Currency Exchange

If I am going to visit Macau, and want to exchange $2,000 USD for HKD, how do I get the best rate and lowest fee? What if I want to exchange $10,000 USD?

Quote: Ayecarumba

If I am going to visit Macau, and want to exchange $2,000 USD for HKD, how do I get the best rate and lowest fee? What if I want to exchange $10,000 USD?

My experience in a dozen different countries is to leave money in a checking account and withdraw it from an ATM. Usually my credit union charged me 1%.

Do they prefer USDollars or are you required for some reason to have HKDollars. Its terrible to pay a commission and go thru an unfavorable exchange rate only to find that merchants clamor for the stronger currency anyway.

Quote: Ayecarumba

If I am going to visit Macau, and want to exchange $2,000 USD for HKD, how do I get the best rate and lowest fee? What if I want to exchange $10,000 USD?

Lacking any experience with Macau, I'd advise you to look up banks, casinos and exchange houses there. perhaps you can even open a temporary account at a transnational bank like HSBC, then wire money there.

When I traveled to England in the 80s I took along US currency only. I had no trouble exchanging it either at banks or exchange houses, but the comission each charged confused me no end.

In Mexico there's no comission, but rather a "buy" price (low) and a "sell" price (high). The "buy" price is what a bank or currency exchange will pay for your USD (around 11.90 pesos per dollar right now). The "sell" price is what they'll charge you for each dollar (around 12.30 pesos per dollar). In spots with lots of tourists, informal traders will sometimes offer a better "buy" price right there on the street (now about 12.00 per dollar).

When I have travelled abroad many times hotels offer currency exchanges at the front desk with good rates and no commission, simply as a courtesy to guests. I would think it would be in the best interest of a casino/hotel to do this.

Quote: pacomartin

My experience in a dozen different countries is to leave money in a checking account and withdraw it from an ATM. Usually my credit union charged me 1%.

As a regular Macau visitor, I agree that "pacomartin's" idea is a good one, I do exactly that most of the time.

However Macau airport has a currency exchange kiosk at which the rates are good (I usually change Thai Baht to $HK).
I am not sure if they have a limit for exchange but the rate for a high value exchange would be slightly better than for a small
amount.

Quote: pacomartin

My experience in a dozen different countries is to leave money in a checking account and withdraw it from an ATM. Usually my credit union charged me 1%.

That would be my advice as well.

Quote: Ayecarumba

If I am going to visit Macau, and want to exchange $2,000 USD for HKD, how do I get the best rate and lowest fee? What if I want to exchange $10,000 USD?

If you absolutely want to exchange a certain amount, consider doing it local at your bank. At the least, ask them first and chack the rate. For a less common currency as Macau you might have to wait a few days for them to get $10,000 worth. My bet is they will not rape you on the exchange rate as they will when you get there.

BTW: If you do this, be careful how much you carry. Custome, both US and China, might have limits on the cash you can carry. Once when I was traveling to The Bahamas gioing down the jetway some guy stopped a person in fron of me, flashed a badge, and said they were with US Customs Currency Enforcement (something like that.) I didn't stop to get the details, but looked like they were checking people going to a banking haven.

Quote: AZDuffman

... If you do this, be careful how much you carry. Custome, both US and China, might have limits on the cash you can carry. ...

I never carry large sums of currency, but perhaps someone can clear something up for me.

Every time I have returned to the US, by plane or by ship, I have completed a customs declaration card that asks (among other things) whether I am carrying more than $10k in cash. On the other hand, I have never been offered any kind of form when leaving the country. If I did carry such sums, and if I am supposed to declare it both coming and going, just when/how am I supposed to make the declaration on the outbound trip? How is a traveler supposed to know to make a declaration when leaving?

My understanding is that the US does not have any limits at all on how much currency you can take in or out. They just want to document the transfers of currency to detect and discourage money laundering activities, much like requiring CTRs for large cash transactions.

Quote: Doc

Every time I have returned to the US, by plane or by ship, I have completed a customs declaration card that asks (among other things) whether I am carrying more than $10k in cash. On the other hand, I have never been offered any kind of form when leaving the country.

You can take any amount of money you want into the US, either cash or in monetary instruments (traveller checks, letters of credit, negotiable bonds, checks, etc, etc), but if you're carrying more than ten grand you have to declare it. I've never done it, despite having filled out enough custom forms to paper over my room, so I can't tell you from personal experience what happens if you do. But I suppose you may be asked where the money comes fomr and what you'll do with it.

When you travel to Mexico you also fill out a customs form which asks the same question about money in the same terms. Other countries may ask as well. As far as I know, only a few countries track how much money you're taking out. Israel did at some point, but they only asked their own citizens, not foreigners leaving the country.

Quote:

If I did carry such sums, and if I am supposed to declare it both coming and going, just when/how am I supposed to make the declaration on the outbound trip? How is a traveler supposed to know to make a declaration when leaving?

I don't volunteer information to any government agency other than the police. If they don't ask about how much money you're taking out of the country, then dont' tell them. Seriously, you're given forms to fill out when you leave, so simply fill them out. If you don't even get forms, then say nothing.

If you go the ATM route, you should confirm your daily withdrawal limit with your issuing bank. If you request it be raised, be aware it may take a few days for the request to go through, and you may have to be persistent about it. You may encounter a hard limit of US$1,000/day or thereabouts. Also, if you plan to withdraw money on multiple days overseas, remember you're on a different clock than in the US.

It's not a bad idea to take over at least some of that money in hard currency and exchange it in Hong Kong (or Macau). Exchange rates there are generally pretty good -- there's a lot more competition -- and on that much money you should aim for a spread of 1% or less. Usually the smaller the outfit is the better the rate you'll get, and you should ask for a better rate than posted if it's US$1000 or more. I got within half a percent of spot exchanging some US$800 back into USD at a closet-sized place in Tsim Sha Tsui; it seemed they made their money on exchanges the other way (into HKD). From the wad of bills the place had it looked as if they could easily have exchanged several times more.

Hong Kong is very, very safe, and lots of people carry large sums of cash around (in lieu of using credit cards, for example). I still wouldn't flash lots of money, but would rather carry money around there than in most downtown areas of the US.

Quote: Doc

If I am supposed to declare it both coming and going, just when/how am I supposed to make the declaration on the outbound trip? How is a traveler supposed to know to make a declaration when leaving?

My understanding is that the US does not have any limits at all on how much currency you can take in or out. They just want to document the transfers of currency to detect and discourage money laundering activities, much like requiring CTRs for large cash transactions.

^ USA PATRIOT Act (U.S. H.R. 3162, Public Law 107-56), Title III, Subtitle C, Sec. 371.
and
`Sec. 5332. Bulk cash smuggling into or out of the United States
`(a) CRIMINAL OFFENSE-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Whoever, with the intent to evade a currency reporting requirement under section 5316, knowingly conceals more than $10,000 in currency or other monetary instruments on the person of such individual or in any conveyance, article of luggage, merchandise, or other container, and transports or transfers or attempts to transport or transfer such currency or monetary instruments from a place within the United States to a place outside of the United States, or from a place outside the United States to a place within the United States, shall be guilty of a currency smuggling offense and subject to punishment pursuant to subsection (b).
`(2) CONCEALMENT ON PERSON- For purposes of this section, the concealment of currency on the person of any individual includes concealment in any article of clothing worn by the individual or in any luggage, backpack, or other container worn or carried by such individual.
`(b) PENALTY-
`(1) TERM OF IMPRISONMENT- A person convicted of a currency smuggling offense under subsection (a), or a conspiracy to commit such offense, shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years.
`(2) FORFEITURE- In addition, the court, in imposing sentence under paragraph (1), shall order that the defendant forfeit to the United States, any property, real or personal, involved in the offense, and any property traceable to such property, subject to subsection (d) of this section.
`(3) PROCEDURE- The seizure, restraint, and forfeiture of property under this section shall be governed by section 413 of the Controlled Substances Act.
`(4) PERSONAL MONEY JUDGMENT- If the property subject to forfeiture under paragraph (2) is unavailable, and the defendant has insufficient substitute property that may be forfeited pursuant to section 413(p) of the Controlled Substances Act, the court shall enter a personal money judgment against the defendant for the amount that would be subject to forfeiture.
`(c) CIVIL FORFEITURE-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Any property involved in a violation of subsection (a), or a conspiracy to commit such violation, and any property traceable to such violation or conspiracy, may be seized and, subject to subsection (d) of this section, forfeited to the United States.
`(2) PROCEDURE- The seizure and forfeiture shall be governed by the procedures governing civil forfeitures in money laundering cases pursuant to section 981(a)(1)(A) of title 18, United States Code.
`(3) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN PROPERTY AS INVOLVED IN THE OFFENSE- For purposes of this subsection and subsection (b), any currency or other monetary instrument that is concealed or intended to be concealed in violation of subsection (a) or a conspiracy to commit such violation, any article, container, or conveyance used, or intended to be used, to conceal or transport the currency or other monetary instrument, and any other property used, or intended to be used, to facilitate the offense, shall be considered property involved in the offense.'.
(c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT- The table of sections for subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 5331, as added by this Act, the following new item:
`5332. Bulk cash smuggling into or out of the United States.'.
SEC. 372. FORFEITURE IN CURRENCY REPORTING CASES.
(a) IN GENERAL- Subsection (c) of section 5317 of title 31, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
`(c) FORFEITURE-
`(1) CRIMINAL FORFEITURE-
`(A) IN GENERAL- The court in imposing sentence for any violation of section 5313, 5316, or 5324 of this title, or any conspiracy to commit such violation, shall order the defendant to forfeit all property, real or personal, involved in the offense and any property traceable thereto.
`(B) PROCEDURE- Forfeitures under this paragraph shall be governed by the procedures established in section 413 of the Controlled Substances Act.
`(2) CIVIL FORFEITURE- Any property involved in a violation of section 5313, 5316, or 5324 of this title, or any conspiracy to commit any such violation, and any property traceable to any such violation or conspiracy, may be seized and forfeited to the United States in accordance with the procedures governing civil forfeitures in money laundering cases pursuant to section 981(a)(1)(A) of title 18, United States Code.'.

UNITED STATES CODE TITLE 31 > SUBTITLE IV > CHAPTER 53 > SUBCHAPTER II > § 5324
(c) International Monetary Instrument Transactions.— No person shall, for the purpose of evading the reporting requirements of section 5316—
(1) fail to file a report required by section 5316, or cause or attempt to cause a person to fail to file such a report;
(2) file or cause or attempt to cause a person to file a report required under section 5316 that contains a material omission or misstatement of fact; or
(3) structure or assist in structuring, or attempt to structure or assist in structuring, any importation or exportation of monetary instruments.
(d) Criminal Penalty.—
(1) In general.— Whoever violates this section shall be fined in accordance with title 18, United States Code, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.
(2) Enhanced penalty for aggravated cases.— Whoever violates this section while violating another law of the United States or as part of a pattern of any illegal activity involving more than $100,000 in a 12-month period shall be fined twice the amount provided in subsection (b)(3) or (c)(3) (as the case may be) of section 3571 of title 18, United States Code, imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both.

Quote: pacomartin

My experience in a dozen different countries is to leave money in a checking account and withdraw it from an ATM. Usually my credit union charged me 1%.

This is my experience as well. The only thing I might add is to have enough "pocket change" (say, US$100) in the currency of your destination country and any layover nations along the way so as to avoid having to search for an ATM to, say, buy a newspaper or a beer while you're laying over, or tipping a baggage handler or cab driver or whatever at your destination.

Macau should have good enough connectivity for this to be pretty easy. On my trip to the World Cup last summer/winter, it was about US$6 per transaction for ATM withdrawals and credit card charges, and while I didn't look terribly closely, the exchange rates were always within a few points of posted spot rates. Yes, it could add up, but if you keep the transaction count down, it should be minimized. Traveling and worldwide access to your money aren't free!

On that trip, I would usually withdraw about ZAR3,000 (about US$450) at a time and pay cash for everything that was under ZAR1,000 (US$150).

Different people have different preferences, but I think an American Express Gold or Platinum card is great for international travel. The annual fee is a little high, but the access to travel clubs (Admirals, etc.) and worldwide travel offices and assistance is worth it.

And whoever said to notify your banks before going was right. NOTIFY YOUR BANK(S)! I actually took "spare" cards with me so that they were handy in case mine got lost/stolen, but not everyone will want to do that.