What is PIX?
As you can see in the photo above, PIX is a form of instant payment that the government of Brazil has introduced to make payments safer, low-cost and quick.
2. Why should you use PIX?
Probably one of the biggest reasons to use PIX is speed, yes, that's right, PIX is indeed an instant way of paying in Brazil and it will make your life easier while staying in Brazil.
However, something else really important about PIX is that it is available 24/7 with low-cost fees and we all know that fees can make us bleed money in a foreign country.
Here's an example, if you use Wise which is an app used very often by foreigners to pay in Brazil, not only you will pay big transaction fees and get horrible currency exchange rates, you will also need to wait about 3 business days for your payments to be received if you opt-in for a bank transfer to avoid transaction fees mentioned above.
Where is the catch, you ask? Well, PIX got canceled on Wise and most forms of PIX are locked behind heavy requirements like owning a bank account, being a naturalized Brazilian or being married to a Brazilian to get Brazilian residency.
Well, this blog post will show you the way to pay by PIX as a foreigner with a fixed transaction fee as small as 1,5 EUR!
3. How do I pay with PIX?
The way to use PIX as a foreigner is by using Paysend app (referral).
You will need your phone number to set up an account and the whole process is so simple it shouldn't take more than 5 minutes to be ready for payments!
After you confirm the code with your phone, make sure to link the card you will be using to make payments, it can be Mastercard, Visa, UnionPay and many more types of payment.
Paysend currently supports over 170 countries for receiving money and about 49 as of today for sending money, here's a full list of supported countries.
4. PIX keys and transfer limits
PIX key (chave) is how one identifies themself in PIX payments, PIX key can be a CPF, e-mail address or phone number.
Make sure to confirm full name of the recipient before confirming the transaction and share the receipt with the recipient as a proof of payment.
Limits of PIX payments on Paysend are as following:
You can raise the limits by verifying your residential address.
OBS: PAYSEND USES BANK NAME FOR PAYMENTS AND NOT YOUR ACTUAL NAME, SO I DO NOT SUGGEST MAKING BIG PAYMENTS OVER PAYSEND SUCH AS BUYING REAL ESTATE, BIG INVESTMENTS OR LARGE MOVEMENTS OF MONEY SINCE IT COULD BE CONFUSING FOR THE RECIPIENT.
INSTEAD, OPT-IN FOR WISE (REFFERAL) AND PLAN 3 BUSINESS DAYS AHEAD USING BANK TRANSFER TO PAY LARGE SUM OF MONEY WITH NO FEES.
CONGRATULATIONS, YOU CAN NOW USE PIX AS A FOREIGNER!
