Freelancing has been around for a while. It has saved lives, and it will continue to save lives, especially in our country, where the unemployment rate keeps going up every day.
According to Statista, it forecasted that the unemployment rate for this year has risen above 33%. This will continue to rise as more people troop into the labor market because economically Nigeria is not a Producing country they tend to import more. Personally, freelancing has helped me over the years, and as someone who hasn’t been lucky enough to get a job with his certificate, I know how amazing freelancing can be. There are lot of opportunities been a freelancer. As an unemployed citizens of the Federal Republican of Nigeria, it is really tough having an hybrid job at your disposal.
According to Payoneer, Africa has 10.1% of the world’s freelancers, and when compared to Europe’s 35%, Asia’s 21%, and Latin America’s 21.1%, it shows we have a long way to go before we get to the peak of freelancing.
Currently, Africa’s freelancer ratio is only slightly better than North America’s 4.1% and the Middle East’s 1% in the standings.
Though there are many challenges associated with the low representation of African freelancers, such as poor electricity supply, bad internet connections, discrimination, poor remuneration, and the like, the inability of freelancers to withdraw their funds is a big turnoff.
It is one thing to start earning as a freelancer; it is another to be able to have access to your hard-earned money when you need it. I remembered when I started freelancing, one of my challenges then was how to get my money out. When I made my first dollar online, I found it challenging to withdraw from Fiverr, and at the end of the day, I had to use the money for something else on the Fiverr platform apart from withdrawing.
Like me, there are thousands of freelancers out there in 2022 looking for ways to get their money from clients in freelance marketplaces, social media pages, job listings, and other avenues. If you are among these freelancers, this blog post is for you. This is a list of some hacks that I have worked for me over time and still working for others.
1. PayPal
PayPal is one of the ways you can withdraw your freelance earnings. However, as a Nigerian, it is difficult to operate a PayPal account that can receive funds.
This is because Paypal doesn’t allow Nigerians to own an account officially, but some people create accounts unofficially. So you may end up losing your funds to Paypal limitations if you are not able to verify your account with your original details.
There are several freelancers I know who have used Paypal to withdraw their funds, especially from Freelance marketplaces, but most times, they cry at the end! I have used PayPal to withdraw my funds one or two times too through an intermediary, but it’s not worth it in the end. It’s not worth it because apart from the high risk involved, the rate is very poor. Paypal exchangers buy PayPal funds as low as $300 and as high as $420. Any rate higher than this is probably a scam you should avoid.
Pros:
Easy to use
Cons:
Very risky as you can lose your funds to the platform
Full of scams as you can lose your fund to the exchangers
It is not a platform Nigerians can use.
2. Payoneer
Payoneer is probably the best way to withdraw your earnings as a Nigerian freelancer. Since I started using Payoneer to withdraw my funds, I haven’t looked for another option.
It is easy to use and set up, and they accept more than 200 countries on their platform, including Nigeria. They also have one of the best customer representatives around.
There are different ways to withdraw your money with Payoneer, and they are as follows:
Local Bank:
You can withdraw your earnings to your local bank account on Payoneer with no stress. All you have to do is set it up, and you are ready. In this payment method, the rate is usually low because funds are exchanged according to the official exchange rate of the receiving country’s bank.
Exchanger:
There are people in Nigeria that buy your dollars and give you naira instead. You just need to send your funds to the Payoneer account they give to you.
To be eligible to do this, you need to have withdrawn at least $1000 from any freelance marketplace to your Payoneer account. In this arrangement, you can sell one USD for between $ 500 and $ 580, which is a significantly better rate than other methods.
Dorm Account:
If you don’t want to use either the local bank option or the exchanger option, you can make use of the Dorm account option to withdraw your freelance earnings. You need to open a dorm account with any bank of your choice, but I strongly advise opening Access, GTB, or Heritage Bank Dorm accounts.
Opening a Payoneer account is seamless, and you will be done within 30 minutes. You only need to have a valid ID, which can be any International Passport, National ID Card, or driver’s license for your verification.
For Payoneer, the only con I see there is that you need to have sent at least $1000 to the account before you can activate the make a payment option which will enable you to send your funds to exchangers.
If you are just starting your freelance game, I highly encourage you to make use of Payoneer to withdraw your funds. Sign up for an account now and you will get $25 immediately!
3. Upwork Direct Contract
For freelancers who have clients off the marketplace, an easy way to get payment from your client is the fairly new Upwork Direct contract feature. The Upwork Direct Feature was originally designed for freelancers off their platform to get payment from clients off the platform for minimum charges. To be eligible to use this feature, you or your client must not have an account on the platform. You only need your client to give you an email that is not registered on the platform, and you are good to go. I have used this feature consistently, and I have gotten payments of close to $1000 from my clients, most of whom I met through Twitter.
Don’t wait again. Start using the Direct Contract feature to get payments from your clients.
4. Grey.co
Grey.co is a Nigerian fintech company that allows freelancers to receive payment and easy swap of foreign exchange within second and it is easily one of the best ways to get your money out at a high rate. It is simple to set up and use for every freelancer. You only need a valid means of identification to verify your account and be certified to use the platform. Grey also got some features to swap your local currency to foreign currency which a user can use to speculate of a limited time due to high rate of inflation in Nigeria. Due to NIgeria government policies which the government ban cryptocurrency in Nigeria, freelancers hasn’t enjoyed the new features of USDC ON grey. but other Africa countries can enjoy the USDC as another means of seamless transaction in mutiple means of payment method.
You’d reach investment goals faster when you separate your savings, diversify your portfolio and opt for low-risk investments. Investing in stable currencies is also essential so inflation doesn’t catch up with them.
Using your virtual account as a freelancer
With your Grey account set up, you’ll have access to a virtual bank account that can receive payments in multiple currencies, making it ideal for international freelancing. Here’s how you can use your account to simplify your finances:
You’d reach investment goals faster when you separate your savings, diversify your portfolio and opt for low-risk investments. Investing in stable currencies is also essential so inflation doesn’t catch up with them.
We recommend creating a foreign investment account with the Grey Mobile App. It’s free and available to download on the App Store and Google Play.
5. Flutterwave
Flutterwave is a payment platform that can be utilized by freelancers to get their payments from clients around the world. You only need to generate an invoice from your app and send it to your client and within moments you get your money.
The only stress in using this is that you need to pass the identity verification process. And for the experience you will get, I believe this is worth every stress.
6. Transferwise
If you don’t want to give exchangers anything out of your money, then TransferWise is the ideal option for you. This platform has an amazing rate and it is one of the best options for every Nigerian Freelancer. One of the greatest advantages of using TransferWise is that it will help you eliminate all charges you will probably get from using other platforms.
Presently, TransferWise support more than 700 country’s currency and tend to at least 6 countries in Africa including Nigeria. If you are looking to get your money out easily as a freelancer, then you should consider using TransferWise.
Conclusion
It is not enough to work as a freelancer. If you are not able to withdraw your funds, then the process is not complete. This post contains several options but the best is the Payoneer method which has different ways of withdrawal. You can also get the Payoneer Mastercard which can be used anywhere where the US dollar is spent.
