ADIB sends money abroad two ways: instant transfers from its app or internet banking to banks in Pakistan (in Pakistani rupees) and India (in Indian rupees), and ordinary SWIFT transfers everywhere else. Its October 2026 tariff board puts an international transfer at AED 25 through the app or internet banking and AED 100 in a branch, plus 5% VAT.
ADIB's own Pakistan page still advertises «zero transfer fees» with no dates, and the promo code that once backed that offer on its older adib.com page expired in March 2025. We treat AED 25 as the standard fee and a waiver as something you confirm in the app before you send. Below are the limits and eligibility rules for each instant route, the SWIFT cut-offs, who pays the correspondent bank, and what happens if you need to cancel.
What ADIB charges: the October 2026 tariff
ADIB's Banking Services and Tariff Board (V-66, October 2026) lists outward transfer fees by channel. Its header says 5% VAT is added to the fees unless a line says otherwise. The amounts below are before VAT.
| Transfer | App or internet banking | Branch |
|---|---|---|
| International transfer, dirham or foreign currency | 25 | 100 |
| International transfer, Mazaya Banking | Free | 100 |
| International transfer, Rise Banking | 10 | 100 |
| Cancellation, recall, amendment or inquiry | Not available | 100 |
| Transfer to another ADIB account | Free | Free |
| Within the UAE, in dirhams | 0.50 (UAEIPI) or 1 (UAEFTS) | 5 |
A standard digital international transfer is therefore AED 25 plus VAT, which is AED 26.25 if the full 5% applies, and a branch transfer is AED 105. ADIB's PKR Key Facts Statement gives the same AED 25 for both regular (SWIFT) and instant transfers, excluding VAT, and that statement dates from October 2023, so the figure has not moved.
The tariff adds that the beneficiary bank, correspondent bank, intermediary bank or service provider may charge their own fees, which vary by source and destination country, currency and correspondent bank. ADIB's offers page also lists the XPRESS account with 2 free international transfers a month in non-AED currency to a bank account, and Mazaya with free transfers to a bank account in any currency.
«Zero transfer fees» on the Pakistan page: what to believe
ADIB's Pakistan page, read on 23 October 2026, says «Zero transfer fees», «Unlimited free transfers to 30+ banks in Pakistan» and a «100% waiver on ADIB transfer fees and with instant discount on the exchange rate». No dates or promo code sit beside those lines.
ADIB's other documents don't back them up. The October 2026 tariff says AED 25. The offers page, read the same day, lists no Pakistan promotion (it shows Egypt, Priority, Mazaya, XPRESS and Exceed Rewards offers). The older adib.com page for the same route names the code «Instant-PK», valid from 15 June 2024 to 31 March 2025 (an earlier box on that page said 15 June to 30 September 2024).
So budget for AED 25 plus VAT. We can't see from outside the app whether a waiver is live today. If your fee line shows zero before you confirm, you have it; if it shows 25, the page was out of date for you. Either way, judge the transfer by the amount that reaches the recipient, not by the fee line alone: the exchange rate is the other half of the cost.
Instant PKR transfers to Pakistan: who qualifies and the limits
ADIB's Pakistan page promises instant transfer in Pakistani rupees to «30+ banks in Pakistan», up to PKR 1.5 million. Its Key Facts Statement counts 32 banks and sets these conditions:
- You start the transfer in ADIB Mobile Banking or Internet Banking, not in a branch.
- The sender and the receiver must both be individual account holders. ADIB's FAQ says instant transfer is not available to accounts belonging to a business, commercial or government entity.
- The amount is up to PKR 1,500,000 per transaction, and the transfer currency must be PKR.
- The receiving bank must be an IBFT participant bank in Pakistan that is allowed to receive foreign remittances.
There is one exception to the cap. ADIB's Key Facts Statement lists instant transfer for any PKR amount to Habib Bank Limited (HBL), and the FAQ shows HBL as any amount, Monday to Sunday, 24/7. The FAQ adds that the amount threshold is subject to change without prior notice.
The FAQ lists instant transfers as 24/7, Monday to Sunday, subject to ADIB's checks. The overall limit on mobile and internet banking still applies, depending on your account and segment. ADIB does not publish those limit figures on the pages we read.
The Key Facts Statement's list of 32 banks is described as indicative and includes microfinance and wallet-linked names such as Telenor Microfinance Bank (EasyPaisa), Sada Pay, Naya Pay and HBL Microfinance (FirstPay). ADIB also lists a separate product, Instant Transfer to HBL Konnect Wallet in Pakistan, on its adib.com money-transfer page. We haven't found a limit for that wallet route in the documents we read, so check its terms before relying on it.
A transfer that doesn't meet the instant criteria, such as one above the cap to a non-HBL bank or one to a business account, is processed as a regular SWIFT transfer instead. The same applies to other currencies: ADIB says you can send in USD, EUR, GBP and more than 20 global currencies to any bank account in Pakistan by SWIFT. See our Pakistan to UAE guide for the receiving side, and the AED to PKR page for rates.
Instant INR transfers to India
ADIB's INR Key Facts Statement, hosted on adib.com, lists instant transfer of up to INR 500,000 to 35 major banks in India, and any INR amount to ICICI. It limits the purpose to three: own account transfer, family support or educational support. The receiving bank must be an IMPS bank.
The eligibility rules we list for Pakistan (individuals only, digital channels) come from the PKR documents. The INR statement is our source for the India figures only, so confirm in the app that your own transfer qualifies. For the receiving side and bank rails, see our India to UAE guide, and the AED to INR page for rates.
Remit! by Visa: other countries
ADIB's send-money page also offers Remit!, enabled by Visa: to international bank accounts in 25+ countries, to international Visa debit cards in 100+ countries, and to international wallets in 25+ countries. ADIB says transfers are processed instantly, 24/7, or the next working day, depending on the beneficiary's country, bank and currency.
We haven't found a Remit! fee, limit or country list in the documents we read, so check the app for the quote on your route before you confirm.
How to send from ADIB, step by step
ADIB's FAQ (December 2023) describes one journey for instant and regular transfers: if the transfer is eligible to be sent instantly, it is processed instantly, and otherwise it goes as a regular SWIFT transfer. The beneficiary must be added first. Menu labels may have changed since that FAQ, so follow what your app shows.
- Log in to the ADIB Mobile App, tap Move Money, tap New Transfer / Payment, then tap My Recipients.
- Choose your existing recipient or add a new one, in the recipient's currency (PKR for an instant Pakistan transfer).
- Tap the recipient's account, enter the amount and follow the on-screen instructions.
- Check the fee, the exchange rate and the amount the recipient will get, then confirm and submit. Keep the reference until the recipient confirms.
In internet banking the route is Transfers and Payments, then My Recipients, in e-ADIB. In a branch, ADIB uses Smart Forms with a QR code. ADIB says it has more than 60 branches across the UAE.
SWIFT timing and cut-offs
ADIB's Key Facts Statement sets these cut-offs for SWIFT transfers:
| When ADIB receives the request | When it is processed |
|---|---|
| Monday to Thursday, before 1 PM | The same day |
| Friday, before 11:30 AM | The same day |
| After the cut-off, on Friday after 11:30 AM, or on a public holiday | The next working day |
| Saturday and Sunday | The next working day |
ADIB says a transfer that doesn't qualify as instant is processed as a regular SWIFT transfer and may take from 60 minutes to 1 working day to process, and up to 5 working days if it is subject to additional scrutiny. It also says requests received on a working day are processed within 24 hours. The same statement mentions Sunday in one line and Saturday and Sunday in another; the UAE weekend is Saturday and Sunday.
For foreign currency, ADIB adds that the money is received only on the next business day in the receiving country if that day falls on a weekend or public holiday there. So the real arrival time is ADIB's processing plus the receiving bank's calendar. Tell the recipient to expect it later in that case.
SHA, REM/OUR or BEN: who pays the correspondent bank
For SWIFT transfers ADIB's Key Facts Statement offers three charge options:
| Option | ADIB's charges | Correspondent and receiving bank charges |
|---|---|---|
| SHA (shared) | Paid by you, the ADIB account holder | Paid by the beneficiary |
| REM / OUR | Paid by you | Paid by you |
| BEN | Paid by the beneficiary | Paid by the beneficiary |
ADIB warns that an intermediary or correspondent bank may deduct charges from the amount whichever option you pick. If the recipient needs an exact amount, ask them to confirm what arrived rather than assuming the figure you sent.
Receiving money into ADIB: SWIFT code, inward fees and the REM/OUR tip
ADIB's SWIFT code, as listed on its contact page, is ABDIAEAD. ADIB's tariff board lists these fees for incoming transfers (before VAT, per its header):
| Incoming transfer | ADIB fee |
|---|---|
| Dirham to dirham | Free |
| Foreign currency sent with the REM or OUR charge code | Free |
| SHA or BEN, credit up to AED 500 equivalent | Free |
| SHA or BEN, AED 500.01 to 1,000 | 37.5 |
| SHA or BEN, AED 1,000.01 to 1,500 | 50 |
| SHA or BEN, AED 1,500.01 and above | 75 |
The tariff says incoming money is converted at «the Prevailing Exchange Rate of the Bank (Buying and/or Selling as applicable)». ADIB's receive-money page also tells customers to ask the sender to use the REM or OUR charge code to avoid inward fees. That is the tip for whoever is sending to you: ask for REM or OUR, since the sender then pays and the fee tier above drops to zero.
ADIB's receive-money page also has a card called «Routing information for foreign currency transfers», which says sharing it with the sender avoids delays for specific currencies. The page tells you to log in to the mobile app to see it, and the link on the page leads only to ADIB's home page. ADIB's financial-institutions page mentions its network of correspondent banks without naming any. We therefore don't list ADIB's correspondent banks: they are not public, and the routing details sit behind the app login.
Cancelling or recalling an ADIB transfer
ADIB's Key Facts Statement says a transaction, once submitted, may not be cancelled. You can ask by calling ADIB on 600543216 from the UAE or +971-2-6100600 from abroad, and a successful cancellation may take up to 30 working days. The tariff charges AED 100 for cancellation, recall, amendment or inquiry through a branch and marks it «Not available» in the app.
ADIB's FAQ says a rejected transfer is refunded within 3 working days at the applicable exchange rates. The Key Facts Statement also waives the 5-business-day cooling-off period for these transfers, so check the recipient's details and the amount before you tap confirm.
Why ADIB transfers are structured as Wakala
ADIB is an Islamic bank, and its Key Facts Statement says its instant and SWIFT transfer product is based on Wakala: ADIB acts as your agent (Wakil) in sending the money, and receives a fee (Ujrah) for that service. The fees in the tariff above are that Ujrah.
ADIB versus an exchange house or app
ADIB's instant routes suit ADIB customers sending between individual accounts to a listed bank in Pakistan or India, within the stated caps. They don't fit a business account, a bank outside the listed networks, or an India transfer with a purpose other than the three ADIB lists. On the Pakistan route, ADIB's fee is a variable: AED 25 plus VAT, or zero if the waiver applies to you.
Whichever applies, compare the amount received for the same transfer with licensed exchange houses such as Al Ansari and LuLu, and with apps. Start with our comparison tool and the complete guide to international transfers from the UAE, and treat the provider's own quote as final.
Transferring with a different bank?
See how other UAE banks run theirs: Mashreq, FAB, CBD, RAKBANK or ADCB.