What is the best payment system for IT specialists to receive income?

Nowadays, there is a wide variety of choices. Each system has its pros and cons, and, of course, the % commission differs. And here, it is more likely a question for the end-user—what “uncomfortable” features they are ready to put up with and what percentage to pay.

Payment system for IT – overview

One of the most popular systems used in IT worldwide is Payoneer, a registered MasterCard (Member Service Provider).

What are the advantages of Payoneer?

• unique payment requisites for receiving funds
• payment request, to receive card payments and payments by ACH Direct Debit(e-Check);
• free transfers within the system;
• possibility of fast withdrawal of funds to the bank;
• single and batch payments;
• no commission for online payments and in-store payments (provided that the payment is made in EEA countries and in the card currency);
• Payoneer is a Mastercard Principal Member, which means you can order an actual card and use it to withdraw cash from ATMs marked Mastercard;
• no need to pay for an inactive account;
• this system also has a handy mobile app;
• easy administration and all the necessary documents confirming the activity with the account.
• does not transmit data on your transactions directly to the tax authorities (at the moment).

Who is suitable for Payoneer?

Basically everyone! Freelancers, programmers, designers, e-com, digital marketers, copywriters, etc. Payoneer is working with the largest freelance platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, Freelancer, Pond5, Shutterstock, Amazon, Etsy, eBay, Academy of Mine, Udemy, Coursera, LinkedIn Learning. The list could go on and on.

In the system, it is possible to get cards with details in four currencies, namely: 

• USD for receiving payments from companies registered in the USA (ACH transfers);
• EUR for working with European partners (SEPA);
• JPY for receiving payments from Japanese companies;
• GBP for receiving payments from the companies registered in Great Britain (BACS/FPS transfers).

*For each of the currencies listed above, it is possible to issue a card: physical/virtual.

Pros and cons of Payoneer card

Pros:

• Ability to receive money from foreign employers (from different regions).
• Withdrawal of funds to a bank account in EU
• Opportunity to withdraw cash at any ATM using Payoneer MasterCard
• You can pay with the Payoneer card in stores.

Cons:

• One physical card per balance
• The virtual card does not work with Apple/Google Pay

Online support can’t be called prompt, so you have to go through a quest to resolve issues. But challenges make us stronger. A place has been shared with us here where problems should be fixed—we share:

Online chat: https://payoneer-ru.custhelp.com/app/ask/l_id/4  

Payoneer support number +38-089-320-24-26 

Monday-Friday 8 AM- 9 PM IL time

To the question—how to withdraw money from these cards? The answer is simple—in EU, you can withdraw money from Payoneer cards in local or any other currency. There are two ways to withdraw cash from the Payoneer card: via ATM and through the bank’s cashier.

What’s the fee?

• Opening and operation—free of charge;
• payments within the system—no fee;
• receipt of money—no fee (except for payment by credit card 3% and 1% via ACH);
• withdrawal of funds, sending payments to bank accounts—2%;
• in case of currency exchange—0,5% of the transaction amount;
• fee for using the card—29,95 USD per year;
• If there have been no transactions in your Payoneer account or on your Payoneer card during the last twelve months—29,95 USD per year.

This system provides a unique opportunity to accept payments within the United States through the ACH network. Usually, transfers take 1-3 business days. In addition, there is no fee to receive payment.

Cons: Payments from personal bank accounts will be declined. You cannot transfer money from your other account to your Payoneer account. In addition, individuals cannot pay from personal accounts—only from business ones.

Any payments through SWIFT will be available to you. This means that practically any customer will be able to pay you. You can even get details for Japan, Singapore, and Australia, which broadens the scope of your business.

In addition, you can make payments to almost any subcontractor account outside of Payoneer. This system is the most popular with Upwork freelancers because there is no fee for receiving payments to Payoneer accounts. 

The next and not the last system that our IT clients usually pay attention to is

Paysera

A little bit about the system: Paysera is a licensed electronic money institution that provides online payment services worldwide.

The advantages of Paysera

• simplified money transfer process;
• convenient and functional mobile application;
• opportunity to open an account in IBAN format;
• low service fees;
• instant payments (SEPA Instant);
• possibility to issue a VISA debit card;
• Paysera is a multi-currency account, which means you can hold funds in several currencies at the same time;
• favorable exchange rates and online currency exchange calculator.

Disadvantages

• Paysera has a commission in the form of an interest rate for keeping funds in accounts over 10,000 euros—0.50% of the amount per year that exceeds 10,000 euros. Accordingly, you need to take this into account when depositing funds. For example, if you keep 50,000 euros on your account, then the fee for the year will be 200 euros.
• The main currency in Paysera is EUR. You can only accept payments in euros. Which is not convenient for customers from the U.S. Outgoing payments can be made in different currencies, including dollars. The system supports the transfer of 30 currencies and serves about 180 countries in total. 

The Paysera Visa payment card can be ordered by persons registered and identified in the Paysera system who are at least 16 years old. But it is important to understand that not more than 5 payment cards can be issued to one person.

For whom is Paysera suitable?

Paysera is suitable for IT specialists and freelancers, who mostly work with European customers because all payments made directly through the system can be made in EUR.

What’s the fee?

• Opening and maintenance of a personal account—free of charge
• Domestic payments in SEPA are free of charge
• Transfers to Ukraine are free of charge
• Transfers to the U.S. are available via the ACH network
• Transfers to other countries are from 3 to 10 euros (fees depend on the amount and country)
• VISA card can be used for contactless payments
• The card is issued free of charge to Ukrainian citizens
• The monthly fee is 0.75 euros
• Payment in EU stores in euro—no fee (in other currency 0.10 euro + 0.7%)
• Cash withdrawal in EU in euro—1 EUR (Cash withdrawal in EU in other currencies—1,00 EUR +1,80%)

Now let’s talk about the most popular and long-awaited system for Ukrainian IT

PayPal

PayPal is the largest electronic payment system used by 164 million customers worldwide.

From March 17, 2022, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the system started to work properly for Ukrainians. However, only for individuals. And for business entities, these options are still unavailable.

Now, Ukrainian IT professionals can instantly receive money from abroad—P2P payments between individuals, which can then be withdrawn to their bank card. With other operators, it takes some time, but PayPal processes all transactions with enviable speed. And what is important, you can also make transfers in Ukraine with PayPal. 

What services does PayPal provide in Ukraine?

• it is possible to make purchases on the Internet;
• transfer funds;
• withdraw money to Ukrainian bank cards;
• Visa and Mastercard cards can already be linked;
• we are talking about the possibility of P2P transfers (between individuals, in U.S. dollars, euros, Canadian dollars, and British pounds) and later withdrawal to Visa or Mastercard cards issued by Ukrainian banks.

What about fees?

PayPal removed the fee for users who send funds to Ukrainian PayPal accounts or received funds via them until June 30, 2022.

In particular, in the case of interstate transfers in PayPal, the fee may be from 0.4% to 1.5%, depending on the country.

Ukrainian customers can already send and receive funds from their Ukrainian PayPal wallet in U.S. dollars, CAD, GBP, and EUR. As soon as a customer transfers funds from their PayPal wallet to the corresponding debit or credit card, the money will be available in the currency of that card.

So now, PayPal has created the most profitable conditions for IT specialists.

PayPal account: how to open one?

You can open a personal account in the system (for those who pay and/or receive funds). It is suitable for those who need to pay for something through PayPal or receive money.

How do I get money into my account? 

The advantage of PayPal is that to receive funds, you just need to give the sender your email address or find the person in the contact book linked to your PayPal account.  You can also send a request to receive funds. 

Wise—British reliability and comfort 🙂 

Wise is legally obliged to protect your money and keep it in low-risk financial institutions: in Europe, it is its UK account at Barclays Bank, in the US—at Wells Fargo. Why? The U.K independently regulates Wise. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Why is Wise good for IT?

• you can open an account in GBP, USD, AUD, EUR, and other currencies;
• it is possible to make the money transactions via the international transfer system SWIFT;
• user-friendly interface;
• possibility to use own bank details for receiving payments from Australia, the EU, the USA, and Great Britain;
• the system supports 53 currencies.

How do I open a Wise account?

An individual account is opened almost instantly within an hour. For business profiles—the system is sure to verify the profile before making the first transfer or activating the balance. Verification can take up to 4-7 business days, but with Finance Business Service (additional feature), it can be completed faster. 

Advantages of the system

• Fast registration—2.5 minutes (not including validation time).
• Low commissions—a maximum of 2%.
• Average rate without hidden fees.
• High daily limits.
• Daily limits up to 49,999$ for individuals, up to 199,999$ per year!
• Sending limits for entrepreneurs—up to $199,999 per day and $1 million per year.
• There is a multi-currency account.
• Mobile applications for iOS and Android.
• There is a Ukrainian-language version of the site.
• It is possible to check the commission and exchange rate for each specific case on the site.

Disadvantages of the system

• Ukrainians can not order a bank card.
• There are restrictions on the countries where you can send dollars.
• For Ukraine, it is possible to receive payments in USD only from the USA.
• There is no Ukrainian version of the site (we believe that it is about to appear). 

What about fees?

• it is free to open an account;
• for account activation and international details—19 euros;
• sending payments—from 0.41%;
• keeping money on the account over 3000 euros—0,07%;
• sending money—from 0,41%;
• receiving USD payments—4,14 USD.

Summary 

Each system has its pros and cons. When choosing, I recommend paying attention to the currency you work with and the list of countries where your customers are located. Compare this data with the conditions as to how suitable each particular system is. Based on my personal experience with IT companies, a subjective rating would look like this:

• Payoneer—have been working specifically with IT companies for quite a long time and have taken a firm place in the EU
• Wise—nowadays, gaining more and more popularity, and since the beginning of the war, there have been opened many accounts of IT specialists. The feedback is quite good.
• Paysera is a very convenient system, but due to the limitation of work in euros, it is not suitable for everyone.
• PayPal—only recently started to work in Ukraine. It is available only for payments between individuals, making it impossible to receive payments from customers (sign – we talk only about Ukraine now)

And the best recommendation is to try and test at least two systems for comparison, and then you will understand what suits you. For me, it’s also very important to have online support to resolve issues, but alas, so far, all systems have problems with this. Some do better. Some do worse.