Submitted by Dotifo t3_z6hg6p in personalfinance
My credit union (Navy Federal) doesn't offer currency conversion, what is the cheapest way to convert my USD to CAD before I leave? It's unclear to me if I will be able to use an ATM in Canada or if that's even a good idea.
We specifically need cash since the tattoo artist my wife is seeing doesn't take credit card, we'll have to try the ATM I guess.
Thanks for the info, do you know if I should be seeking out a specific bank's ATM? Or will they all generally charge the same fees?
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Perfect, thanks so much
American in Vancouver… just use an ATM and convert when you get here if you need cash. Other wise use your debit card.
Just watch out for ATMs offering to do the conversion for you. Not sure if they exist in Canada, but they’re all over Europe. If offered, simply deny the conversion.
Just go to any big bank atm in Canada…
Scotiabank
RBC
TD Bank
BMO
Vs those random atm machines
You can just use a Canadian ATM (called ABM in Quebec, if I recall, not sure about the others) to get cash. It works pretty much the same. The fee (or not) should depend on your bank—I think mine used to have like 5 free from other banks, including any in Canada.
College daughter lives in Alberta using NFCU debit for everything. She's had maybe 2 times where her debit card wasn't accepted in 2 years, but never been a problem at the ATM. Put your travel notice on your cards. Good luck with the ink!
Canada has always been way ahead of the USA in terms of banking technology, though I suppose the usa has probably finally caught up.
Debit cards will be fine, everything in Canada will be on Interac, and a few other international banking systems, so they can access your account.
You can bring American cash with you and exchange it canada (there is always a place in airports or train stations, if you are taking that).
Frankly, I'd think the tattoo artist would be thrilled to take American cash, but they'd probably ding you on the exchange rate.
[deleted] t1_iy1db6i wrote
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