Should I Get AUD with Me before Arriving in Australia?

LGottfrieden on 11/07/2024 - 22:54
Last edited 11/07/2024 - 22:54

Hi guys,

I'm planning to travel to Melbourne for a year as I found a job there.

I've been reading online that it can be very useful to bring some AUD when travelling to Australia (I'm from France) but wanted to know what's your thoughts about it?

I understand that it can be useful to have some cash when travelling to some parts of the world (such as Asia, as some shops don't accept credit cards) but is that true also for Australia?

Thanks for your help and can't wait to come and discover your beautiful country!

Travel

Comments

  • bargaino on 12/07/2024 - 14:17
    +1

    Sounds like two separate questions there.

    When travelling, always carry some cash for emergencies. Euros will be fine until you land, and draw some AUD from a machine when you get here.

  • MITM on 12/07/2024 - 15:55
    +2

    Can't remember the last time I got cash out from an ATM.

  • Gottfrieden on 12/07/2024 - 23:52

    Thanks guys, that's very helpful.

    I guess I will follow what most of you said: get a Revolut to change my euros into AUD and open an account in Australia as soon as I land.

    • belongsinforums on 13/07/2024 - 12:21

      some banks charge fees for a savings account, such as commonwealth. avoid these banks.

    • Zapwap on 13/07/2024 - 21:52

      You must have heard of HSBC's 2% instant CB debit card? Try to get one of such cards to help offset card surcharges.

    • fruxo on 15/07/2024 - 12:05

      I wouldn't worry about that. Just bring your credit card and use it for payments until you get a local account and income sorted. I always make sure I have 2 different cards though just in case when traveling. And notify banks beforehand.

      If you don't have 2 cards then sure, maybe revolut is just a good as any other card. I wouldn't be exchanging a bunch of money unnecessarily though try and keep it as small as possible and then use your Australian income once you get all that sorted

  • Guybrush57 on 13/07/2024 - 15:08

    Bonjour

  • Nebargains on 13/07/2024 - 16:01

    So interesting that many people still say bring cash in case. Can't remember the last time I paid cash for something, even last time I went to France I used my phone to pay for 100% of transactions, even travelling around Europe and the USA I legitimately can't remember the last time I encountered a scenario where I needed cash.

    • sumyungguy on 13/07/2024 - 16:02

      I agree, there are now so many countries where as a visitor you don't need cash. But the USA - how did you tip without cash?

      • illusion99 on 13/07/2024 - 16:34
        +1

        When paying by card in the USA, there is usually a prompt on the card machine for you to add an additional tip

        • sumyungguy on 13/07/2024 - 16:38

          OK, not gonna hijack this thread to discuss tipping. Just checking that there hasn't been some radical change since my last visit.

      • Darude Sandstorm on 14/07/2024 - 07:47
        +1

        I didn’t tip, not my issue. Not illegal to not tip.

        • May4th on 14/07/2024 - 08:18

          not illegal to not be american thankfully.
          unless you're in america

    • Marcsie on 15/07/2024 - 12:23

      Oh really ? Don’t you need cash (coins) to use the public toilets in Europe ? lol 😆

      • try2bhelpful on 15/07/2024 - 12:32

        In Paris there are a lot of free toilets.
        https://parisjetaime.com/eng/article/public-toilets-a696

        I found with places in Europe getting a museum pass for a city normally gets you access to reliable toilets as well as some interesting museums.

        The thing to watch in rural France is that some public toilets have squat loos. Maybe someone went on a hygiene kick mid last century but the relief at finding a loo can be accompanied by a sigh.

      • smpantsonfire on 15/07/2024 - 16:42

        You can also pay card in most of the big toilets. McDonald’s, train station etc.

  • mousie on 13/07/2024 - 20:04
    +1

    Ive come back from a French and Italian Holiday 3 months ago.
    I found I used euro cash a lot more.

    A little token amount of cash is useful ie $100 AUD in small denominations like $20 and $50 but most places are cashless transactions now
    But surcharge creep is everywhere.

  • jedimaster on 13/07/2024 - 23:54

    A bit out of context but do you mind sharing which industry you got a job in? curious because overseas hires are getting rare considering plenty of local talent

    • liongalahad on 14/07/2024 - 00:40

      lol..plenty of local talent?? what's your industry?
      in my industry, engineering consultancy, it's basiacally suicidal to rely solely on "local talent"
      I know many other industries where this is also the case (hospitality, medical etc)

  • liongalahad on 14/07/2024 - 00:39

    No need. Just use your visa/mastercard. I probably use cash once or twice a year

  • Geekomatic on 14/07/2024 - 00:59
    -2

    PS:

    CASHLESS=POWERLESS

  • Darude Sandstorm on 14/07/2024 - 07:45

    Alrighty.
    So as far as cash is concerned I withdrew $100 on 13/05/2021 - I marked this date as I wanted to see how long it would last.
    I currently have $62.70 of that remaining in my wallet.
    I’ve only ever used, or needed cash when buying Weed or when KFC’s EFTPOS is down.
    Weed is now basically legal and I just buy it from the chemist across the road now and use my card.

    Lots of places don’t carry change and others don’t even have cash drawers anymore.

    Even when I sell things on FB Marketplace etc or cars I don’t accept cash. My bank is a neobank so I can’t deposit it without going to Auspost and paying the fees which I’m not going to do, extra, unnecessary hassle.

    Tl;Dr cash is almost redundant here, we’re cashless at this point and even cardless, I use everything on my phone.

    • May4th on 14/07/2024 - 08:19

      ah but that over the counter bottle from the chemist doesn't have the good stuff ie. THC

      • Darude Sandstorm on 14/07/2024 - 08:54
        +1

        Sure. But that’s why you just do a tele health appointment with your GP and say you want you want weed, it’s a bargain as well, $178 for 30 grams is cheaper than a $300-$400 ounce (28 grams) and hassle-free.
        https://imgur.com/a/WHs8NFJ

  • Brick Tamland on 14/07/2024 - 09:15

    Small amount of cash can be useful. Lots of places will charge a fee to use card if it’s below a certain amount. It’s only for small items like a bottle of water or a dimmie or two. $50 cash would be heaps.

  • Sneeze on 14/07/2024 - 09:23

    Repost as I snuck a referral link into my previous comment which got it canned….

    Look into Wise.com, really good for use as a travel option, international payments in local currency, etc. But they also allow you to receive payments with a local bank reference for whatever country you need. Essentially you could use it to receive your wage from your Australian employer without having to open an account at an Australian bank.

    • Eeples on 14/07/2024 - 11:23

      Wise-France is not a thing.

      • Sneeze on 14/07/2024 - 12:47

        Pretty sure it is a thing and available, however currently you can't receive a physical Wise Visa card in France.

        You can still use the digital Visa and set it up for mobile phone payments or use it online.

        • Eeples on 15/07/2024 - 02:27

          France metro residence only?

          • Sneeze on 15/07/2024 - 21:47

            @Eeples: Like I said, the Wise website says that you just can't get a physical Wise VISA card in France (and a few other countries) currently.

            There's nothing to prevent French residents living anywhere in France from signing up and obtaining the digital Visa cards that you setup on a phone for point-of-sale payments.

  • cowiie on 14/07/2024 - 10:11

    I'm travelling to France at end of month, can swap money with you at whatever rate it is if you want. Though won't be heaps of money but I guess it works both ways, some money for me to pay in France and some for you to use when you land in Australia.

  • gmatht on 14/07/2024 - 20:06

    I think having AUD is a decent idea, but more as a backup in case your credit card companies suddenly start declining your transactions than because Australians really need cash. Cash might also be helpful if you haven't bought a public transport card (not sure how this works in Melbourne).

    It might also be a good idea to tell your CC companies you are planning to travel. Not sure in France, but I know a lot of Ozzie companies used to cut off people who travelled without notifying them first.

    • try2bhelpful on 14/07/2024 - 23:04
      +1

      it does happen but I've never been personally affected by an outage and it would be interesting to know anyone who has. I generally carry about $50 with me and very rarely use cash.

    • Cluster on 16/07/2024 - 14:33

      I don't deny cash, but the last time I had to whip out a banknote was three months ago.

  • Aleigh123 on 15/07/2024 - 00:20

    Australia's one of the countries in the world that uses cash the least.
    See this article.

  • Rappix124 on 15/07/2024 - 11:01

    As most people already advised card is accepted almost everywhere. I'm also one of those people that doesn't even have a cash wallet anymore (only cards) and haven't used cash in 1-2 years.

    I've moved from Europe many years ago now but can echo what other people are saying. One of the first things you should do here is open a bank account so you don't have to deal with any exchange rate fees. Use Wise(https://wise.com/) to transfer some money over as they will give you the best exchange rates out of anyone and then ask your employer to start depositing your salary into your Australian bank account and live off that money here

  • skillet on 15/07/2024 - 17:24

    For a country that speaks 99% in french your written English is solid.

    • Poor Ass on 16/07/2024 - 12:28

      question is how did he find Ozbargain

  • Wilson Wallace on 15/07/2024 - 23:11

    Take cash with you. Always leave $100-150of cash in your wallet. Most if not all asain restaraunts LOVE cash and you get a discount when you pay in cash at some of them. EFT fees are generally about 1% of the transaction, no need to tip and some restaraunts as as our minimum wage is around $22 an hour where the US is @ 7-8 and no one should look at you bad if you don't. If you have great service a 5% tip is sufficient if you want to.

  • Cluster on 16/07/2024 - 14:32

    I had a relative from Europe visit me in 2023. He never touched any coins or banknotes in his two week stay despite travelling to several capital cities.

    It's always good to have cash as an emergency backup, but the last time I had to use coins or banknotes was around three months ago.

  • Eeples on 16/07/2024 - 19:00

    Won’t you need an Australian bank account to get paid in your job in Melbourne ?

  • ashdophy on 23/07/2024 - 13:57

    You can try CBA. They allow you to pre-register. You can complete your account opening when you arrive. AUD has been quite strong recently. You may consider to wait a bit till AUD drop.

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