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Exchanging Money and Credit Card Problems

Exchanging Money
The advent of debit/credit cards and bank automatic teller machines (ATMs) has made life much easier for the international traveler. In most cases, it's no longer necessary to buy foreign currency or traveler's checks before leaving home. In fact, doing so is NOT ADVISED for most Latin American destinations, because it's very difficult to find dealers in their currencies abroad (bordering countries may be an exception) and if you can find one in most cases you'll get an abysmal exchange rate. Traveler's checks are not that widely accepted, either, which means you can only cash them at the issuing company's local office in the country you're visiting, if you can find one! A much better plan is to use your own bank debit card to withdraw cash when you're abroad. Not only is it convenient, you will almost always get the best exchange rates available. For purchases, use your debit or credit card. Try NOT to get cash with a credit card except in a dire emergency, because you will most likely get slapped with high fees and interest charges by the issuing bank. Because debit and credit cards (at least those with the Visa or MasterCard logos) are now so widely accepted in most countries, you'll find that you don't need to carry much cash with you. You'll mainly need cash for local transportation fares, tips and cash-only fees for private services at certain steamy establishments discussed elsewhere on this site! Otherwise, you can usually use your cards to pay for restaurants and hotels, airport transportation, shopping, souvenirs, etc. When you arrive at your destination airport, one of the first things to do is look for a bank ATM ("caixa eletrônica" in Portuguese) that accepts international cards. This may not be as urgent if you arrive at airports (like those in many Brazilian cities) where you can use your credit card to pay for transportation direct to your hotel. In that case you can wait until you reach your hotel, because it's likely there will be more ATMs to choose from in the area immediately surrounding it. If you do need to find a bank ATM immediately upon arrival at one of the larger Brazilian airports (like the international airports in Rio and São Paulo) they're usually found UPSTAIRS on the 2nd or 3d floors, which are mini-shopping malls with shops, restaurants and banks. Be sure the ATM belongs to a bank (it'll have a bank's name on it, like Bradesco, Itaú, Banco 30 Horas, Banco do Brasil, etc.) and shows the Plus or Cirrus logos, or the Visa/MasterCard logos. "Independent" non-bank ATMs can charge additional fees for the privilege of using them! You may also find ATMs within actual bank branches at the airport, and in almost every branch in town. The trick is to find an ATM that's linked to the international system and allows withdrawals! Brazilian banks are highly automated, and their ATM lobbies are often filled with machines, many of which only perform specialized functions like checking balances, paying bills, or getting more checks. You need to look for machines that permit "Saques" ("withdrawals"). Some machines may only be for making withdrawals and be marked "Saques." Others may be marked "Multi-Função" ("multi-function") or something similar. Just be sure that one of the multi-functions is "saques." You also need to be sure the machine takes international cards. If it has the Visa/MasterCard/Cirrus/Plus logos, it probably does! If it doesn't, you'll just have to take your chances! There are some Brazilian banks that are not linked internationally, and their machines accept only their own bank's cards. However, the biggest and most ubiquitous Brazilian banks (Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Itaú) will usually have at least one internationally linked machine. At HSBC and Citibank branches most machines permit withdrawals. There are also Citibank ATMs located in many Blockbuster Video stores, like the one in Copacabana at the corner of Av. Copacabana and r. Figueiredo Magalhães, just a few blocks from some of the most popular hotels for our readers! (There's also an HSBC branch on the same block.) Don't freak if the instructions on the machine or its screen are only in Portuguese. Just insert your card. Ordinarily the screen will go to a greeting page giving you the option of continuing in Portuguese or your own language. Follow the on-screen instructions and you should have your cash in no time! Different local banks may have different withdrawal limits at their ATMs. At Citibank ATMs you can usually withdraw up to R$1000 per transaction. At Bradesco it's R$600. If your own bank has a higher daily withdrawal limit in your own currency, and you need more cash than this, you can just repeat the transaction until you've reached your limit. If you are withdrawing large amounts of cash, remember that there is street crime in Latin America and you need to be cautious. If the money won't fit discreetly on your person, bring with you a plastic shopping bag from a local supermarket or big chain store, like Lojas Americanas, and carry your cash in that (along with something like a folded newspaper in which you can conceal the contents). Such bags are so common that nobody looks at them and don't draw attention. Because of crime problems, many bank ATMs are closed after 10:00 p.m. at night. There are ATMs available in some of the all night supermarkets and pharmacies, but after 10:00 p.m. they may only allow small withdrawals (like R$100 or so). Once you have withdrawn cash, for personal security reasons avoid being on the streets with large amounts. Figure out your likely expenses for the day and only carry that much with you when you go out. Leave the rest of your cash carefully stashed in your hotel/apartment. You also need to budget fairly carefully, especially as your trip nears its end. Unless you plan on returning frequently, you don't want to get stuck with a lot of surplus local currency. It can be hard to change back into dollars/euros, and if you try doing it back home you will most likely get an extremely unfavorable rate! If you do plan to return, having some extra local currency will be useful for your next trip, as long as the country isn't experiencing hyper-inflation or the local currency isn't plunging rapidly against the dollar/euro. In that case, do your best to spend as much of your local currency as you can before leaving, because when you return for your next visit you may find the money literally worthless! At the moment, this is not the case in Brazil or Argentina, where the currencies have been holding or even increasing in value. If you MUST bring cash with you, be sure to have dollars or euros. Other currencies aren't in as much demand in Latin America and you'll have trouble finding a place to exchange them, or getting a decent rate. In Brazil, as in a number of other Latin American countries, there is an official and a "parallel" exchange rate. "Parallel" is a polite term for "black market." At times, there is enough difference between the official and parallel rates to make it worthwhile to change money at some place that offers the parallel rate. Other times the difference is so small that it isn't worth it, unless you're changing very large amounts (several thousand dollars/euros or more). The best places to change dollars/euros are "Cambios," which are foreign exchange dealers. In Brazil they're frequently co-located with travel agencies, and in Rio there's a cluster of them in the blocks of Av. Copacabana close to and behind the Copacabana Palace hotel. There's also one in the RioSul shopping mall. In other cities they may be less concentrated, but just look for a travel agency. If they don't change money themselves they can tell you where the nearest "cambio" is located. If you're traveling to small cities in the interior, be sure to change money BEFORE leaving a major metropolis, because it's not always possible to find a "cambio" in such places and you also may not be able to spend cash dollars/euros. Rates of exchange should be posted. If not, ask "Em quanto está o dólar/euro?" before changing. You can always get the previous day's rates from the morning newspapers. They may be in a box on the front page, or in the financial section. Usually, both the official and parallel rates will be shown. If your hotel/apartment has cable and gets the Bloomberg channel's Brazilian version, you can get current rates, because they're continuously flashed on the screen. You can also get current rates online; try http://oglobo.globo.com.br and click on Economia. That page should show the exchange rates in a box with a chart in the left-hand column. Again, keep safety in mind when changing money at a cambio, especially large amounts. Try to go with a friend, but if you must do it yourself try stashing the cash in a plastic shopping bag, as described above. Avoid walking the streets with a bag full of cash! Take a taxi back to where you're staying so you can secure the money before returning to the street.

Credit Card Problems

If you lose your credit card, find that it's blocked, or discover that unauthorized charges are being made while you're out of the country, the major cards like Visa or MasterCard have toll-free numbers you can call to straighten things out, get a replacement card, etc. Go to their websites (like http://www.visa.com or http://www.mastercard.com) and click on the options for reporting lost cards to get to a list of their toll-free numbers in other countries.

For Brazil and Argentina, the numbers are the following. I strongly suggest writing them down and having them with you, along with your passport number and other vital info, in case of loss or theft.

VISA:

Argentina: 0800-666-0171 Brazil: 0800-891-3680

MASTERCARD:

Argentina: 0800-555-0507 Brazil: 0800-891-3294

CITIBANK DEBIT CARDS:

Whatever their other drawbacks, Citibank is a good choice for world travelers. Few problems using their ATM machines in Brazil or other countries to withdraw cash from your U.S. account. I've never had a problem using my debit card in Brazil (either fraud or just being blocked for suspicion of fraud) but if you do run into problems, or need to contact Citibank back in the U.S. for any other problem, their toll-free number from Brazil is 0800-891-0460. From other countries you can call collect to (210) 677-0065. However, there are toll-free direct numbers from other countries besides Brazil, which will be easier to use than trying to make a collect call. If you are traveling to another country where you'll be using your debit card, call the Customer Service number 1-800-627-3999 while you're in the U.S. and ask for their toll-free numbers from the countries you'll be visiting. If you do need to call collect, use AT&T's local USADirect access number. Ignore the first prompt. Wait for the second one, which will ask you to say "collect," and then ask for your name. DON'T HANG UP if the automated system doesn't complete the call for you because you get a voice mail system. Stay on the line and an operator will come on and complete the call.

OTHER BANK DEBIT CARDS:

Contact your bank before you travel to find out if they have toll-free numbers, or numbers you can call collect back in your home country in case of problems. If they don't, but your card has a MasterCard or Visa logo, you can try calling their credit card service center numbers (shown above or available on-line for other countries) to see if they can connect you directly to your bank.