Everything tourists need to know about currency

If you are going abroad on vacation or on a trip, you will need local money, because not everywhere accept dollars or euros, and even more so rubles. Unfortunately, it is not always possible in Russia or other CIS countries to buy the right currency at once, but you have to use an intermediate global currency, i.e. first buy dollars or euros at home, and then change them to local in the country of rest. And by the way, even if you find at home the currency of the country that you need, this does not mean that you will get a good rate, but rather the opposite. Unfortunately, the rates of unpopular currencies are very unprofitable in the Russian Federation, and more often you will lose less if you first exchange rubles for dollars.

• Therefore, the first rule is not to take rubles abroad to those countries where rubles cannot be paid
• And the second rule is not to buy a currency other than the dollar or euro at home.*

* - an exception if you can buy the currency you need not through banks and exchange offices, but exchange it at a reasonable rate from friends, for example, if they have the currency you need after a vacation.

How to change currency more profitable

The ruble exchange rate constantly jumps and is almost not predictable, so it is difficult to gain a good rate now, Luck is more important here than an accurate calculation. Nevertheless, at least a little to make the exchange more profitable.:

First of all, do not change in the first bank. Unfortunately, in the largest Russian state bank, exchange rates are extremely unprofitable, but you can easily find out the current rates for different banks in your city online and choose the best one so as not to wander around exchange offices.

You can also gain a little when exchanging online. Internet banks of many Russian banks today allow you to open an account in foreign currency and change money from your current ruble money account directly on the Internet. Then the changed amount is withdrawn through the cashier or ATM without Commission.

Some banks now charge additional fees when exchanging small amounts. For example, one of the major banks retains 250 rubles of commission when exchanging amounts up to 300 dollars or euros. To avoid this commission, plan to exchange immediately the necessary amounts for the trip, so that you do not have to "domenile"later.

When you change rubles to dollars or euros at home, you need to take into account some nuances:

• For old issues (years) and small bills of dollars or euros, the exchange rate abroad may be lower. Therefore, ask for large and new bills when exchanging.
• Banknotes with seals, marked with a pen, crumpled or dirty (in banks the term is used for such - dilapidated), old-style, may refuse to accept for exchange at all, or they will be offered a lower rate. Therefore, when exchanging, inspect each bill, and refuse the bad ones.

You can convert the currency of any country to the currency of any other country on our calculator.

Conversion takes place on the basis of Official World exchange rates. The exchange rate in exchange offices in practice may differ from that obtained in our calculator, since the exchange is always charged a commission in the form of a difference in rates.

How to exchange currency for small bills

Sometimes you need to have small bills of dollars or euros in your hands, for example, to pay for a visa, or to exchange a small amount at the airport for the first time. But to make a change in banks or exchangers at home will not work: you will be offered to first transfer your 100 dollars, for example, in rubles, and then back to dollars, but in small bills. And this is a big loss due to the difference in rates.

The only way we know is to make a purchase in a duty-free zone (duty-free) at airports or ground crossings. You can buy something inexpensive, and change at your request you will be given in currency.

If you need to exchange large bills of 500 dollars or euros for one hundred dollars, there is another effective way, although for this you must have a multi-currency card and an ATM that accepts currency. It is enough just to deposit 500 dollars or euros to the card in cash, and then withdraw 400 and 100.

How to change bad bills

If you have bad bills in your hands (dilapidated, old issues, marked or stamped, dirty, torn, etc.), then they may well refuse to be accepted for exchange abroad. Unfortunately, to apply to a bank in the Russian Federation for exchange for new ones, as can be done with rubles, will not work. But you can try to change one of these ways:

• Exchange currency for rubles, and then back to the currency, but then you will lose on commission.
• Exchange dollars for euros, or vice versa euros for dollars, and go abroad with them.
• Pay for a small purchase in a Dutch-free store and get change with new bills.
• Create a current (non-deposit) dollar account in the bank, deposit the amount there through the cash desk or ATM, and then withdraw them again. All these operations take place without commissions, so you will lose absolutely nothing. But perhaps in some banks you will have to issue a bank card for deposit and withdrawal for a small fee.

Restrictions on the import export of currency from the country

There are both restrictions on the export of currency and money from Russia, and the same restrictions on entry/exit in other countries. However, do not worry about this, because most often these are quite large amounts, besides in some countries there is no limit at all, but there is only a limit over which cash should simply be declared, i.e. entered into a special form and presented at customs upon request. Therefore, it is not superfluous to clarify these issues in advance before the trip, so as not to encounter trouble already at the border.

For Russia at the moment (2018), it is necessary to declare any foreign or Russian cash currency in the amount of more than 10,000 US dollars. that is, if you have less than this amount, you can not worry about anything at all, and if more, then you just need to declare it. Traveller's cheques also apply to cash currency.

Features of currency exchange abroad

• Currency exchange abroad, depending on the country, can be carried out in banks, authorized exchange offices, hotels, private "money changers". Keep in mind that in some countries it is illegal to exchange at non-licensed locations. And you can "rattle" the police along with an unofficial "money changer".
• The exchange is made only of full bills, without change. ie, you can not change 50 dollars from a 100-dollar bill.
• The exchange rate at airports and border crossings is almost everywhere unprofitable, it is better to change only small amounts for the first time.
• To determine whether you have a favorable exchange rate, you can not even compare it with other exchange offices. To do this, you can use the life hack, which is described in detail here...
• It is not always possible to exchange at a reasonable rate the currency of the country of your holiday back to one of the world currencies. Therefore, it is better to calculate your expenses in advance and change them gradually, so that you do not have to exchange them back later.

How to change money so as not to be deceived

In the Russian Federation, when exchanging money in official points and banks, there are almost no problems with deception, only in very rare cases. Abroad, with the deception of tourists when exchanging currency, you can meet much more often. The list of ways to cheat is endless, but here are those that are most common::

• Cheating with the exchange rate and commission. It consists in the fact that the signs write a high rate, but when you exchange it turns out that you received much less. To indignation, you will simply be told that the signboard is the old rate, or that a commission is charged for the exchange/deception. In order not to get into such a situation, before transferring money, ask you to write exactly on a calculator or paper how much you will receive for exchanging your specific amount. In honest exchangers this will be done without question.
• Refusal of exchange. If for some reason the exchange did not take place and your money is returned to you, be sure to recalculate it.
• Substitution of bills. Again, if for some reason the exchange did not take place, when recalculating, check whether your bills were replaced with fake ones.

In general, we (the authors of the site) have developed such an algorithm and rules of behavior when exchanging currency:

• Before you start the exchange, be sure to make sure that there is no commission and vague rates. To do this, ask that you write on paper or on the screen of the calculator the exact amount that you will receive, and recalculate it yourself on the smartphone calculator at the rate that you are offered.
• If you have started an exchange, you should not be distracted by anything, but focus only on the exchange: no conversations with your companions or strangers, conversations on the phone, surfing the Internet.
• Money is best transferred through a paperweight, if possible. ie you present your bills to the exchanger, he counts them in front of your eyes, and puts them on the table between you, pressing the paperweight.
• When you receive an exchange, carefully count them in front of the exchanger, and check with the amount discussed earlier. It is better to count twice and check each bill, because in countries with a large number of zeros on bills it is very easy to inexperience to accept 10,000 instead of 100,000, for example.

This is all you need to know about the currency before you go on a trip. If you have something to add or discuss on this subject, write in the topic on our forum or leave a message at the bottom of this page.