How to Purchase Foreign Currency in the United States
There are many advantages to purchasing foreign currency prior to a trip, as you avoid additional fees charged by foreign currency exchange institutions. Travelers can also avoid scams involving counterfeit currency and theft by purchasing their currency through reputable sources before leaving the U.S. There are several places to find the currency, and once it's found, all you have to do is pay the required fees and get your money.
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Instructions
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Order online. Several travel organizations, financial institutions and credit card companies offer online currency exchange services. The Internal Revenue Service offers a few safe resources. Order the currency by going to the website and placing the order. You can pay through the website, and they will send your currency in the mail.
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Go to a bank that offers international services or an equivalent service. Not every bank may offer currency purchasing, so you will have to inquire first. To purchase the currency, take your money to the bank's international services department and pay the exchange rate, along with any required fees. The bank will give you currency.
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Buy from the airport or your hotel. Travelers can purchase the currency from the currency exchanges located within the airport. They work like the bank transactions, but the fees are often much higher. Find the currency exchanges by asking airport employees. Transactions at your hotel are also possible, but come with higher exchange rates than other sources.
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Tips & Warnings
Online currency purchasing is readily available. Large banking institutions like Wells Fargo offer online services, as does American Express, and even the Automobile Association or AAA. Contact your credit card, bank, and other affiliations about online currency purchasing services.
Currency purchased through black market sources is illegal. You can also receive counterfeit currency during the transaction or become a target of robbery. Although the rates may be tempting, stay away from black market currency sources.
References
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Comments
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Chris, my daughter will be going to school in Rome Italy for about a year. I have rented an apartment for her but she needs to have a few thousand Euro to pay her first and last month’s rent. She also will need to pay her rent monthly and I don't think an ATM will be feasible. We have banked with Wells Fargo for many years. Do you have any suggestions on how we should handle this for the next year?
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At present, Wells Fargo is charging 5.58% for in-store foreign currency purchases of Euros (a single example of the insane rates). They are charging $5 per transaction at a foreign ATM machine - that will be added to whatever local fee may exist, often in the neighborhood of $2 or less. So do the math. A $7 ATM fee on a $300 withdrawl comes to 2.3%, and on $500 is only 1.4%. Beats the heck out of buying at the bank before you go for 5.58%. So where possible, be sure your card uses a 4 digit PIN code (usually required at foreign ATM) and obtain your cash at your destination whenever possible. LIMIT your pre-trip purchases of cash to a few dollars for transportation from the airport if need be.
