Getting Cash in South Africa

Dear Sir/Madam,

Could you please tell me which fees apply to cash withdrawals at ATMs in South Africa using a:

- Debit card
- Mastercard
- American Express Bonviva Platinum Card from Credit Suisse

Thank you for your help with this and kind regards.

 

Hi there,

The costs of withdrawing money at ATMs in South Africa using Swiss credit and debit cards are as follows:

1. Debit card

When you withdraw money at an ATM outside of Switzerland, your Swiss bank charges you a fee. Fees vary between banks, but 5 francs per withdrawal at a foreign ATM is typical. Some banks charge you an additional fee equal to a percentage of the amount you withdraw on top of the base fee.

You can find the fees which your bank charges using the moneyland.ch private account comparison. The fees for using foreign ATMs are listed on the "Info" pages (click the Info link on the private account which you use) under "Purchase abroad:" The debit card which comes with the Credit Suisse Bonviva Platinum package has a foreign ATM withdrawal base fee of CHF 4.75 plus a fee of 0.25% of the amount withdrawn. Plus, you pay a hidden charge in the form of the markup on currency exchange rates (the spread). This adds an additional cost which can be as high as the foreign ATM withdrawal fee. Exchange rates vary from bank to bank.

It is important to note that in South Africa, the largest amount you can withdraw from ATMs in a single withdrawal is typically between ZAR 2000 and ZAR 3000. Because the foreign ATM fee applies per withdrawal, making the maximum possible withdrawal every time will save you money.

Note: Some ATM operators in South Africa charge ATM fees. These are charged to your account in addition to the fees charged by your Swiss bank. Use ATMs at banks themselves (in South Africa banks are often located in shopping malls) whenever possible. Many ATMs in other locations (in stores or gas stations, for example) are "bank-supported" and will have bank branding, but may charge a fee. The largest banks in South Africa are Standard Bank, ABSA, First National Bank and Nedbank. You will not normally be charged an additional fee when using ATMs located at these banks.

Make sure to contact your bank and inform them that you will be travelling to South Africa so that they can remove any geoblocking limitations. If you do not, you may not be able to use your debit card in South Africa.

2. Credit card

Using a credit card to get money at ATMs is expensive. Swiss credit card issuers charge both a cash advance fee (typically 3.75%, min. CHF 10 for withdrawals at foreign ATMs) and a foreign transaction fee (between 1.2% and 2.5% of the amount withdrawn, depending on the card). These fees apply every time you withdraw money at an ATM using your credit card. For example, the Migros Cumulus Mastercard has a 1.5% foreign transaction fee and a foreign cash advance fee of 3.75% of the amount with a minimum charge of CHF 10.00 per withdrawal. Plus, you pay a hidden charge in the form of the markup on currency exchange rates (the spread). This adds a major additional cost. Fees and exchange rates vary between Swiss Mastercard credit card issuers. You can find the fees for your card listed on the Info pages in the moneyland.ch credit card comparison.

The Bonviva American Express Card from Credit Suisse has a foreign cash advance fee of 3.75%, min. CHF 10 per withdrawal, and a foreign transaction fee of 2.5%. In addition to these fees, your card issuer also adds a markup to interbank currency exchange rates. This currency exchange spread adds a significant cost on top of the fees.

Note: Possible additional fees charged by ATM operators apply to credit cards in the same way that they apply to debit cards. It is also worth noting that in South Africa, Visa cards are more widely accepted than both Mastercard and American Express cards.

Verdict

Using a debit card to withdraw money from ATMs while travelling is significantly cheaper than using a credit card for cash withdrawals.

If you plan to travel to countries bordering South Africa as well, it is worth noting that you can use South African rand to pay in Namibia, Swaziland and Lesotho in addition to South Africa.

More on this topic:
Credit card foreign transaction fees explained
Credit card or debit card?
Common monetary area explained
Simple ways to protect your money while traveling
Using credit cards to save on car rentals

Quote "Note: Possible additional fees charged by ATM operators apply to credit cards in the same way that they apply to debit cards."

In my experience, South African banks charge a fee of 50 rand per withdrawal when you use their ATMs to withdraw money using a foreign credit card or debit card.

SA banks also rip you off with terrible exchange rates and high commissions when you change money at the till.

In my experience, you get much better deals changing francs to rand and rand to francs right here in Switzerland.

Revolut, Transferwise, Weswap etc. are also options. You still pay the fees, but the exchange rates are better.

The best option: If you have any friends in South Africa (or if you make some), see if they aren't interested in exchanging money with you peer to peer at interchange rates. That way you both skip out on fees and exchange rate rip-offs.