Source: Collected

Many people when traveling abroad often look for shady markets that sell foreign currency. This is against the law. If discovered, all foreign money will be confiscated, not to mention administrative penalties according to regulations. So how to exchange currency without violating the law? In this article, let's learn about some tips for exchanging currency when traveling abroad.

Where can I exchange currency?

When preparing for a trip, you may exchange currency in three common ways: exchange foreign currency at the bank, at the jewelry store, or at the airport.

Exchange currency at the bank

Currently, banks have foreign exchange services. Many popular foreign currencies are available for tourists to exchange. To exchange currency, just bring money to the bank and tell the teller about the exchange, the amount you want to exchange, and the currency you want to exchange.

Most banks in Vietnam have foreign exchange services (Source: Collected)

Banks also have regulations on foreign exchange rates, as well as mandatory conditions when exchanging currency for travel.

For example, in Vietnam, according to the provisions of Article 5 of Circular 20/2011/TT-NHNN, the foreign currency purchase limit is as follows:

In addition, you need to present your passport, round-trip airline ticket, and visa (depending on the country of arrival) to prove that the purpose of exchanging money is to travel abroad.

Exchange currency at jewelry stores

You can go to licensed jewelry stores to exchange currency for your trip. Currency exchange at jewelry stores is a convenient way which also offers good exchange rates, thus chosen by many people.

Exchange currency at the airport

Currency transaction points at the airport also allow currency exchange. You can do this when you land in the country you are traveling to. However, the exchange rate at these transaction points is relatively high, so we do not recommend conducting such transactions.

Currency transaction points at the airport also allow currency exchange (Source: Collected)

How much money should I exchange for the trip?

Depending on the purpose of the trip, number of days of travel as well as the need to spend, each tourist will need to exchange a different amount of money. However, there is one thing that you must pay special attention to when deciding the amount of foreign currency to exchange, which is the regulation on the minimum amount of money per tourist when traveling to a country.

For example, Thailand requires each tourist to have at least 10,000 Baht, and for Singapore, the number is 700 USD. These numbers will give you some idea about the expected amount of money you should prepare for your upcoming trip.

Some tips to know when exchanging currency

• Find out about bank fees for international transactions. Finding out the fees between money withdrawals and transactions with the bank's credit card you registered with will help you know which type of transaction to use to incur the least fees.
• Understand exchange rates: Checking the exchange rate online before exchanging money in your destination country does not take too much time, and also helps you understand the details so as not to be overcharged by service staff.
• Plan your expenses: You should only bring as much as you need. This partly limits robberies and helps you avoid having to endure high exchange rates. To do this, you should plan your expenses in advance for the trip.
• Exchange money in big cities. Exchanging money at banks or offices in big cities gives you better exchange rates than in small towns, not to mention some small towns don't even have a place for you to exchange money.
• Avoid exchanging money at the airport or service kiosks. The simple reason behind this is to avoid high fees. In many cases, tourists are often advised to exchange money at banks, ATMs or large post offices.
• Always bring US dollars. This currency is widely accepted in most countries and convenient for you to carry when traveling. In case you need money, you can easily exchange it into the currency of your destination country at a good rate.
• Always use a calculator: numbers always give you a headache, a calculator will help you escape such problems. Nowadays, every smartphone is equipped with this function.
• Do not exchange money at the night market: Besides paying high fees for exchanging money, you also face the risk of robbery, pickpocketing or receiving counterfeit money.

Reference: Air Booking, Thanh Nien, lawnet.vn