Many people opt to start working online to achieve financial freedom, be their own boss or simply start the business that they have always wanted. Every year, thousands of people start their own online businesses.
However, for those looking to make their first dollar online, the typical first jobs they will usually get involved in are those related to freelancing. The good thing with the Internet is that there is a market for nearly everything. If you have a skill, you can find people willing to pay you to help them. Examples of online jobs you can get started with include:
- Freelancing (writing, data entry, graphic design, web design, etc.)
- Affiliate marketing (sell a merchant’s product and get a commission for every sale)
- E-commerce (start your own online store and sell items you have)
- Consulting (start your own services firms offering consultation in an area where you are an expert)
- And many more
Unfortunately, when it comes to doing business online, people in certain countries face more hurdles than others. In countries like the US, Canada, Europe and Australia, the internet ecosystem and markets are well-developed. There are robust supporting infrastructures like payment gateways, security systems, online privacy laws, and so on.
Coming to people in most Asian and African countries (and to some extent Eastern Europe), things are not so easy online. You will realize most countries in these regions are those termed as “developing nations”. For anyone looking to make money online in these countries, there are usually more challenges to counter. These include:
i) Finding the right payment gateway
ii) Finding a good market
iii) Online taxes and VAT
iv) Restrictions on doing business in other countries, etc.
As a result of these frustrations, most entrepreneurs in Asia and Africa opt to do freelance work rather than start their own online businesses. At least, most people start with freelancing before they get into affiliate marketing or selling their own products.
There are many ways to make money online. Many people, however, resort to doing contractual online jobs rather than run their own online businesses selling products or services. Jobs like online graphic design, web design, software development and writing are the most common.
If you are in a non-US country and are starting out with online freelancing, one of the biggest challenges is how to get payment from overseas clients. Most clients in US prefer using PayPal as their mode of payment. However, PayPal only allows some users in non-US countries to send and receive money online, but NOT withdraw.
So, how do you withdraw your PayPal money in a non US country?
Withdraw PayPal in a Non US Country (Pakistan, Kenya, Philippines, UAE, Indonesia, etc.)
With the majority of clients using PayPal as their preferred method of making payments, many online workers Asia, Africa and some European countries feel locked out of many opportunities because they are unable to withdraw PayPal money.
When I started working online in 2008, I tried all sorts of short cuts to get payments through PayPal. If you browse enough, you will come across VCCs (virtual credit card) numbers that can be used to verify PayPal, people selling PayPal accounts with verified US Bank accounts and so on.
If you are thinking of taking any of these shortcuts, I would advise you not to. Otherwise, your account is likely to be limited by PayPal for ‘security concerns”. I’ve gone through it all. Is this message familiar to you?
Without a doubt, PayPal is the leading online payment gateways in the world, with over 300 million active customers. If you hate PayPal and refuse to accept it in your online business, you are essentially locking out hundreds of would-be customers from transacting with you.
If you have been wondering or struggling to withdraw PayPal in a non US country, this does not have to be the case anymore. There is a legitimate way to withdraw PayPal money even if you are not from the US. But first, let’s start with some options you have on withdrawing PayPal money in a non US country:
i) Use Cash Exchange Websites
There are a number of websites that offer PayPal cash exchange services on a commission basis. That is, you send your PayPal money to them, they withdraw for you and in turn charge you a commission for their services, sometimes as high a 30 percent. When I started online freelancing in 2008, I used some of these services. Examples of such websites include EgoPay, Ecurrency, and Ok Change.
However, I would not recommend you use this option to withdraw PayPal money. This is because these websites are known to spring up and disappear overnight. You don’t want your money gone with a company that you cannot get hold of. I cannot personally vouch for any of the above sites.
ii) Use Money Exchangers in Forums
Another option of withdrawing PayPal if you are from a non US country is to use money exchanges in forums like Digital Point, Money Maker Online, Blackhat World (BHW) among others. To do this, simply join the forum you want and check the “services for sale” section for users who are offering PayPal withdrawal services. For example, here is a picture from BHW of a user offering the service.
When dealing with forums, make sure you look for a seller who has a good reputation. In forums, there is something we call “iTrader”.
Basically, this is simply the reputation of a seller. The higher the reputation, the better. Also, you should check the comments of other buyers of the services in the forum thread. If there are good reviews of the services, you are likely to have found a good seller.
Now, withdrawing PayPal money in forums comes with the same risks as using cash exchange sites. You never know when the seller may decide to go “offline” with your money or simply accuse you of trying to defraud them. So, I would suggest you approach this option with caution.
Finally, there is one secure and guaranteed way to withdraw PayPal money in a non US country. Read on to find out more.
iii) Use Local Banks
This option may or may not be viable for you. In some countries, PayPal has partnered with local banks to allow its users to withdraw their earnings to their local bank accounts. For example, in Kenya, you can withdraw PayPal money directly to your Equity Bank account.
You simply need to open an Equity Bank account and link the ATM card you’ll be given to your PayPal account. From there, you can easily make withdrawals on your own through the self-service portal: selfservice.equitybankgroup.com
Apart from the three methods above, there is really no other way to withdraw PayPal money in a non-US country. However, this does not mean you cannot get paid for your online work or even start an online business. There are various options for receiving money from overseas clients or clients.
Read on for the best way to receive payments from overseas.
How to Accept International Payments
As an online freelancer or business owner starting out, you need a convenient and effective way to receive payments from your international or overseas clients. The best way of getting paid by international clients in a non US country (be it Pakistan, India, Indonesia, UAE, Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, etc.) and ensure you keep most of your payment is through Payoneer.
What is Payoneer?
Payoneer is a leader in international payments and is the preferred payment gateway for people in countries where PayPal does not work. The company enables anyone from any country to receive payments online for freelance work, affiliate marketing, or other online businesses. To sign up for a Payoneer account, CLICK HERE.
When you have a Payoneer online account, working with international clients becomes easy. Your clients or customers can pay you through Payoneer and you will receive the payments instantly. When you get the payments, you can withdraw them from your local ATM and in your local currency. If you are a member of online freelance marketplaces Freelancer , Fiverr, and others, you are probably aware of the Payoneer.
What Countries Does Payoneer Support? (200 Countries)
Payoneer works in more than 200 countries around the world. Below is the list of countries supported by Payoneer and their respective currencies:
[table “” not found /]If you live in one of the countries listed above, you get a Payoneer account and start getting paid by international clients.
How to Apply for a Payoneer Account
Signing up for a Payoneer account is easy and free. It will take you just five minutes to fill the application form. You only have to fill your name, password, security questions and personal details like date of birth, address, etc.
Follow the steps below to open a Payoneer account:
- Head over to the Payoneer official sign up page and fill the information.
- You will need a Post Office box address where your account package will be mailed. If you do not have a post office box number, you can use your friend’s, neighbour’s, etc. as long as it is a valid P.O. Box where you can be able to receive communication from them.
- After applying, you will get an email notification confirming that your account has been approved.
- You will get the Payoneer account setup package in your Post Office box. The package usually takes 21 to 30 days to reach the post office.
- When you get the account package, it will have a secret PIN. You will have to log into your Payoneer online account to activate it using the PIN.
Here is my welcome package that I got from Payoneer. Your package may be different depending on the freelancing marketplace you work with or the business that you would be starting.
As simple as that, you will not be able to receive online payments from clients from all over the world through Payoneer.
Your Payoneer account comes attached with a virtual US Bank account. This means you can accept electronic cheques and ACH payments from US clients.
You can use Payoneer in your country to:
- a) Pay for goods or services online
- b) Receive payments online from international buyers
**IMPORTANT 2018 UPDATE: Sign up for a FREE Payoneer account and get $25 for free.**
What Fees Does Payoneer Charge?
Payoneer transaction fees are very low. There is a one-time set-up fee of $9.95 for activating your account. From there, other transactions are charged 1% only. This is very cheap compared to some companies that charge up to 30 percent to withdraw PayPal money in forums. You can see a breakdown of the fees at the company’s official website.
Go ahead and apply for your FREE Payoneer account if you are working with international clients. Payoneer makes getting paid by international clients easy. Whether you are doing freelance work, online marketing, blogging, online store or other business, you can get paid through Payoneer by clients from all over the world.
IMPORTANT RESOURCES:
Sign Up for FREE Payoneer Account
Freelancer.com (Get Freelance work like writing, web design, data entry, etc.)
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About Don Modekali
Hi thanks for the insite about the payoneer master card but the part i don’t get is how to use it to withdraw from PayPal account because if i understand correctly PayPal in some African countries just recently allow users from such countries to make payment with their PayPal account for now without being able to receive payment from anywhere, so if this is the case how is it possible to use the payoneer master card to withdraw because i for example has a PayPal account that is verified but i can only use it for making online payment where PayPal is accepted and i can’t use it to receive payment which i would have love not to be, so please if you can explain a little more how to use the payoneer master card withdraw from PayPal would be great so i will know what to do when my payoneer master card arrive, it is really frustrating not to be able to receive payment through PayPal when there is so much one can do and achieve with it. From Nigeria
When you get the Payoneer card, contact Payoneer and ask them to activate your virtual US bank account. When the account is activated, attach it to your PayPal account. Now, when you get money in PayPal, you will have an option to withdraw it to the US bank account you attached. The money will take about 3 days to get into the US bank account. From here, you can withdraw the money from any ATM that accepts MasterCard.
Dear. Don
We can not add bank account to PayPal account, because you are not base in U.S. ! PayPal say “”your service is not available now”. So even you have payoneer bank account still not possible to add.
And also the link sent to my email address when i click on the free ebook is not working because i keep getting 404 forbidden, please can you resend a working link, thanks.
I just sent you the eBook. Thanks
hello after you have received your payoneer card how can I now receive money on it using paypal, because my account which I opened using my Nigerian informations with paypal says am verified even though I can’t receive money with the acount but I can send. what should I do with the payoneer to be able to receive money in my paypal open a new paypal? please reply via my email above.
Hi Steve,
After receiving your Payoneer Card, contact Payoneer and ask them to activate your US virtual Bank account. The bank account will be integrated with your Payooner card. When you log into PayPal, add the US bank account details and from there, you can be withdrawing Paypal funds to the US account and then receive the cash through the Payoneer card.
Your article was extremely well written. I applied for the Payoneer card but it never arrived. It’s almost a year now. I tried contacting their support but it wasn’t helpful so i gave up. Most of their online support is automated and there is no human being responding to issues, When i contacted them through their Facebook page, there was a real human being responding but they sent me back to their website support. If you know of any other way to deal with them i would be glad to hear. From reading wall posts on their Facebook page, i found out i wasn’t the only one with the problem. Many the people had faced the same issue. Am curious to learn more about your Don Modekali income experiments.
Hey Geoffrey,
When you first contact Payoneer, you will receive an automated reply confirming that they’ve received your question. But a real support person will actually follow up on your email. Perhaps you should write back to them again quoting your ticket number to have your issues looked into.
dear, sir
very helpful article. i have this problem too. i am from Cambodia
when i log in to my Paypal and want to add my payoneer bank account, Paypal say, this function is no available, i add only card, so does it work for just adding payoneer card?
Just as of recent, PayPal has banned Payoneer from being used with their system. Several of our clients are having issues trying to find another way to get their money out. We have been working with them to find solutions, but it has been a struggle.
It is no longer possible to add a US Bank Account to Paypal for Paypals outside the US.
Has anyone tried Auction Essistance for a USA PayPal?
Sorry, haven’t heard of them before.
Anyone found any successful alternative to Payoneer to be used with Paypal? We also got our account unlinked and having real difficulty to withdraw our $3500 🙁
Can anyone please help and provide us with a US business bank account or workable virtual bank account like Payoneer?
Sorry man..is your account limited? If it isn’t, you can use a workaround. For example, open a Freelancer.com account and create a project. Next, open a different account and bid for the project you created. Then select yourself as the winner for the project. You can then pay for the project and from the new account, you can withdraw the money through Payoneer or Skrill.
Thanks a lot for this information. It’s really helpful.
Yes, apparently Paypal stopped dealing with Payoneer. Does Paypal have its own debit or credit card that people from outside US can use?
Yes, I’ve heard reports its stopped. I’m sorry I’m not sure if PayPal have their own credit card for people outside the US. Perhaps you can contact them to find out. Twitter is a great place to contact PayPal.
Hi does anyone know if we can use Payoneer to link with Paypal yet?
Not anymore. Payoneer only offers a virtual bank account while Paypal requires a real US bank account. The Payoneer virtual bank account used to work, but not any more.
Don nice tips on how withdraw from paypal account am impressed with your write up, is it advisable to use exchangers in forum to withdraw from paypal account?
Hey Paul,
When it comes to forums, I’ve had my fair share of success and burns. You really need to do a background check with the people you want to trade with. Most forums have an iTrader rating that can show you how trustworthy a member is. Just make sure you do some due delegence. To be on the safe side, go through the past posts of the member you want to exchange with to see what he/she’s saying and what other members have been saying.
All in all, it’s a hit or miss situation. If you need to get payment, I would advise you sign up with companies that pay directly through Payoneer (or other methods e.g. cheques) but not solely through Paypal.
Hey Don,
Great write-up, very informative. I’m a freelance writer and I’ve missed out on numerous opportunities because PayPal doesn’t withdraw in Uganda.
I noticed you mentioned Equity in Kenya, can the same work in Uganda? Equity Bank has gained a pretty firm foothold here in the past couple of years.
Thanks.
Hey Mark, as far as I know, the Equity method doesn’t work in Uganda. But you may have to ask the bank.
Hello Brother,
I have successfully verified my skrill account through i sent them my passport but whenever i am trying to ‘Add bank’ of united state of america the error message still appears just like above pic shown.I am stuck how to handle this issue.
Regards
Ariyan Islam
Hi, I’m not sure whether Payoneer works with Skrill accounts.
Thanks for this blog. This is a real challenge for internet entrepreneurs based in Africa. I am in Cameroon and recently realized I can only send money. What if you create a bank account in a Country that support receiving Paypal and link that bank account to your PayPal account. Would this work?