Guide

Sending money to Lebanon from the United States

The US is home to one of the largest and longest-established Lebanese diaspora communities, with particularly dense concentrations around Dearborn, Michigan. Family support transfers from the US are a significant part of the corridor.

Start with the payout form

Before comparing fees at all, settle what form the money should arrive in. As covered in our guide to fresh dollars vs lollars, that decision usually matters more than the fee difference between providers.

For most family support transfers the answer is cash US dollars or a dollar-backed wallet, which points toward the transfer operators rather than a bank route.

The 2% you can avoid

OMT — Western Union's agent network in Lebanon, with over 1,400 locations — applies a 2% cash-handling charge on inbound transfers collected at a counter, to cover the cost of keeping physical dollars in circulation. Transfers received through the OMT Pay app are exempt.

If you send monthly, having your family set up the app once is the single highest-return thing you can do in this corridor. It requires no change of provider and no change of habit on your side.

What Western Union charges from the US

The published scale runs from roughly $5 on transfers of $1–50 up to around $100 on transfers of $3,000–7,500, with the exact figure depending on amount and payment method. Because the fee steps up in bands rather than smoothly, it is worth checking whether a slightly different amount falls into a cheaper band — and, as always, comparing the exchange rate rather than the fee alone.

Before you send

1. 1.Confirm the payout will be in US dollars, and in what form.
2. 2.Check whether app collection avoids a handling charge that counter collection would incur.
3. 3.Compare the total cost across channels on our comparison page.
4. 4.Keep the reference number until your family confirms they have the money in hand.