Getting paid as a Nigerian freelancer: every route I have used since 2017, with what it really costs

Every week somebody in my DMs asks "Tobi how do you collect your money?" So I am writing it once. This is from my own wahala, not from a sponsored post. Fees change, check them yourself before you trust me.

1. Upwork to Payoneer to local bank

This is my main road since 2017. Upwork releases, I withdraw to Payoneer, Payoneer converts and sends to my naira account.

• The cost you see: a small withdrawal fee.
• The cost you do not see: the exchange rate. Payoneer gives you a rate below mid-market, roughly 2% worse in my experience. On $3,000 that is $60 every month, gone quietly.
• Good: reliable, fast, works with most platforms.
• Bad: you are converting at their rate, on their day, not yours.

2. Domiciliary account (dom account)

A USD account in a Nigerian bank. Direct clients wire to it with SWIFT.

• The sender pays their bank fee, maybe $25 to $45. Then an intermediary bank in the middle takes $15 to $30 and nobody, I mean nobody, can tell you which bank or why.
• Sometimes $2,000 arrives as $1,957. Put this in your invoice: "all transfer fees to be paid by sender (OUR)". Some clients will do it.
• Good: your dollars stay dollars. You convert when you want.
• Bad: the bank will call you for "documentation" the first few times. Keep your contract and invoice ready as PDF.

3. PayPal

A Nigerian PayPal account can send but cannot receive. That has been the story for years. Please stop telling clients "pay me on PayPal". They will send it and it will just sit there or bounce. I have seen people lose clients over this.

4. The USD account apps (Grey, Geegpay, Raenest, Cleva and co)

Local fintechs that give you a US account number (ACH) or a UK one. For direct clients this changed my life. The client pays like they are paying a supplier in Ohio, you receive in USD, you convert in the app.

• Good: clients do not need to know anything about Nigeria. Fast.
• Bad: limits, and some of them have had KYC wahala. Do not keep all your money in one app. I mean it. Spread it.

5. Crypto (USDT)

I used it from 2020. Client sends USDT, I sell P2P for naira. It worked when nothing else worked. I stopped after the Binance wahala in 2024 because my bank started asking questions every time naira came from a P2P buyer, and one frozen account is enough for one lifetime. Some people still use it fine. I am too tired.

6. The naira part (lived experience, not economics class)

In early 2023 I was selling dollars on the parallel market at around 750. In June 2023 the exchange windows were unified. By February 2024 I was seeing above 1,500. My rent is in naira. My landlord reads the news too, so the rent followed the dollar, not the other way.

What this taught me:

1. Invoice in USD. Always. Never accept "we pay you in naira at today's rate" from anybody, including Nigerian companies.
2. Keep 3 months of expenses in USD. That is your shock absorber.
3. Do not convert everything on payday. Convert what you need for the month. The rest waits.
4. Have two rails working at all times. When one app freezes you, the other one feeds you.
5. Keep records. Contract, invoice, platform payout email. Banks and tax people both love paper.

E no easy, but it is possible. If you are a client reading this: ask your Nigerian freelancer which rail they prefer. It costs you nothing and it saves them real money.