Best Australian debit card for overseas cash withdrawals?

[bernardblack]

Is Citi Plus still the best option for overseas cash? Obviously I haven't done a lot of international travel since 2019.

If I have to open some other account it might be time to get started, since we depart in five weeks.

(I'm set for FX-fee-free purchases, with a US Amex Gold backed with a Coles Rewards Mastercard and a Bundll account which charges to my Dragon Visa.)

 

[Jacques Vert]

Why not get both.....have a backup then....

Good idea.

 

[ChrisFlyer]

I have Macquarie...but not used yet so would like others to confirm good to go.....
Why not get both.....have a backup then....

Yeah, withdraws at the Mastercard scheme rate. Better still if you can find an ATM that doesn't charge withdrawal fees, but that's down to the operator.

 

[SYD]

Yeah, withdraws at the Mastercard scheme rate. Better still if you can find an ATM that doesn't charge withdrawal fees, but that's down to the operator.

Also works fine paying for stuff as you go. My MacBank DC is getting a work out at the moment since my 28° MC is almost maxed out. I have UBank and ING (Visa) DCs as back ups also but haven’t needed cash in Europe.

RE India, we had a weird experience in Jan. We were both trying to get some cash, my UBank wouldn’t work but SYD+1’s did... Happened a couple of times.

 

[stm1sydney]

since my 28° MC is almost maxed out

Can pay any amount into your a/c before the statement date via Bpay to give you some more headroom. But they charge $1.95 for the privilege.

 

[SYD]

Can pay any amount into your a/c before the statement date via Bpay to give you some more headroom. But they charge $1.95 for the privilege.

Yes, I know. A DD is about to go through anyway.

 

[serfty]

Yes, I know. A DD is about to go through anyway.

These can take a lot less time than they used to. I would allow four business days, now it is two.

 

[QF_Flyer]

I haven't been o/s recently so haven't gotten around to signing up for a replacement debit card for my CitiBank Plus/NAB but as I'm heading to India in January it's time to get organised. I was looking at the Macquarie but I notice that the AMP GO is listed as one of the banks that qualify for Status Credits on the Ground (https://www.qantas.com/en-au/frequent-flyer/status-tiers/status-on-the-ground#categories) although the details are missing. Plus it gives QF points so I'm leaning towards it now, although I understand that you earn either points or interest, not both.

The reason AMP are included will be precisely because they do earn QF points, I suspect - of course I don't know the details either, but maybe it'll be something like "earn x points via this route" to get the status credits, and I also presume it'll be collectively, amongst all the partners in each group. Could be wrong, of course!

The earning of QF points requires you to hold a balance in there, you essentially forego a decent interest rate elsewhere to earn QF points instead - their rate is 1x QF point for every $10 held over the month. $10 at an annual 5.5% interest rate (using ING as a very good example) works out to be somewhere in the region of ~4.5c per month interest for each $10 - so you're buying QF points for ~4.5c each, which is a terrible deal.

By all means have the account, I do, but I don't recommend holding any sizeable amount of money in there in order to accrue QF points. If anything, throw whatever you need in there to access overseas before you go, use as required, you'll maybe earn an amount of QF points on that (depending on amount and how long it's there), which is a small bonus, the main prize being the zero fees. Not financial advice, but I'd (unofficially) recommend having more than one account/card that has no fees, so why not open this and Macquarie (and any others you might want), just the be safe! Never rely on just one, either way, even if the Plan B has fees, it's better than being stranded without access to cash.

 

[Jacques Vert]

The reason AMP are included will be precisely because they do earn QF points, I suspect - of course I don't know the details either, but maybe it'll be something like "earn x points via this route" to get the status credits, and I also presume it'll be collectively, amongst all the partners in each group. Could be wrong, of course!

The earning of QF points requires you to hold a balance in there, you essentially forego a decent interest rate elsewhere to earn QF points instead - their rate is 1x QF point for every $10 held over the month. $10 at an annual 5.5% interest rate (using ING as a very good example) works out to be somewhere in the region of ~4.5c per month interest for each $10 - so you're buying QF points for ~4.5c each, which is a terrible deal.

By all means have the account, I do, but I don't recommend holding any sizeable amount of money in there in order to accrue QF points. If anything, throw whatever you need in there to access overseas before you go, use as required, you'll maybe earn an amount of QF points on that (depending on amount and how long it's there), which is a small bonus, the main prize being the zero fees. Not financial advice, but I'd (unofficially) recommend having more than one account/card that has no fees, so why not open this and Macquarie (and any others you might want), just the be safe! Never rely on just one, either way, even if the Plan B has fees, it's better than being stranded without access to cash.

Thanks for the detailed reply. I see the associated AMP GO savings account currently pays interest at 5.25% so I think I'll put some money in one of those and transfer back and forth to the transaction account (with the no fee overseas transactions and QF points) as and when needed for cash o/s; similar to what I used to do with the CitiPlus card back in the day.

And yes, I'll get a Macquarie as well. Plus wherever possible I'll use my NAB Rewards Signature credit card which (so far) remains free of o/s transaction charges and still earns points.

Of course, once the dust settles after 1 Oct, there may be a need to revisit the options but the above strategy should do for now.