TransferWise (or Wise) enables convenient and cost-effective international money transfers. However, you may occasionally encounter transfers being paused or delayed for various reasons. Having your money seem stuck mid-transfer can cause stress and disruption, especially if you or the recipient urgently require the funds.
The good news is that with systematic troubleshooting, you can diagnose why your TransferWise transfer was paused and take steps to get it moving again promptly. This guide will explore the common causes of paused transfers, how to investigate the specific reason in your case, and recommended actions to resolve delayed or stalled transfers.
Why Transfers Get Paused in TransferWise
There are a handful of potential reasons your TransferWise transfer may enter a paused or stalled status:
Identity Verification Needed
TransferWise deploys advanced security systems to protect against fraud and abuse. If you initiate transfers with larger amounts or new recipient accounts, TransferWise may pause the transaction as a precaution while re-verifying your identity. This involves uploading fresh copies of your government identification. Providing your ID details promptly can unblock the transfer.
Suspected Fraud Triggers
TransferWise uses intelligent algorithms to monitor for warning signs of potential fraud or suspicious activity. While important for security, these automated systems can sometimes misinterpret valid transactions as risky, inappropriately pausing your transfer. Explaining the legitimate context for the payment can help clear up the confusion and get your transfer moving.
Technical Difficulties
Given the technical complexity of global money transfers, occasional software bugs, glitches, or outage issues can interrupt the transfer process, leading to unexpected pauses. Most of these technical pauses resolve on their own within a few hours as engineers fix the underlying systems. A short delay to work through technical problems is not uncommon.
Incorrect Account Details
If you mistype or incorrectly enter any of the recipient’s account details, routing numbers, addresses or other transfer specifics, TransferWise may pause the transaction pending clarification of the accurate details necessary to complete processing. Double checking all entered details can catch input errors.
Delays at Recipient Banks
Even after Wise releases and routes your funds, short delays of 1-3 days can occur if the recipient bank experiences processing backlogs on their end before crediting the money to your recipient’s account. These bank-side delays are outside of TransferWise’s control.
Regulatory Compliance Holds
To comply with anti-money laundering regulations and identity verification rules, TransferWise may temporarily pause transfers while confirming recipient identity details and legitimacy. These regulatory pauses aim to keep TransferWise compliant with strict financial laws.
Diagnosing the Cause of Your Paused TransferWise Transfer
When your transfer stalls unexpectedly, start troubleshooting by checking your TransferWise account dashboard and transaction details screen for any notifications explaining the reason for the pause. TransferWise generally indicates why they blocked a transfer, such as needing additional ID verification.
If the cause of your paused transfer remains unclear, contact Wise’s customer support team and ask them to diagnose the specific reason. They can investigate and inform you if they require more details, identifications, or anything else from you to release the funds.
Checking the detailed transaction timelines and descriptions often provides clues into exactly where and why your transfer is frozen so you know how to resolve it.
Getting Paused Transfers Moving Again
To get your stalled Wise transfer back on track, take the following systematic troubleshooting steps:
- Identify the exact reason for the pause by carefully checking TransferWise’s transaction notifications, timelines, and transfer status. Contact support for assistance if the cause remains unclear.
- Provide any requested identity documents or missing account details to TransferWise quickly and completely. Failing to supply required information delays resolution.
- Closely review all account numbers, addresses, and other transfer specifics entered to catch and fix any typos or accidental input errors.
- For short delays from recipient bank acceptance issues or minor technical glitches, allowing 1-2 days often enables these to resolve on their own.
- Supply clear documentation validating the context and validity of the transfer if it was flagged for suspected fraud. The more justification you provide, the faster the transfer can proceed.
- If delays exceed 2 business days with no progress, politely request TransferWise escalate your case to specialized support representatives who can investigate and prioritize resolving your stalled transfer.
- As a last resort for completely stuck transfers, cancel and re-submit the transfer to restart the process afresh.
Approach troubleshooting step-by-step and patiently, while also seeking help from TransferWise’s support team when needed. With consistent collaboration, most paused transfers can get moving again within a few business days.
Also read: Why Has My TransferWise Account Been Deactivated?
Preventing Future Transfer Delays
Once you get the stuck transfer finally delivered, take measures to avoid encountering pauses again in the future:
- Maintain updated identification documents and details in your TransferWise account profile so they can be instantly verified for future transfers if needed.
- Carefully verify all account numbers, addresses, and other transfer specifics before sending to avoid input errors that stall transactions.
- Separately notify recipients to watch for incoming transfers so they know to expect the funds.
- Stick to transferring to recipient accounts that you’ve sent to previously without issues.
- Consider splitting very large transfers into smaller amounts to avoid triggering oversensitive fraud detection.
- Always include a short memo noting the reason and purpose when sending transfers above $1000.
- Before initiating a transfer, confirm the recipient’s bank properly integrates with TransferWise to avoid endpoint issues.
Staying proactive and attentive can help minimize encountering stalled transfers in the first place. Open communication and quick responsiveness to TransferWise’s information requests is also key to avoiding lengthy pauses.
With systematic troubleshooting and support assistance when required, you can get paused Wise transfers back in motion within a few business days in most situations. Consistent diligence prevents dealing with stalled transfers repeatedly.
