International travel is (finally!) back after a sporadic few years of the pandemic. Not every country is completely open, but the resourceful traveller can make it work for many destinations. And, how to transfer money for living and travelling abroad is easier than ever.
When I started travelling in my early 20s, there was always an urgency to carry cash in different currencies while travelling. Especially, to avoid expensive credit card and debit fees. And, I had to call my bank ahead with all my travel dates to prevent my bank account from being blocked. Then, once I returned home after travelling, I had to sort out all of the foreign currency. I probably still have change from this!
Long story short: there was no easy way to transfer funds abroad, and return it after.
Now, when travelling I rarely think about taking out cash in different currencies. Although cash is still good for emergencies. As technology has advanced, so has the options for funding travel abroad.
When it comes to transferring money overseas and safely, it’s not like buying health insurance—there isn’t an abundance of options. Many money transferring sites, are country-specific due to different legalities and insurances, such as Venmo.
There are a few options though to transfer money for living and travelling abroad. Just remember that there are lower-cost options, but nothing is free when it comes to moving money. Fees are also meant to guarantee the safety of transferring funds.
Travelling to Australia on a Working Holiday Visa? Check out this guide on how to get a bank account.
Personal Banking and Cash
Most people, before travelling would have their money in a personal bank in their home country. While travelling, taking cash from an ATM abroad may still be appropriate. Carrying large sums of cash isn’t recommended as it could be stolen, and each country has regulations for bringing in cash.
It can also be difficult to get used to the new currency in each country, and how much each bill is for.
Check with your bank on what fees are charged when taking out money internationally, such as at an ATM. It’s definitely worth it to shop around and possibly open a second account, or move your account to a more travel appropriate bank. Such as a bank without regular membership fees, so you can just focus on travelling.
Often banks have international relationships with other banks, which may wave fees from ATMs internationally. Not all banks or fees are alike, so check with your own bank for fees.
When it comes to transferring money to travel and live abroad, banking fees are inevitable. If there are fees to take out cash, make sure to take out more at once instead of multiple transactions. Personal banking cards don’t generally work like credit cards do while travelling, so it’s better to use them for taking cash out only.
Credit Cards
Using credit cards abroad are protected, safe and insured in most cases (though check with your supplier). Most of the world doesn’t use credit cards, but they do have their place. Especially when you’re not spending more than you have, and readily paying the balance.
In Canada, many debit cards have transaction limits per month, which encourages the use of credit cards over cash spending.
For international travel, credit cards can be really helpful in airports, restaurants, tourism and all sorts of trusted businesses. What can go wrong, is when credit cards are compromised, aka someone tries to steal your money and credit card details. It’s hard to get a new credit card mailed out while you’re travelling. For this, it’s important to be mindful and have other options than a credit card.
Depending on the credit card provider, there may and most likely will be fees on top of the regular spending. This may be currency conversion fees, but could include other fees. Talk to your provider to be informed on these before travelling. From experience, my credit card is ideal for short vacations when I don’t want excess cash. It’s also great for emergencies, and makes it easy to record where your money is going.
Due to COVID, there’s an ongoing amount of businesses that no longer or prefer not to accept cash, which is why carrying a credit card may be helpful. Some businesses may charge extra fees for international credit cards on top of what your bank is charging as well. Overall, credit cards can greatly assist with emergency situations and paying for a multitude of things while travelling abroad.
Transfer Money with Wise
Not everyone is able to get a bank account in a foreign country when travelling, but when it’s possible, transferring money becomes a whole lot easier with Wise (Transfer Wise).
Previous to knowing about Wise, I would take out cash from my home bank account to move it to my new bank account in Australia—where I’ve been living and travelling for the last few years. There’s way more fees and work into this. I would be charged for the currency conversion, and a flat rate for taking out cash. There’s also limits to how much cash can be taken out at a time, which creates more fees.
Using Wise, I can set up international bank transfers, which are both legal and insured to transfer money between accounts. This can be done in different currencies and the fees are way lower than international bank drafts, and taking out cash. There’s also less work put in, as I don’t have to make phone calls or monitor the transfer, Wise updates me when each processes is complete.
If you don’t have banks in multiple countries, it is possible to set up banking with Wise, or even credit cards for travelling.
Travelling to Australia on a Working Holiday Visa? Check out this full guide on how to get started in the country. Or this post for choosing a bank account while living in Australia.
