When the involved US bank allows it, I usually use an international Bank-to-Bank money transfer using the IBAN & BIC/SWIFT numbers.
IBAN= International account number
BIC/SWIFT=Bank code
AFAIK, all European Union banks use these codes (even if you don't see them directly on your bank reports) and quite a number of US banks also use it.
These codes uniquely identify the accounts/owners and allow traceability.
The cost depend on the banks and type of transfer with the following options:
- all costs covered by sender,
- sending costs covered by sender & receiving costs by recipient.
I typically pay EUR 3,25 to send money from France to the US with the first option and EUR 4,75 with the second option but your mileage may vary.
Etienne
Edited: 29 Apr 2006, 4:40 p.m.