Payments in foreign currencies when travelling and online

Payments in foreign currencies. Not everyone has several accounts with different currencies and a credit card to go with them. Even if you do you don't want to use many cards. At the same time you travel a lot and there are always many currencies. How to effectively deal with payments in foreign currencies on the Internet and when traveling is covered in this article.

Travelling and payments

When travelling, one deals with various problems. As I'm no longer tied to one workplace, I travel a lot more, including abroad. One of the things that one then has to solve is how to pay abroad, so mainly how to pay in a foreign currency. The traditional practice of the previous generation was to calculate the expenses before leaving and exchange the amount for cash. If you have only one destination and a precise plan, hence also a budget, why not – after all, cash is taken everywhere. However, nowadays there is much less planning and plans change dynamically. There is also travel to more than one country. If the Czech Republic had the euro as its currency and you only travelled in the European Union, it would be fine. However, you often travel to more distant countries and need different currencies. You can exchange cash at your destination, but it depends on what exchange office or ATM you come across. You may run into various fees or even nasty ATM fees, see Zdenek Rubes. Euronet ATMs.

Personally, I've paid an unnecessary withdrawal fee, had an unfavourable exchange rate, or even had my money exchanged twice at a bad rate. So how does one pay in a foreign currency conveniently and without it being unnecessarily expensive?

Multiple currencies, multiple cards

The easiest way is to pay by card, and with a card in the given currency. And for smaller expenses, maybe make one cash withdrawal at the beginning. This assumes you have multiple accounts in different currencies and different cards to go with them.

Curve card

If, like me, you don't want to carry multiple cards, I recommend getting a Curve card, which lets you use a single card and, by switching in the mobile app, decide which underlying card the money is drawn from. When you also link corporate cards to a given card, you can conveniently carry just one card instead of a bundle of, say, eight. What's more, the mobile app also instantly shows you an online overview of your payments so you can keep better track of your payments.

Revolut card

Revolut card supports different currencies on one card. The Revolut card also allows for a more favourable exchange rate. Typical usage is that you charge the card first and then exchange the money into the currency of the country you are in as needed.

I've used the Revolut card in Slovakia, Poland, Austria and during nomadic stays in Las Palmas in the Canary Islands.

Topping up

You can top up your card by paying with another card or by bank transfer. Topping up by card payment is of course the fastest.

Money transfer

You can conveniently use the card instead of an exchange office or ATM withdrawal at a very favourable exchange rate. Do it whenever you want and very quickly. You don't have to search for an exchange office or ATM and run the risk of them not being decent.
You can also use the card as a mere currency exchange. You send money there and after a favourable exchange you send the money in the new currency to your bank account.

Payments

You can make payments with your Revolut card online, at a terminal or withdraw cash at an ATM, always in the currency of the country; you just need to have a sufficient amount of that currency on the card.
The process is typically as follows:

1. On Revolut you transfer money in the currency you have (CZK for us).
2. You convert your money to euros in the mobile app on weekdays. This gives you euros or another currency at a favourable exchange rate. Do not top up EUR from your CZK card, because then your bank will do the exchange, which is not optimal!
3. You can then deal with the given amount of EUR as normal as with any other card. Or transfer the money to your account.

Terms and Conditions

It's a good idea to study the Revolut terms and conditions!

You can exchange a certain amount of money per month without a fee – CZK 25,000.
CZK 4,500 can be withdrawn free of charge at an ATM.
Limits are probably set for each country in its currency.
They do not charge a fee for currency exchange on weekdays (from Sunday 17:00 EST to Friday 16:00 EST), except for non-standard currencies.

Other features

• Instantly sending payments to other people who have Revolut.
• Transaction tracking and statistics.
• Buying stocks, cryptocurrencies, etc. (note that cryptocurrencies are not in your wallet, but with the provider).
• Virtual card used for one-time payment.

Other nice benefits

The mobile app keeps the last known information, so even without the internet you can look at the last downloaded balance and payment history. Of course, you need internet to update. The mobile app does not need a fast data connection, so it works even where the Internet is poor, e.g. only EDGE.

Electronic payments are a convenience

Personally, I prefer to pay in cash. After all, we don't have to have everything digital and moreover managed by central organisations, but these cards are so convenient that I use them when I travel. Otherwise, I see a future in decentralised currencies like Bitcoin etc. I also add links to cryptocurrency exchanges: Bit.plus, Coinbase, Coinmate.

The links to the services in question are affiliate links, so by purchasing the service through that link you are also supporting me.

When you want to transfer larger amounts at a favourable rate, use: Europlatba, Citfin, Roklen and more.