The BEN fee option is the choice, made when sending an international wire, described in full under BEN (Beneficiary Pays All Charges). Under this option, every bank in the chain, including the sender's bank, may deduct its fees from the payment, so the recipient receives less than the amount sent.
BEN is one of three standard charge codes used in SWIFT payment messages, such as the MT103 and its ISO 20022 equivalent. The others are the SHA fee option, where sender and beneficiary share the costs, and the OUR fee option, where the sender pays everything and the beneficiary should receive the full amount. Businesses choose BEN when the recipient has agreed to bear the cost, for example in some supplier contracts, though it can cause disputes when invoices are paid short.
The phrase "BEN fee option" is simply the menu label that banks and payment platforms use for the BEN code; there is no difference in meaning. Within the European Economic Area, rules generally restrict the use of BEN and OUR for payments where both banks are in the region, favouring SHA.