Foreign ATM - an advice

[Toby]

Just wanted to make aware of banks trying to take more money from you, when you take cash from ATM's with a credit or debit card.

Not sure if worldwide, but for sure in Brazil it's common that the ATM's ask you, if you want your card to be charged with your home currency, or the foreign currency.

ALWAYS choose the foreign currency, because if you accept the conversion rate, you loose 10-15%.

ATM's ask you also, if you "accept" the conversion rate, but DECLINE it. And the ATM charges the foreign currency, which is cheaper.

E.g.:

My card is from a German bank (Euro).
You want 1000 BRL in Brazil.
ATM charges 24 BRL for service.
So ATM asks you do you want to be charged in Euro or BRL.
if you choose BRL, you pay currently +-150 Euro
If you choose Euro, you pay currently +- 170 Euro

So be warned and don't let banks rob you.

Hope it helps

[merl]

Unless your home bank/cc is ripping you off, this applies to all purchases outside of your own country. Car rental, purchases on Amazon - you get a better deal if you pay in the local currency.

Better still, get a free multi-currency card from (Transfer)Wise (you can use my signup link to get a free international transfer of up to EUR500 https://wise.com/invite/u/davids4382) and get an even better deal when you spend abroad or withdraw cash. I use mine a lot for international purchases. You can also look at Revolut which is very similar.