From the UAE you can send money abroad through your bank, through a licensed exchange house, or through a money transfer app. None of the three is automatically cheaper or faster. Some UAE banks now publish zero-fee, same-hour routes to India, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka for their own customers; exchange houses add cash pickup and walk-in service; apps work from your phone and accept card payment.
The useful question is which channel serves your route, payout method and amount, and then which one delivers the most money to your recipient after fees and the exchange rate. Below is what each channel publishes, with figures taken from the banks’ and providers’ own pages.
Banks: published routes for their own customers
Several UAE banks run dedicated routes to popular destinations alongside the standard international (SWIFT) transfer. They are for the bank’s own account holders, and the fee and limit are published.
| Bank route | Published fee | Published speed or limit |
|---|---|---|
| Emirates NBD DirectRemit | Zero to India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and the UK; AED 26.25 to Europe, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia, marked “Free for a limited period” | Available 24/7; for example INR 1,000,000 or PKR 1,000,000 per transfer |
| FAB instant transfer | Zero to India, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka; AED 100 to the UK and Eurozone | “within 60 minutes” to bank accounts; AED 100,000 a day |
| Mashreq Quick Remit | AED 26.25 to most destinations; zero to India and Pakistan as a limited-period offer | To your home country in its currency only; limits by destination |
| RAKBANK RAKMoneyTransfer | Nil to Pakistan for account transfer and cash pickup | Fees by amount band for other routes |
Everything else goes by standard SWIFT transfer, which costs more and takes longer. ADCB’s schedule effective 1 September 2026 lists AED 21 for an online SWIFT transfer, RAKBANK’s price guide lists AED 31.50 through digital banking, and FAB’s April 2026 price guide says “up to AED 52.50”, VAT included. FAB says SWIFT processing is generally within 1–2 working days, and Emirates NBD processes online requests placed before 2:00 p.m., Monday to Saturday, the same working day. The receiving bank or a correspondent bank may deduct its own charges on top.
Suits you if you already bank there, your destination is on one of these routes, and the money should go to a bank account.
Exchange houses: branches, cash pickup and walk-in service
Exchange houses such as Al Ansari Exchange and LuLu Exchange are licensed by the UAE Central Bank as exchange businesses. Al Ansari says it has 280+ branches in the UAE, and LuLu says 170+. Both publish each branch’s opening hours on their branch locators, and hours vary by branch.
Their main difference from a bank is the payout choice: an exchange house can send to a bank account, and on many routes it also offers cash pickup for a recipient without a bank account. You can walk in with cash or use the exchange house’s app, and you don’t need a UAE bank account with them.
Pricing is a fee plus the exchange rate the exchange house applies. LuLu says its LuLu Money app charges no transfer fee on seven routes: India, Egypt, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka. A zero fee doesn’t make a transfer free, because the rate still decides how much arrives.
Suits you if your recipient needs cash, you prefer to pay in cash or at a counter, or you don’t have a bank route to that country.
Money transfer apps: phone-first, paid by card
Apps work entirely from your phone, and you usually pay by debit card. Check that the company is licensed in the UAE and that it accepts payment in dirhams.
- Remitly: the UAE Central Bank’s register (August 2026) lists Remitly Fintech Services – L.L.C- S.P.C as a stored value facility. Remitly allows up to 110,000 AED per transaction from the UAE, and its pages differ on which cards and wallets it accepts, so check the payment options in the app. See our Remitly UAE guide.
- Taptap Send: moving UAE accounts to T T S Financial Services Middle East L.L.C., which the register lists as a stored value facility and a Category 2 retail payment services provider. It allows AED 37,000 per transfer and does not accept credit, prepaid or corporate cards. Its help centre says there are no transfer fees on top of the rate on most routes; its schedule of charges lists AED 0–15 depending on the country, excluding VAT, shown in the app before you confirm. See our Taptap Send UAE guide.
- Wise: its UAE send-money pages show a waiting list, and its AED guidance says transfers paid in AED are not supported yet. See our Wise UAE review.
Suits you if you want to send from your phone at any time, pay by card, and your route and payout method are supported.
How to choose for your transfer
- Start with the payout. Bank account, cash pickup or a mobile wallet: keep only the channels that offer it on your route.
- Check the amount against the limits. For example, Taptap Send allows AED 37,000 per transfer, Remitly 110,000 AED, and FAB AED 100,000 a day.
- Compare the amount received, not the fee. For the same send amount, compare what the recipient gets after the fee and the exchange rate.
- Check the delivery estimate and processing date on the quote, especially near a weekend or public holiday. Our UAE to India timing guide explains how cut-offs work.
- Confirm the company is licensed. Look up the company name shown in the app, the terms or the receipt in the UAE Central Bank’s register.