international wire transfer is a service for electronically transferring money from one account to another in a different country. For tips on preventing wire fraud, click here.

To send an international wire from your SELCO account, you will need the following. 

Forms of identification

Sender’s Information

  • Your name.
  • Your physical address. (Please note that we cannot use PO boxes.)
  • Your telephone number. (Include a number at which you can be reached to verify instructions, as processing may be delayed if we are unable to verify the request.)
  • SELCO member number.
  • SELCO share ID to debit.
  • Outgoing wire transfer amount in the foreign currency desired, such as Euro or Yen. Please note that SELCO will complete a currency conversion to the local currency of the beneficiary prior to sending the wire unless the beneficiary account is specifically a US dollar account.

*Wells Fargo serves as SELCO’s correspondent bank and foreign exchange partner for international wire transfers.

Beneficiary’s or Receiver’s Information 

  • Sort Code, International Bank Account Number (IBAN), SWIFT Code, CLABE, or other international code/number as required. The beneficiary should be able to provide one or more of these as needed to complete the wire.
    • A sort code is a unique identifier of the individual branch or bank office at which a bank account is held.
    • An IBAN is a unique identifier of a specific customer account at a financial institution.
    • A SWIFT code, also known as a Bank Identifier Code (BIC), is a code used to identify the country, bank, and branch to which an account is registered. 
    • The CLABE (Clave Bancaria Estandarizada, Spanish for “standardized banking cipher” or “standardized bank code”) is a banking standard for the numbering of bank accounts in Mexico.

  • International bank name and address.
  • Bank or loan account number to deposit funds.
  • Name, physical address, and citizenship of all beneficiaries or recipients of the wire transfer.
  • Purpose of payment. Without this information, the receiving financial institution may withhold funds, deduct a research fee, or return the wire. Please note that different countries will have differing standards for the purpose of payment. Please visit the Currency Conversion page to learn more.
  • Comments or special instructions to transmit with the outgoing wire, if applicable. These include: “to the attention of” instructions or invoice, purchase order, or reference numbers. The beneficiary should tell you if any of these fields are required.

Here is a downloadable and printable form to use as a guide for when you fill out and sign your Wire Transfer Request.

 

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General Information

  • A wire needs to be signed and submitted by 2:00pm PST to be sent out the same day.
  • An international wire may take up to 14 business days to be received by the other financial institution.
  • Please see the Current Rate & Fee Schedule for any applicable fees.

Tips for preventing wire fraud


When sending a personal wire:

  • Never wire money to claim a prize, pay a surprise bill or fine you weren’t aware of, or to someone you don’t know.
  • Beware of situations where someone is going to send you money and then have you wire it someone else.
  • Make sure that the payee of the wire makes sense for the reason it’s being sent. For example, if sending a wire for a business purpose, it should not be sent to the account of an individual.
  • Remember that sending a wire is like sending cash and can be very difficult to recover once the funds are gone.
  • Title companies and real estate transactions can be high targets for wire fraud, verify any change in wire instructions directly with your title company.
  • Beware of situations where someone is asking you to wire “emergency” funds or other high-pressure requests.

When sending a business wire:

  • Establish a process for the request and approval of wires that includes a verbal verification of the request. Do not process wires based solely on an email request.
  • Make sure that the payee of the wire makes sense for the type of request you’re fulfilling. For example, if sending a wire to another business, it should not be sent to the account of an individual.
  • Remember that sending a wire is like sending cash and can be very difficult to recover once the funds are gone.
  • Title companies and real estate transactions can be high targets for wire fraud, verify any change in wire instructions directly with your title company.
  • Beware of situations where someone is asking you to wire “emergency” funds or other high-pressure requests.