steve reed 26

can anyone tell me what currency i should take to oz, me and my partner are moving to oz next week on a 4 year visa, we have 6 thousand pounds saved up and will be taking it on the plane, but im unsure if we should change the money for australian dollars in the uk or wait to change the money when we arrive in oz, also can u open an australian bank account using uksterling
many thanks

BarryHargo

For best exhchange rates would advise to use hifx or similar. Yes is fairly easy to open Aus bank account in UK, then transfer funds into it. Wouldn't saying taking all your money in cash is the norm. Imagine getting mugged with all that cash on you . Personally would be far too worried to carry that much cash on me...

comet555

You can only carry $10,000 Australian cash per person on the plane. So you'll have to split it between the two of you or have to declare the money (if you're over $10,000).

I would probably exchange it before you left. The best rates would be to use Ozforex or Hifx as suggested and put it into an Australian bank account. But since you're leaving next week you probably don't have time to set that all up. So in your case I would probably just exchange the money first.

If you can use your bank card overseas you could always leave most of the cash in the bank and then draw out large sums as needed. A lot less riskier than carrying that amount of cash.

steve reed 26

which is the best bank join i heard westpac/ or west bank

comet555

I really like Westpac, although I haven't tried any others so really can't compare. But for us they've been great.

You'll get positive or negative reviews for just about all the banks so it's really just personal opinion as to what works for you. If you do a search on here you'll probably find more info.

leave_n_on_a_Jet

open a uk hifx account, and diy it on the internet when u you want it when you are in australia or open an account in OZ with hifx and they will give you a uk bank account to pay the sterling into then they wil credit your account.

To Easy.

James

nickyjohnt

After watching Border Security here i believe you can carry as much money as you like, just as long as you declare any amount over $10k Aus,
6k Uk pounds= approx $12300 so divide it between you. Keep a tight hold of it though.
The exchange rate is shite now, not sure if its best to bring dollars or pounds to open an account.
Good Luck and enjoy

John

killamarsh

Why on earth would you want to carry that much on you. Get there, then have to ensure it is safe until you get into an account? You are going to have enough to think about and worry about without your savings being on you. Take what you need and set up an account or transfer it, god don't carry it.

steve reed 26

[QUOTE=comet555;7464725]You can only carry $10,000 Australian cash per person on the plane. So you'll have to split it between the two of you or have to declare the money (if you're over $10,000).

I would probably exchange it before you left. The best rates would be to use Ozforex or Hifx as suggested and put it into an Australian bank account. But since you're leaving next week you probably don't have time to set that all up. So in your case I would probably just exchange the money first.

If you can use your bank card overseas you could always leave most of the cash in the bank and then draw out large sums as needed. A lot less riskier than carrying that amount of cash.[/QUO
is it a big charge if u draw money out in oz tho?

Possums

you can open up a commonwealth bank account in London.

http://www.commbankuk.co.uk/

comet555

You'd have to check with your bank to find out how much it costs to withdraw money while overseas.

Also, you can open an account with Westpac while in the UK. Once you get to Oz you can go in and activate it. Alternatively.... just leave all your money in the UK except what you need to travel with for a while. Setup an account with Ozforex or similar, then once you get to Oz setup your bank account and transfer the money over.

We actually didn't really do any of that. We just setup an account with Ozforex and went into the bank to give my mother-in-law power to do things with our account. Once we got to Oz we set up a bank account and transfered the money.