How to receive money on Western Union in the Philippines 2025

If you’re expecting a payment from overseas, Western Union offers lots of ways to get your money to a bank or ewallet, or as cash. This guide walks through how to receive money from Western Union in the Philippines, including the costs and process to get your payment conveniently.

We’ll explore how to receive money from Western Union online and in person, and also introduce a couple of alternatives for comparison - Wise and PayPal. Both offer ways to get paid in foreign currencies conveniently and quickly.

Key points: Western Union receive international money transfer

• You can use Western Union to receive money to your bank account, to a wallet like GCash or Maya, or as cash

• The Western Union requirements to receive money from abroad depend on the payment type, and can include showing your ID to an agent to get your money

• Alternatively you can use the Western Union app to receive money digitally and quickly, usually in PHP

• Western Union does not charge a fee to receive a payment, but your bank might have charges when the payment is deposited

• The overall costs including send fees, receive fees, and currency conversion costs may be lower if you use a different service like Wise, which has multi-currency receiving accounts

How to receive money on  Western Union: Step-by-step instructions

You can use Western Union to receive money as cash which you collect, or as a deposit to your bank or ewallet. We’ll walk through the process to get your payment as cash first, and then look at what to do to receive money to a bank or wallet like Maya, right after.

Need to send a payment from the Philippines? Get out guide on how to send money via Western Union to help.

Step 1: Gather the information and documents needed to collect your money - the sender will give you a tracking number once they’ve sent the payment, called a MTCN. You’ll need this, some information about the sender and the amount you’re receiving, and your government issued ID to get your cash.

Step 2: Go to a Western Union agent location - the agent will ask you to complete the Western Union form to receive money, and show your ID documents. We’ll cover the exact information needed for this form a little later.

Step 3: Get your cash from the agent - you’ll be given the payment by the agent, in cash. There’s no fee to pay when you receive your money, although the sender will have paid charges at the point of arranging the transfer.

How to receive money from Western Union online

You can also receive money from Western Union digitally, either to your bank or to a wallet like GCash or Maya.

If you’re receiving a payment to your bank you’ll need to give the sender your full name and banking information including account number, bank name and address, and the bank’s SWIFT code. You can then simply wait for your money to be delivered to your account.

If you’re getting paid to an ewallet you might need to take a few steps to get your money. To give an example, here’s the process to follow if you’re getting paid to GCash:

1. Open the GCash app and tap Cash-In

2. Select Western Union and then enter the MTCN number and the payment value

4. Confirm everything is correct and you’ll be notified that your payment has been cashed in

Western Union fees to receive international money transfer

There is no Western Union incoming international money transfer fee to pay. All of the costs of arranging the transfer are covered by the sender. However, you may pay a fee to your bank if you’re receiving the payment to a bank account.

Even if you don’t need to pay any fee to your bank, it’s important to note that sending money with Western Union is likely to mean there are fees, which are either paid by the sender, or deducted from the payment amount as the transfer is processed.

Your sender will usually need to pay a transfer fee, and there may be a cost built into the exchange rate used, which we’ll look at next. On top of this, if you’re receiving money to a bank account there could be third party fees which are deducted from the payment amount as the transfer is processed. This might mean you get less in the end than you expected.

Western Union exchange rate

Western Union sets its own exchange rate which can include a markup on the mid-market rate you find on Google. This is a fee.

On the Western Union website for the Philippines for example, you’ll find a clear disclaimer stating that Western Union makes money from currency exchange. This means you need to compare both the fees and exchange rates available from different providers when choosing which to use to send a specific payment.

If the person sending you money to the Philippines uses a provider which has a large exchange rate markup, you might find you get less in PHP in the end.

Alternatives to Western Union to receive international money transfer

Western Union is a very convenient option for receiving cash in the Philippines. However, if you’re planning on receiving your money to a bank account, provider account or ewallet, it’s worth comparing a few alternatives to see which is best for both you and the person sending you money.

Wise lets you receive money in a selection of foreign currencies using a local payment - this can mean there’s no fee (or a low fee) for the sender, and there’s no Wise receiving fee for you. Or, PayPal can be handy if you use the PayPal service regularly, with ways to get paid to your PayPal account in 25+ currencies.

Here’s a quick summary of the alternatives to Western Union for receiving money we’ve picked out, with a little more detail coming right up after.

*Details correct at time of research - 30th October 2025

Wise

Open a Wise account online or in the Wise app, to hold 40+ currencies and get account details in 20+ currencies to get paid conveniently. There’s no fee to receive a payment using your local account information in currencies including PHP, USD, GBP and EUR, and a small Wise fee to receive SWIFT in other available currencies or USD wire payments. Once you have a payment you can hold it in your account and convert when you see a great exchange rate, or use your foreign currency balance to spend, pay bills or save for future use.

PayPal

PayPal supports 25+ currencies for payments and for holding, which means your recipient could send your payment in your preferred currency easily. The funds will be deposited to your PayPal account, and you can either use the money for online shopping, or convert it to PHP and withdraw to your linked bank account. A fee of 4% applies on currency conversion, which can be a drawback - but PayPal to PayPal payments are often deposited very quickly. To get paid all you need to give the sender is your email or phone number that was used to create your PayPal account.

What information is needed to receive a transfer on  Western Union

The information needed to receive a transfer on  Western Union depends on the receiving method you use. Here’s a look at the different options based on payment type.

Information needed to receive a Western Union transfer to your bank

You’ll need to give the following to the person sending you money:

Information needed to receive a Western Union transfer to an ewallet

You’ll need to tell the sender the phone number associated with your preferred ewallet, and then you can claim your money in the app with the following:

Information needed to receive a Western Union transfer as cash

You’ll need to have the following information and documents when you collect your Western Union cash transfer:

Western Union accepts a very large range of documents in the Philippines as proof of ID including:

• Your Passport

• Your Driver’s license

• Your Philsys ID/National ID

• Your Employment ID

• Your Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA) ID

• Your Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) ID

If you don’t have any of these documents, you can get the full list on the Western Union website, or ask the agent you collect your money from.

Western Union receive limits for incoming international transfer

The limits on the amount of money you can receive through Western Union may be set by Western Union, or by the bank or provider which you use to receive the payment.

Western Union has send limits which vary by country, and which may limit the amount the person sending you money can transfer to you. On top of that, there are some receive method limits, including a 100,000 PHP per transaction limit on payments received in ewallets like Maya and GCash.

If your own bank has a low limit on the amount you can receive from Western Union you may prefer a provider like Wise which lets you receive high value payments conveniently, and in multiple currencies.

How long does it take for Western Union to receive an international money transfer?

The length of time it takes for Western Union to receive an international money transfer depends on several factors:

• Where the payment is sent from

• The currency of the payment

• The value of the payment

• The way the sender pays

• The way you choose to receive the payment

This can mean there’s a lot of variation in the delivery times with Western Union. Some payments - particularly if the sender pays in cash, and you choose to collect your payment in cash in the Philippines - can be very quick. Your money may be available in minutes. However, transfers to and from banks might take longer depending on the situation.

When the person sending you money arranges the payment, they’ll see a delivery estimate which will guide you about when to expect your money.

How to track an incoming international money transfer with Western Union

Once your money has been sent you can track your payment using the MTCN which the sender will pass over to you.

Online or on the Western Union app you can take the following steps to track your payment:

1. Select the option Track a transfer

2. Enter your tracking number (MTCN)

3. You’ll see the payment status

What can you do if your transfer is not delivered yet

If you’re concerned about a payment, the first thing to do is check with the sender. They can look at the payment information and see where the money has got to in the Western Union app.

If this doesn’t work, the next step to take is to reach out to Western Union customer service, or to your bank if you’re expecting a payment to be deposited there.

Western Union customer service

You can reach Western Union customer service through their in app and online chat service, or by visiting your local branch. Or you can call the team, with numbers which vary depending on where you are:

• Calls within Metro Manila - 02-8888-1200

• Toll-free nationwide via PLDT Lines - 1-800-1-888-1200

• Toll-free nationwide via Globe Lines - 1-800-9-888-1200

• Calls from overseas - +632-8888-1200

Conclusion: Western Union incoming international money transfer 

You can use Western Union to receive an international money transfer conveniently in the Philippines as a deposit to your bank or ewallet, or to collect in cash. Western Union is a super popular service which has excellent reach, and an agent network of 1,200 locations in the Philippines. This makes it a convenient option, particularly if you prefer to get your money in cash.

As fees - including exchange rate fees - apply on Western Union transfers, it’s worth comparing a few options before your money is transferred, particularly if you’re getting paid to your bank. Using a provider like Wise, which has multi-currency accounts with local details to let you get paid in select foreign currencies with no Wise fee, could be a cheaper option.