Financial Tips for New OFWs

First Tip: Before leaving the Philippines, open a savings account in a reputable bank and enroll that account to Internet banking.

Personally, I recommend Bank of the Philippine Islands or BPI because they have one of the best products and services among the banks in our country. I also do have other bank accounts like ChinaBank and Metrobank. It is very important to have your own savings account because it is where you should put your hard-earned money or use when sending money to the Philippines. You should select a popular and established bank so that you can have a guarantee that it will not bankrupt easily.

Your savings account should be enrolled to Internet banking the moment you open a new bank account so that you can monitor your balance and remittances through the Internet and anywhere you are. It will give you much comfort when you can view your account even though you are outside the Philippines.

Second Tip: Arrange a way on how you can give money to your family with out giving them your ATM or bank account.

There are many OFWs that ask questions to me about how to open an account from abroad. Sadly, our banking system does not allow that kind of situation so it is very important to open one before leaving the country. When you are there working for quite some time, there will come a time when you need to send money to Philippines especially if you have a family that is depending on you. In this case, you should send money to your own savings account in the Philippines and not to other people’s accounts.

Since you have online banking, you will know the result of your remittance if it is already credited to your account. I used BPI Express Cash as a way to give money to my parents and siblings during emergency and regular giving even though I have my own family. You can apply Express Cash in their own name or to any person you want. The application cost is only P100.

After I received my remittance to my own account, I will just transfer a certain balance to Express Cash and then the beneficiary can withdraw it anytime after I successfully transferred the money.

Third Tip: If you possibly can, learn how to save and invest.

Since you have your own savings account, it is easier now for you to save money from your salary. Normally, if you are working in a company, you will be given a local bank account in your current country and use it for your banking needs in that place. You can schedule the frequency of sending money to your Philippine bank so that you could save money on remittance fees. In that way, you can start saving money in your savings account in the Philippines.

While working abroad, you could start investing so your money will also work for you. You may begin investing in low-risk or high-risk investments such as UITFs, mutual funds, stocks, apartments, online and other types of business.

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