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UBank No Longer Charging Overseas ATM Withdrawal Fees or Foreign Exchange Conversion Fees

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UBank No Longer Charging Overseas ATM Withdrawal Fees or Foreign Exchange Conversion Fees
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bauser99 on 20/08/2018 - 10:53 ubank.com.au (4483 clicks)
Last edited 20/08/2018 - 11:21 by 1 other user

I just received this email from UBank today in regards to their USaver Ultra transaction account, this is now matching the Citibank Plus transaction account I normally use for overseas ATM withdrawals:

What’s changing?
Starting today we’ll no longer charge you a $4 withdrawal fee at ATMs overseas, or the 2% Foreign Exchange fee for Ultra card withdrawals and purchases. And while we’re talking about overseas transactions, just a reminder to always make sure you press Credit while making a purchase or withdrawing overseas. Great news if you travel or make purchases from overseas.

We’ve also updated the terms and conditions to:
- flag that merchants might charge you a fee when you use your card with them (these fees aren’t charged by us, but we wanted to ensure you knew);
- confirm that the eligibility criteria for your account (eg, having Australian mobile number) need to be met at all times while you hold your account;
- clarify how we treat information about joint accounts; and
- tidy up some information that was out of date.

When do these changes take effect?
- The new USaver Ultra terms and conditions, which incorporate these changes, apply to your account straight away.

Referral Links

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Referrer and referee each receive $20 after referee makes 5 settled card purchases within 30 days.

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Comments

  • Turd on 20/08/2018 - 10:56
    +7

    This is good.

    • Ryk on 20/08/2018 - 16:30
      +12

      Now, if we could have UBank activate Apple Pay and NPP, that'd be great, thanks.

      • caseyfw on 21/08/2018 - 15:43
        -2

        Melbourne-based 28degrees credit cards have no annual fee and support Apple Pay. 28degreescard.com.au

        • ilikeradiohead on 22/08/2018 - 11:42
          +3

          That is a credit card. This is a bank account. They serve different functions for a lot of people, especially with regards to NPP.

        • lplau on 22/08/2018 - 11:51

          @ilikeradiohead: I know Citibank has Apple Pay and Samsung Pay, but unsure if their debit card Citibank Plus is eligible….

          Citibank Plus is pretty much the same product as this, everyday bank account with debit card.

  • AdamFury on 20/08/2018 - 10:57

    Just read about this change this morning actually. Very happy about the change.

  • KBZ on 20/08/2018 - 11:01
    +5

    Really good.
    Has better interest rate than ING 2.87% vs 2.8% and a higher balance limit 200K vs 100K.
    Easier criteria to hit the bonus interest min $200 deposit a month and no 5 transactions for ATM free.
    Easier process to sign up than Citi in my experience, had to go to PO for ID checks for Citi for everyone I knew.

    But ING still better if overseas ATM providers will charge you to use their ATM.

    • Mokr on 20/08/2018 - 11:27
      +1

      Its great but customer service is not as great as ING if you have an issue.

    • Wilburre on 20/08/2018 - 11:39
      +2

      I couldn't sign up for Citi - poi was sent through auspost then citi cancelled my application so i said stuff it and signed up with Macquarie who will refund australian atm charges and no overseas atm fee (though they won't refund), and all this with no hoops to jump through each month like ING (no min deposit or transactions). I visited 14 countries in europe in December/January 17/18 and no atm's charged me a usage fee but im sure you could get charged atm operator fees overseas. Macquarie was 100% online application for me as well.

      • [Deactivated] on 20/08/2018 - 12:45
        +3

        Macquarie is awesome! Shame their savings account is average post-intro rate (4 months I believe?)

        • Yola on 20/08/2018 - 12:49

          Even that is not very good, several others have 3.05 including Citi.

      • kaihoc on 20/08/2018 - 14:10
        +1

        They didn’t support Auspost (deposit/withdrawal) at the time I have their account. The only way was to deposit in other bank account and transfer the money to it. Not too good. Are they support auspost now?

  • mbck on 20/08/2018 - 11:01
    +9

    wow very nice. don't need my citbank plus anymore considering all my savings are in ubank

    • sklzthtklz on 20/08/2018 - 11:21
      +2

      I would suggest comparing the exchange rates between the two banks, my NAB travel card offers about 6% less dollarydoos than my Citi card

      • mbck on 20/08/2018 - 11:28
        +1

        Agree will need to read tnc

      • jdogg on 20/08/2018 - 11:34
        +14

        The exchange rate is set by either visa or mastercard. Unless you have a specialty travel card that you load money on to.

        • flavable on 21/08/2018 - 11:45
          +1

          Upvote. I've been finding the Visa (which UBank uses) exchange rates are a less favourable than MasterCard.

          • BluebirdV on 13/10/2020 - 16:42

            @flavable: How much less favourable are visa exchange rates than mastercard? Say per $100 you withdraw in the other currency?

      • em on 20/08/2018 - 11:37
        +5

        Travel cards are not the same and interest rates are usually set by the bank.

    • bigcocktony on 20/08/2018 - 12:48
      +5

      Handy to still have Citibank as it is Mastercard whereas ubank is visa (at least mine are anyway). I've been in situations overseas where only one is accepted (usually where one sponsors an event, e.g. visa sponsored the world cup so at all games and fan zones you could only pay with visa or cash)

  • Aniseed Steed on 20/08/2018 - 11:03
    +9

    Also, remember that Live Sweeps won't work when choosing "credit", so you'd need to have enough money in your Ultra to cover the withdrawal.

    • spaceflight on 20/08/2018 - 11:08

      I have had sweeps work when I have used credit before, has it changed?

    • potm on 20/08/2018 - 11:45
      +1

      I actually prefer it that way. I want to limit the amount of money that may be spent if the card was lost overseas.

      • spaceflight on 20/08/2018 - 12:56
        -8

        Australia is the worst place to lose your card.

        We have the highest spending limit without requiring a pin.

        • Pandaroo on 20/08/2018 - 14:39
          +1

          No way, you don't even need a pin in a lot of countries.

          Lose your card in Japan and someone can just sign your whole card away in one shot (if you're stupid enough to sign the back of your card with your real sig.)

        • Member 0230 on 21/08/2018 - 09:27

          @Shibbyyy: Waitasec… you're saying it's generally a bad idea to sign the back of your card with your real sig? And does everyone else do this as a security measure and I've been living under a rock (entirely possible)?

        • mrau on 21/08/2018 - 10:04
          +1

          @Shibbyyy:

          You can't use your own card if you can't reproduce the signature at the back. The other thing is that it doesn't matter how you sign, as the thief will copy whatever is there. Hard to understand what were you trying to say.

        • niffy on 21/08/2018 - 12:12

          @mrau: I was in Korea/HK 2 weeks ago. When I was buying duty free on my card, they only accepted signature (no PIN) and even then they didn't even check how it was signed against my card. So overseas in an Asian country, I don't think it will be that hard to spend someone's savings…

        • racetolive on 22/08/2018 - 20:50

          @niffy: most of the stores do not check the signature. I had a replacement card once and went to shop to buy something. They lady at the counter asks to show the signature. I realized that I didn't sign the card. I asked the lady for a pen to sign the card on the spot. :)

        • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 21:13

          @racetolive: Yep as my experiences. Most don't check, and because of how prominent PIN usage/contactless is these days, I actually don't tend to sign the back of my card. Then there'll be that one time where a cashier/staff member notices, and I'll just sign my card for them in front of them.

          • GOCAT9 on 17/03/2019 - 09:59

            @illumination: I think that all those people who advocate NOT signing the back or your card before use are running a great risk. On one hand you are enjoying (read expecting) all the protections that using a credit card gives, but you are unwittingly putting all of those at risk and being caught with your pants down because at the end of the day you have violated the T&C of the card’s usage. You are then open to being denied any protections offered to you by the card issuer. Keep that in mind if you don’t sign the back of the card since I know of no exceptions of the card issuer requiring you to do this before use!!

    • [Deactivated] on 20/08/2018 - 12:51

      Interesting.
      CREDIT certainly works for me.

      • furyou on 02/09/2018 - 10:12

        I've had it work perfectly up until now. I use the OzB trick to keep ultra at $0. Since this news, I found that FB can't charge the card [because you may have reached your card limit], but paypal can. I see a lot of 'pending' transactions lately tho.

    • Ryk on 20/08/2018 - 12:52

      I've had ATM withdrawals decline, sweep not work, regardless of the "account type" selected.

    • muncan on 20/08/2018 - 15:07
      +2

      Also, manually sweeping money before an OS withdrawal could be tricky if they still require an SMS security code for transfers, if you don’t have access to your AU SMS while OS.

      • Aniseed Steed on 20/08/2018 - 16:05
        +2

        No SMS code is required for transfers between your UBank transaction and savings accounts.

        • muncan on 20/08/2018 - 16:19
          +1

          Tested & confirmed. Thank you.
          Cancelling Citibank Plus. Woohoo!!

        • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 20:33
          +2

          @muncan:

          Why though?

          • It's cost a thing to hold
          • It's a Mastercard (it's good to have variety as pointed out above)
          • Withdrawing from Citibank ATMs overseas is cool, because you get to see exactly how much in AUD will be deducted for the amount you're withdrawing
          • I've never ever seen any sign-up bonuses on the card, so cancelling it to be a new customer doesn't seem like it'll help.. unless you're speculating that this might be a thing in the future?!
        • muncan on 22/08/2018 - 22:02
          +1

          @illumination:

          • It's Citibank
        • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 22:33

          @muncan:

          Haha. You hate them that much..?

        • muncan on 23/08/2018 - 15:13

          @illumination: we all do

      • racetolive on 22/08/2018 - 20:50

        What are the ways to deposit the money in the account? Can you use post office?

    • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 20:50

      What is a "Live Sweep"? Tried googling and didn't find it.

      This doesn't sound like a problem unique to selecting "Credit" though. This would be the case on your ING, Macquarie and Citibank account when selecting "Savings" too, would it not? You can't withdraw if you don't have enough cash.

      • bluesky on 23/08/2018 - 16:34
        +1

        The Usaver Ultra Sweep is a feature only relevant to the Ubank account.
        Here is how it works:

        The Sweep moves money on your behalf - so you'll always have some money on hand, and some money enjoying big interest.

        MIN amount of cash you need to have available on your Visa Debit Card: Any time your Ultra drops below the MIN amount of cash you need, we'll send some cash over from your Linked USaver account to top you back up.
        MAX amount of cash you need on hand every day: If your Ultra gets an influx of cash that takes you above the MAX amount of cash you need, we'll automatically send the surplus to your Linked USaver account to earn big interest.

  • doweyy on 20/08/2018 - 11:03
    +2

    This is awesome, might be time to switch to uBank, thanks for the heads up!

  • iFetch on 20/08/2018 - 11:04

    Does anyone know what the FX conversion rates should be like? Should they be as good as Citibank or BankWest Zero Platinum card? I might test this next time I'm overseas.

    • Aniseed Steed on 20/08/2018 - 11:07

      Visa rates, I'd say.

    • kevind23 on 20/08/2018 - 11:35

      The rates are set by Visa. You can check them here:
      http://usa.visa.com/personal/card-benefits/travel/exchange-r…

      • alexshel on 20/08/2018 - 23:47

        any proof of it on ubank website? did they ever disclose how the international currency transaction conversion rate is structured? i doubt.

    • alexshel on 20/08/2018 - 23:45

      i guess their exchange rate would include all the cancelled fees. that's how banks make money.

  • dufflover on 20/08/2018 - 11:09

    Does this mean it also outdoes the Bankwest Zero and 28D cards as a way of getting cash from overseas ATMs? They had the $4 fee or % charge, but often still competitive enough rate vs overseas exchange places.

    • Make it so on 20/08/2018 - 11:17
      +1

      Bankwest Zero and 28D have been charging for overseas ATM withdrawals for years (Bankwest always has). The only other card I know which does not charge is Citibank Debit Plus. It seems this card is near identical.

      • ATangk on 20/08/2018 - 12:14
        +1

        ING Direct doesn’t charge, does it?

        • SomeGuyOnOzB on 20/08/2018 - 13:27
          +10

          I think ING Direct even refunds the fees charged by the overseas ATM owners, in addition to not charging their own fee.

        • chav on 20/08/2018 - 16:21
          +2

          @foundit:
          so far with my international withdrawals, you are correct, everything refunded

        • giles on 20/08/2018 - 23:09
          +3

          @foundit: Yep, works really well for me abroad. I've seen some ATM owners charge the equivalent of A$12 or even A$18. ING is so much better than my old option (Citibank Plus debit card), as withdrawing cash is completely fee-free at any ATM – I used to have to research or shop around for the right ATM. Stuff doing that while on holiday!

          Note though: you have to satisfy ING's usage threshold. Under the current promotion, ING refunds ATM owners' fees as long as you deposit $1,000 or more per month and make 5+ card purchases that are settled (not pending) each month.

          https://www.ing.com.au/everyday-banking.html

        • KingNgope on 22/08/2018 - 19:17
          +1

          @foundit:
          Can confirm this on my most recent trip. Just need to make sure you hit the criteria of $100 dep PM and 5x Card Transactions.

        • SomeGuyOnOzB on 22/08/2018 - 23:10

          @KingNgope: $1,000 or $100?

        • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 23:25
          +1

          @foundit: Definitely is $1000.

        • danielh on 23/08/2018 - 14:23

          Offer will apply for the next calendar month when you perform the following during the current calendar month:
          * Deposit at least $1,000 from an external bank account to any personal ING account in your name (excluding Living Super and Orange One), and
          * Also make at least 5 card purchases that are settled (not pending) using your ING debit or credit card (excluding ATM withdrawals, balance enquiries, cash advances and EFTPOS cash out only transactions).

          I was going to do this for an upcoming trip but just realised I had to have done it a month in advance and I'm flying out in two weeks time. My backup is the CBA Platinum AMEX card for fee free international transactions but I think I get charged for ATM withdrawals though (which I really won't need anyway).

      • Ryk on 20/08/2018 - 12:53
        +3

        Macquarie Bank

      • Love a bargain on 20/08/2018 - 14:12
        +4

        Citibank can potentially work out better than UBank if a Citibank ATM is available at the overseas location (for the avoidance of ATM fee)

    • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 20:37
      +1

      The Bankwest Zero and 28D cards were never the best way to withdraw from an ATM overseas, even back in the day when they didn't have a $4 or % charge. Why? Because if you overpaid your Credit Card by, say, $500, and you spent $600 on it, you could no longer use it to effectively withdraw money.

      i.e. your 28D was only "effectively" a debit card only if it was in Credit. It limited its flexibility as a product and this is why it always made sense to hold a Citibank Plus card alongside it.

      If you could not get a Citibank Plus, different story, but it's a Debit Card so it wasn't exactly hard to get.

      Different story now. There are more Credit Cards that waive foreign transaction fees, and more debit cards that do the same and charge no overseas ATM withdrawal fees.

  • BertieBrown on 20/08/2018 - 11:21
    +8

    I’ve been pretty happy with UB. Was with ANZ, and wasn’t getting interest, switched over and got my interest last month. I mean, I felt like a moron for being with ANZ for so long, but I guess better late than never.

  • Dwil06 on 20/08/2018 - 11:22

    Have applied for a 28 Degrees card as we are heading to the US for 3 weeks. Is this a better option? Would we load cash on this and pay with credit and also use it to withdraw cash as needed? Thanks in advance.

    • CyberMurning on 20/08/2018 - 11:24
      +2

      28 degrees are CREDIT CARD this is for taking local currency from ATM.
      different purposes just like apple and android.

      • AncientWisdom on 21/08/2018 - 03:43
        +3

        Apple and Android have the same purpose…

        • CyberMurning on 21/08/2018 - 07:52
          +4

          To empty our wallets….

    • Xizor on 20/08/2018 - 12:28

      Yes. This will be best for ATM use. For in store transactions can use either.

    • dazweeja on 20/08/2018 - 15:33
      +2

      You don't want to use 28 Degrees to withdraw from ATM, it's treated as a cash advance. You want this, Citibank Plus, Macquarie or ING. If you meet the criteria, ING is the best as you will get ATM operator fees reimbursed too.

      • CyberMurning on 20/08/2018 - 15:34
        +1

        yeah crazy some people still cant see the difference between 28 and citi/ing.
        its crystal clear, one is CC one is DC

        • dazweeja on 20/08/2018 - 15:38
          +7

          There was a loophole that was closed (in 2013 I think) where you could put the 28 Degrees card in credit and withdraw with no fees. That's long gone but maybe the legend lives on ;)

        • sitdowndisco on 20/08/2018 - 18:34
          +3

          @dazweeja: That wasn't a loophole. That was a feature from day one and they got rid of the 28D main selling point.

        • chiwi on 20/08/2018 - 18:37
          +1

          @dazweeja: yes that was a good deal back then as I used to travel with just my 28Degrees as it offers a Credit and Debit function! Now I combine the 28 Degrees with ING Direct for overseas travel.

        • GOCAT9 on 20/08/2018 - 22:51

          @chiwi: That's my winning combination also. Also carry a Citi+ as backup, but have never needed it. Also, ING works in Cuba, most other cards won't!!

        • giles on 20/08/2018 - 23:12
          +2

          @chiwi: I used to have 28 degrees, but now prefer Bankwest Zero Mastercard, as it offers complimentary international travel insurance as well. Neat if you use the card to buy your airfares.

          https://www.bankwest.com.au/personal/credit-cards/no-annual-…

          • chiwi on 14/03/2019 - 20:08

            @giles: Sorry late reply! But thanks for the tip as I will sign up with Bankwest for the travel insurance!!!

        • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 20:39

          @GOCAT9:

          Also, ING works in Cuba, most other cards won't!!

          Interesting. Why is that?

          • GOCAT9 on 17/03/2019 - 10:35
            +2

            @illumination: Because most other cards are ascotiated in some way with an American based bank, eg ANZ,CBA,Westpac etc. ING is based on a bank in the Netherlands!! Cuba has a jihad on cards linked to USA in some way, that’s why!!

        • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 20:40
          +1

          @sitdowndisco:

          That wasn't a loophole. That was a feature from day one and they got rid of the 28D main selling point.

          I don't think it was a "selling point" in that it was never something openly advertised.

          Even then, this was only advantageous to those who only had a 28 Degrees and not a Citibank Plus, which isn't logical as the Citibank is in fact easier to get given that it is not a Credit Card.

          If you had a Citibank Plus, it wouldn't have made any sense to use this feature of a 28D.

        • drmarshall on 24/08/2018 - 17:54
          +1

          @illumination: If they are an American company it won't work in Cuba. America citizens have to load up a Canadian prepaid debit cards to withdraw money from an atm. They also charge an extra 10% commission when converting US dollars on top of the 3% commission.

        • illumination on 24/08/2018 - 19:00

          @drmarshall: Amazing bit of trivia. Never knew that.

  • CyberMurning on 20/08/2018 - 11:23
    +6

    "confirm that the eligibility criteria for your account (eg, having Australian mobile number) need to be met at all times while you hold your account;"

    when we are overseas, taking money from ATM they wont send any sms codes, right?
    because my mobile number cant go roaming even if i want to (kogan) - i cant receive smses or calls.
    so if i dont have autralian mobile phone number while overseas basically i am against their t & c ?

    • em on 20/08/2018 - 11:36

      Yeah that is confusing - another issue to be clarified.

    • kevind23 on 20/08/2018 - 11:39
      +2

      They require an SMS code for transactions done in their mobile app, like transferring funds or paying via bpay.

      Never been asked for an SMS code for an ATM withdrawal, although when travelling with Citi in the past, they did call my (not-roaming-capable) Australian number to confirm it was not fraudulent. I found out when my next ATM withdrawal was declined and called them, and they removed the fraud flag. I'm sure you would be able to do something similar with UBank should the situation arise.

      • CyberMurning on 20/08/2018 - 11:41

        They require an SMS code for transactions done in their mobile app, like transferring funds or paying via bpay.

        agree with bpay, but how about from saving to ultra? also need sms code? sorry i should just try myself haha lazy

        • spaceflight on 20/08/2018 - 12:58
          +2

          They don't SMS you at ATMs and I'm sure they don't for transfers between you own accounts as they are known/trusted accounts that are linked by the bank.

        • Aniseed Steed on 20/08/2018 - 15:04
          +1

          With linked accounts (in your name) which have been verified for at least 10 days, you can send up to $5k without the need for an SMS, any amount above this would still require an SMS.

    • illumination on 22/08/2018 - 20:42

      "confirm that the eligibility criteria for your account (eg, having Australian mobile number) need to be met at all times while you hold your account;"

      Read that again

      so if i dont have autralian mobile phone number while overseas basically i am against their t & c ?

      and then this.

      While you're overseas, you are still "holding a UBank account". You still have an Australian number (linked to the Ubank account).. so no, I don't see that as you breaching their T&Cs.

  • dane45 on 20/08/2018 - 11:26

    Great news! Although I'm guessing it still won't be possible to move money in UBank while overseas :(

    Will probably keep my Citibank Plus account for now, even though UBank aren't charging for overseas ATM withdrawals the ATM operator will still likely charge a fee.

    • em on 20/08/2018 - 11:35
      +1

      Yes - clarification on this would be good. I have used Citibank debit the last few times overseas but it's the only time I even have money in my account.

      Would be good to streamline my bank accounts as I already have a uBank for savings.

    • CyberMurning on 20/08/2018 - 11:39

      why wont be possible? from saving to ultra, just need internet connection, right? at hotel wifi etc

      • poochi on 20/08/2018 - 11:57
        +2

        Might be because every time you want to transfer money out UBank requires you to confirm with a code sent to your registered mobile phone number, and you'll likely be on another SIM.

        • PotPlant on 20/08/2018 - 12:10
          -2

          We are living in Thailand at the moment. I have just put a family member's Australian mobile phone number on my account profile, and every time I need an SMS code for a Ubank online transaction, said family member just Whatsapp's or Viber's me the code. Works well. But then again I am grateful to be part of a very kind and supportive family.

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