Financial tip of the day.com - FREEDOM THROUGH FINANCE
Social Sites
  • Financial Tip Of The Day
  • Books
  • Websites
  • Contact Us
  • Disclosure

GETTING MONEY IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY

23/12/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture

What's the cheapest and easiest way to get money in a foreign country? Believe it or not it's ATMs. There are some arrangments that you have to make prior to leaving though.

Always call the card companies and tell them that you'll be gone and when you'll be back. A debit card is worthless if you can't use it. Set your pin at 4 digits (some atms don't let you put in more than that). Be sure to have an account that reimburses you for ATM fees all over the world. Banks like Charles Schwab and Trustco pay you back for the ATM fees you incur. They do this because it's cheaper than having to manage a whole slew of ATMs at their own expense.

Also when you get money from an ATM overseas you get the best exchange rate. I used my on a recent trip to prove all of this with real world examples. Here's how it's broken down...

My bank reimbursed me for fees and there was only about a 1.5% spread between the market rate and when Charles Schwab charged me. This is incredibly efficient!

But what if there are no ATMs in the airport? I've never run across this, but let's say that it does happen. It's always a good idea to take say $100 in clean $20s with you no matter where you go. The airport will always have money changers. These money changers will charge you around 4-5% of your trade. This is the second best option.

But let's say for some reason there also aren't any money changers. If this is the case than you're in a third world country and the people in that country will gladly take your American dollars because they have a shit currency.

One advantage of being an American is that we have the reserve currency of the world. Even foreignors take our currency with them when they travel. Poorer countries love American dollars and sometimes prefer them to their own. With that said they may not give you the best exchange rate when you buy something.

What not to do: do not get currency from the bank prior to leaving. This may sound scary, but unless you enjoy getting ripped off, don't do this! I've seen people doing this and when I examine the bank receipt they end up paying between 10-20% of a fee for exchanging them! 10-20%!!!!

1. Take both a Visa and MasterCard debit.

2. Make sure your bank will reimburse you for ATM fees.

3. Get money from the ATM at the airport.

4. Always take $100 just in case.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    This website was created due to the atrociously misguided financial advice that I've heard over the decades.  Financial freedom is not intellectually strenuous, but it takes discipline. 

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    BHAG UPDATE
    College Savings
    College Savings
    Credit
    Economics
    Estate Planning
    Estate Planning
    Financial Planning
    Financial Planning
    Insurance
    Investing
    INVESTMENT JOURNAL
    Mistakes
    Net Worth Update
    Retirement
    Tax
    Thrift

    Archives

    October 2017
    August 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    January 2011

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.