What is Flywire?

You may have heard of Flywire if you’ve ever paid your foreign university fees. Many universities work with it to collect tuition from students all over the world. It seems easy at first: you pay in your own currency, Flywire changes it, and the institution gets the money in their account.

But here’s the catch: if you go to a UK university and your tuition is in GBP, or if you go to a Canadian university and your tuition is in CAD, Flywire only lets you pay in INR or USD. That’s where the extra costs come in.

The Conversion Game: INR/USD → GBP/CAD

What’s the problem with this? Let’s make it easier to understand by giving an example.

Let’s say your tuition is £10,000. If Flywire only allows you pay in INR, your bank first changes INR to USD, and then Flywire changes USD to GBP. That’s two conversions, and each one has a fee.

• Step 1: Change INR to USD (the rate your bank gives you plus any fees)
• Step 2: Change USD to GBP (Flywire’s own exchange rate plus a hidden markup)

What happened? A bill with a greater fee for you. What could have been a simple transfer turns into a costly detour.

If your fees are in CAD, the same thing happens. Flywire sends it through USD, adds its spread, and you end up paying more for nothing.

Why does Flywire do this?

The short answer is: money.

Flywire makes it easier for universities to collect fees, which is why they sign contracts with them. They don’t have to deal with hundreds of little foreign transactions anymore; they only have one streamlined channel. The university benefits from that, but the students have to pay for it.

Flywire makes sure you can’t get GBP or CAD rates directly from your bank or another supplier by making you pay in INR or USD. This lets them add a secret fee to the exchange rate. A 1–2% margin on a big tuition rate means that each student pays thousands of more rupees. Flywire loves this approach since it works for millions of students.

What Students Really Pay

A lot of the time, students don’t know how much these double conversions cost until the money is gone. If you’re sending ₹10 lakh for school,

• With Flywire, you could lose ₹25,000 to ₹40,000 more than the actual fee after converting from INR to USD to GBP.
• The process doesn’t seem very student-friendly when you add in the extra time and money needed for remittance certificates.

And keep in mind that this loss happens every time you pay fees, not just once. The extra cost for a degree that lasts more than one year can be in the lakhs of rupees.

Do You Have to Use Flywire?

Here’s the good news: You don’t have to utilize Flywire.

Universities simply worry that the right quantity of money in their currency gets to their account. You can choose any channel you like, as long as it is legal, clear, and follows RBI rules. Flywire might be the “default” choice, but you don’t have to use it. Students can look into other options, and they should.

The Best Way: Direct Transfers in GBP or CAD

You can pay your university fees directly in GBP or CAD instead of passing through Flywire’s INR/USD detour.

This is where IBRLIVE, a money transfer service approved by the RBI, comes in. It doesn’t lock you into double conversions like Flywire does. You may send INR to GBP or INR to CAD in one go, at the current market prices, with full transparency.

It’s evident what the benefits are:

• There are no hidden margins other than what you see.
• Direct transfer in the currency of the university.
• Lower overall cost, which saves students tens of thousands.
• Quick and compliant, with the right receipts for visa and money evidence.

 Easy Case Example

Simran  is an Indian student going to the UK. The cost of her school is £15,000 a year.

• She pays in INR through Flywire. Her bank changes INR to USD, and then Flywire changes USD to GBP. In the end, she has to pay around ₹45,000 more in hidden fees.
• She pays INR directly converted to GBP through IBRLIVE. The money goes straight to her university’s account, which saves her the whole additional margin.

She saves more than ₹1.3 lakh throughout three years of study, which is enough to pay living costs for a month abroad.

Last Word

Flywire’s INR/USD-only payment option isn’t meant to benefit students; it’s meant to make money by hiding exchange margins. But students aren’t stuck. You can avoid  double-conversion traps,  save a lot on costs, and have a  clear, easy process by picking wiser options like IBRLIVE and paying straight in GBP or CAD.

Every rupee counts when it comes to paying for college/uni. You don’t need to give it away; you can keep it for yourself.