One of the biggest problems that face overseas freelancers is finding a way to withdraw the money they get paid by their clients to their international bank accounts in their countries. While most western clients prefer paying with Paypal, unfortunately, the later does not provide a way to transfer money internationally for most countries.
There are however alternative payment processing companies to Paypal that provide the ability to withdraw your money straight to your international bank account, while allowing your clients to link their US or European bank account just as easy as with Paypal.. Here are a couple of good payment processing sites that I used personally which have been very reliable and had very reasonable withdrawal fees for international money transfer:
Money Bookers
This is a company based in London, UK. Once you open an account with them, you will need to verify your address then link your international bank account. Many freelancer sites will be happy to transfer all your payments to your Money Bookers account. You can also ask your clients to send payments to it. They allow bank wire withdrawal to a SWIFT bank account. The fees are very reasonable (around ~ $5 per wire transfer depending on the Euro to USD transfer rate today, 4 Euros per transfer). The only problem with this site is that they may not deal with US customers, so this could make it hard for your US based clients to use it to send you your payment. In that case, check the next site:
AlertPay
This is a Canadian based company that opened in 2005. They seem to be the closest match to Paypal, which many US clients would prefer. Once you open an account with them, you'll need to verify it by uploading a picture ID (e.g. scanned passport) and a verification of address. You US client would then link their bank account to deposit money and send it to you, then you would link your international bank account then you would be able to transfer money to it by wire, or by check. The most expensive option (wire transfer) costs $15 per transfer. There is also a 2.5% fee on the receiving end.
I've used both methods, and have had no trouble with them at all. Much better alternative than Paypal if you are an international freelancer living overseas.