I am a US citizen living and working in Spain. I have been struggling with both Spanish and American banks when it comes to finding the easiest and least expensive way to make my student loan payments.  I am sure there are others living and working here that have student loan payments as well and I am curious if anyone has any advice they can offer as to how to they have dealt with this issue. Thanks!

Wow.

I’m currently a U.S. resident looking to move back to Spain. When I leave, I will still have student loans to pay. I’m looking to maintain my main bank, PayPal and Money Bookers accounts. I figure I will be able to make payments from there with no fees attached.  I also have pre-paid Visa cards that I can transfer funds onto from any account that I have. When I make purchases and payments with those I don’t have to pay fees. I also have an e-trade.com account that I can draw from with both Checks and a Visa Check Card. I can also transfer funds to that account from any account I have. I don’t have to pay a fee when I use the checks and check card for my e-trade.com account. e-trade also takes automatic payroll deposits at no charge; so does both of my pre-paid visa cards.

So, my suggestion is to looking into American alternative financial services that will allow you to move money around so that you don’t have to pay a fee, or pay a very low fee.  You could also physically withdraw your money from your Spanish Bank, convert it to a money order via Western Union and mail it in.