Mum’s light is about to finish, Dad’s GOtv has expired, and your younger brother needs data for school. If you live in the UK, US, Canada or anywhere else, you can pay bills in Nigeria from abroad yourself, in minutes, without sending cash and hoping it gets used for the right thing.
Here’s how to fund a BillBoxs wallet with a foreign card and pay for airtime, data, TV and electricity straight to your family’s phone, decoder or meter.
How it works
- You add money to your BillBoxs wallet with a Visa or Mastercard issued abroad.
- You pay for things in Nigeria directly: their phone number for airtime and data, their smartcard or IUC number for DStv, GOtv or Startimes, their meter number for electricity.
- They receive it straight away, and you get a receipt. No transfer fees to family, no cash going missing.
How to fund your wallet with a foreign card
- Create your free account. Your account works from anywhere. (You’ll need a phone number to confirm your account; a Nigerian number works best.)
- Tap + Add money and choose Paying from abroad.
- Enter the amount in naira. The app shows you roughly what that is in dollars before you pay.
- Enter your card details on the secure payment page and approve the payment with your bank (you may get a code or a prompt in your banking app).
- Your wallet is credited as soon as the payment is confirmed.
Guide rates today: $1 ≈ ₦1,550 · £1 ≈ ₦2,050 · €1 ≈ ₦1,800. Your card is charged in naira and your own bank sets the exact exchange rate.
Good to know: your card is charged in naira, and your bank converts it from pounds, dollars or euros at its own rate. Some banks also add a small foreign-transaction fee. Cards with no foreign-transaction fees (common with travel cards and many app-based banks) usually work out cheapest.
If your card is declined
Foreign cards are sometimes declined the first time because the bank hasn’t seen a payment to a Nigerian business before. Try these:
- Approve the payment in your banking app if it asks, then try again.
- Turn on online and international payments for the card in your banking app.
- Call your bank and tell them you’re making a payment to a business in Nigeria.
- Try a different card, for example a debit card instead of a credit card, or another bank’s card.
- If you still have a Nigerian bank account, you can add money by bank transfer or USSD from it instead.
What you can pay for family in Nigeria
- Airtime and data for any MTN, Airtel, Glo or 9mobile number. See today’s cheapest data bundles.
- DStv, GOtv and Startimes. We show you the account name before you pay. See how to renew DStv or GOtv online.
- Electricity tokens for any prepaid meter. We show you the name and address on the meter first, and you can send them the token on WhatsApp. See how to buy a prepaid electricity token online.
Set it and forget it with Auto-renew
The best part when you live far away: turn on Auto-renew. Pick what to pay (for example, Mum’s GOtv every month or ₦5,000 of power for the house every two weeks), choose how often, and we’ll pay it for you from your wallet or saved card. You get a notification each time, and you can pause or stop it in Profile → Auto-renew.
We also remember the decoders you pay for and remind you before a subscription runs out.
Fees
Here’s what it costs today:
| What | What you pay |
|---|---|
| Adding money to your wallet | ₦100–₦1,000: ₦10 ₦1,001–₦2,500: free ₦2,501–₦5,000: free ₦5,001–₦10,000: free ₦10,001–₦50,000: free ₦50,001+: free Bank transfer to our account: free |
| Airtime | Face value · no extra fee |
| Data bundles | The plan price you see |
| DStv, GOtv, Startimes | Package price · no extra fee |
| Electricity | Amount you choose · no extra fee |
Your own bank may charge a foreign-transaction fee on top, as above.
Card, bank transfer, USSD or a card from abroad.
Create a free accountFrequently asked questions
Can I use a UK, US or Canadian card on BillBoxs?
Most Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards issued abroad work. If your card is declined, approve the payment in your banking app or call your bank, then try again.
Do I pay in dollars or naira?
You pay in naira. Your bank converts it from your currency at its rate and shows the final amount on your statement.
Can I use BillBoxs without a Nigerian bank account?
Yes. You can add money with a foreign card and pay bills without a Nigerian bank account.
Can my family see what I paid for?
You get the receipt. For electricity, send them the token (copy it from the payment in History). Airtime, data and TV go straight to their line or decoder.
Is it safe to use my card?
You enter your card details on the secure page of a licensed payment company, not on BillBoxs. Read more in Is BillBoxs safe?
