Supporting your family in Tanzania, paying for goods or services, or expanding your business? Regardless of what your reason is, knowing how to send money from Kenya to Tanzania effortlessly is essential.
This guide explores various reliable and cost-effective methods for cross-border money transfers.
Table of contents
1) How to send money from Kenya to Tanzania via M-pesa (Send to Mobile)
M-Pesa’s Global option allows direct transfers from your Kenyan M-Pesa account to a Tanzanian mobile account. This method is convenient and relatively affordable.
Here’s an in-depth guide on how to send money from Kenya to Tanzania via M-Pesa:
Opt In to M-Pesa Global:
You need to activate this service once:
- Via USSD
- Dial *840# from your Safaricom line.
- Follow the prompts to accept the terms and conditions.
- Alternatively, opt in using the M-Pesa app
- Open M-pesa app
- Navigate to the Transacttab (bottom of your screen)
- From the options, select Global.
![How to Send Money From Kenya to Tanzania 1 Opt-in to M-pesa Global choose Global option](https://money.ke/wp-content/plugins/speedycache-pro/assets/images/image-palceholder.png)
- Enter your region β¦ in our case, we simply entered Kenya
- Accept Terms and Conditions
- Click on the Opt-in button to register.
- You will receive a prompt to confirm your registration by entering your M-pesa pin.
After successfully opting in, you will receive a message from Safaricom welcoming you to the M-pesa Global service.
Sending money from Kenya to Tanzania via Mpesa App
Now that you have successfully opted in, here are steps to take when transacting:
- Open M-pesa app
- Navigate to the Transacttab (bottom of your screen)
- From the options, select Global.
- Choose Send to Mobile option
![How to Send Money From Kenya to Tanzania 2 How to send money from Kenya to Tanzania using M-PESA Global](https://money.ke/wp-content/plugins/speedycache-pro/assets/images/image-palceholder.png)
- You will be presented with a list of supported countries. from the option, simply choose Tanzania (+255).
Countries to which you can use this mobile option for:
Tanzania (+255) | Rwanda (+250) | Uganda (+256) |
Zambia (+260) | Malawi (+265) | Botswana (+267) |
Burundi (+257) | Pakistan (+92) | Bangladesh (+880) |
![How to Send Money From Kenya to Tanzania 3 Send money from Kenya to Tanzania Rwanda Uganda Zambia Malawi Botswana Burundi Pakistan Bangladesh via Mobile M-pesa Global](https://money.ke/wp-content/plugins/speedycache-pro/assets/images/image-palceholder.png)
- Select the contact you want to send money to (only +255 contacts show up) or enter the phone number manually)
- Enter the amount you want to send
- Select source of funds:
- Salary
- Business
- Savings
- Others
- Select purpose of funds:
- Personal consumption
- Investment / business
- Pension
- Gift / Donation
- Others
- Confirm transaction
You will see a message in this format:
Recipient Name: JANE DOE Amount: KES 101 Exchange Rate: 1 KES = 17.691 TZS Amount Sent: TZS 1804 Charge: 0 1:Confirm 2:Reject 0:BACK
Enter 1 to confirm if everything is in order
- you will then receive a prompt to enter your M-pesa pin to confirm the transaction
Sending to Tanzania via Mpesa USSD (Send to Mobile)
- From your phone, dial *840#
![How to Send Money From Kenya to Tanzania 4 USSD 840 M-pesa Global send money abroad](https://money.ke/wp-content/plugins/speedycache-pro/assets/images/image-palceholder.png)
- Choose Send Money Abroad
- Select Send to Mobile
- Select the country (Tanzaniawas 3when we were drafting this post)
![How to Send Money From Kenya to Tanzania 5 USSD 840 send money from Kenya to Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Burundi Botswana Pakistan Bangladesh Malawi Zambia](https://money.ke/wp-content/plugins/speedycache-pro/assets/images/image-palceholder.png)
- Enter your recipient number in the format 255XXXXXXXXX
- Enter the amountyou want to send in Kenya shillings (KES 101 -250,000)
- Choose the source of funds
- Choose the purpose of funds
- Confirmdetails
- Enter your M-pesa PIN to confirm the transaction
KES to TZs
M-Pesa will apply the current exchange rate to convert KES to Tanzanian Shillings (TZS).
You should be able to see this rate when confirming your transaction in step 9above.
2) Roaming Pickup
If you are visiting Tanzania, then the best option is to use the Roaming Pickup option to transfer money for use while in the country.
Here are the steps:
Via the M-PESA App:
- Open the M-PESA App on your phone.
- Go to the βTransactβ tab.
- Select βGlobalβ and then βRoaming pickup.β
- Provide the Vodacom Agent Number.
- Enter the amount you want to withdraw (minimum TSh 2400 ~~ about KShs 133).
- Confirm all the transaction details and enter your M-PESA PIN.
Via 840 USSD
- From your phone, dial *840#
- Choose Roaming Pickup
- Enter the Agent Number
- Enter amount to withdraw in TSH
- Confirm transaction details and enter your PIN.
3) How to send money from Kenya to Tanzania bank accounts
You can also send money from Kenya to Tanzania banks directly from within MySafaricom or M-pesa App.
Here are the exact steps:
- Open the Mpesa app
- Navigate to the Transacttab
- Choose the Globaloption
- Select the Send to Bank option
- Enter customer details
- First name
- Middle name (optional)
- Last name
- Address
- Select a Tanzanian bank(eg Akiba Commercial Bank)
- Fill in bank details
- Bank name
- Account number
- Purpose of Remittance
- Family support / Living expenses
- Gift
- Education / school fee
- Emergency / medical aid
- Savings
- Travel expenses
- Enter the amountto send in KES
- Choose the source of funds (salary, business, savings, other)
- Confirmdetails
- Enter your M-pesa PIN to confirm the transaction.
4) How to send money from Kenya to Tanzania via Western Union
Western Union is a reliable global money transfer service with a wide network of agent locations in both Kenya and Tanzania.
If you prefer Western Union, follow these steps:
- Open your M-PESA App: Log in to your M-PESA app using your PIN.
- Navigate to the M-PESA Global Option:
- Go to the “Transact” tab.
- Choose “Global“.
- Select “Western Union“.
- Under counties, search and select Tanzania
- If you’ve sent before using this service, you may see past recipients under FREQUENTS.
- Enter Recipient Information:
- First name
- Middle name (optional
- Last name
- Enter the amountin Kenya shillings
- choose a source of funds
- select purpose of funds(personal consumption, investment, pension, gift, other)
- Confirmdetails then click on the Send to Western Union button
- You will be prompted to enter your PIN to complete the transaction.
After successfully completing the transfer, you will receive a 10-digit MTCN number that your recipient can use to collect funds at a Western Union agent in Tanzania.
Recipient collection (Tanzania):
- Visit a Western Union Agent: Your recipient should locate a Western Union agent location in Tanzania. A list of agents can be found on the Western Union website.
- Provide ID and MTCN: The recipient needs to present a valid government-issued ID and the MTCN you sent them.
- Receive Funds: Once the Western Union agent verifies the details, they’ll release the money to your recipient in Tanzanian Shillings.
Additional tips
- Track your transfer: You can track the status of your transfer using the MTCN on the Western Union website or app.
- Customer Support: If you encounter any difficulties, contact Safaricom M-PESA customer support or Western Union customer support for assistance
5) Sending money from Kenya to Tanzania via Airtel Money
If you are an Airtel Money customer, you can send money to Tanzania using the 334 USSD option.
simply follow these steps:
- Dial *334# on your phone
- Enter your Airtel Money PIN.
- Choose the Send Money option
- Under Send to, select Another country
- Choose Tanzania
- You are then presented with 3 options:
- Airtel money
- Vodacom or Mpesa TZ
- Tigo Tanzania
- Chooseyour option. in this case, we will choose Vodacomas an example
- Enter recipient number in the format 255XXXXXXXXX
- Enter amountin KES
- Reviewtransaction details
- Enter your Airtel Money PIN to confirm the transfer
You could also do the same via My Airtel App
Important things to note
- Double-check Details: Thoroughly verify the recipient’s name and phone number before finalizing the transfer.
- Customer Support: Contact Safaricom customer care if you encounter issues.
Conclusion
M-Pesa’s Global option provides a quick and straightforward method to send money from Kenya to Tanzania.
By following the steps above, you can support loved ones or conduct business across borders with ease.