Yesterday, I got my Google Adsense earnings via Western Union. For a change, though, I opted to pick up my payment at a branch of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI).
Yes, for those who do not know it yet, you can go to BPI or any other local bank to get your Western Union payments.
The requirements are the same. You need to show valid IDs and you need to fill up the same “Receiving Money” form.
However, in the case of BPI, you need to wait for several hours before you can get your money. That’s because the branch still has to send a communication to the head office where your Western Union payment request will be verified and then processed.
Of course, I was not willing to wait at the bank yesterday so I just instructed the staff to directly deposit it to my savings account. After two hours, I got a message from the bank staff that the transaction is complete and my account has been credited with the payment.
Like in other Western Union branches, there are no fees to receive the money except for the 0.15% documentary stamp tax.
Was it worth it? Not for me. I don’t think I’m willing to wait that long just to get my payment. In other Western Union branches, I only have to wait for around 10 minutes before I can get the money.
This was the first and probably the last time I’ll use BPI to get my Adsense earnings. Next time, I’ll just go to a WU branch near me to pick up the payment.
