Bank of Queensland Cash Passport travel card. The Fees & Need-to-knows
When travelling overseas, you want to make the most of your money and not miss out on any fun experiences or excitement. This makes finding an easy way to...
Travelling is exciting, but some of the fees attached to spending your cash overseas can really bring the mood down. That’s why it is important to find a travel card that not only saves you on fees, but makes spending your money internationally easy.
We’ll go through the ins and outs of the Westpac Worldwide Wallet reloadable card, including its features, cons and fees associated with using it.
💸 Hold over 40 currencies in your account and spend at the mid-market exchange rate with the Wise card while abroad. |
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The Westpac Worldwide Wallet is a reloadable travel money card that can be pre-loaded with different currencies to spend overseas. It can be used just like a standard Westpac Debit card to make purchases at home, online and overseas but Westpac claims the card will save you money on foreign transaction fees abroad.¹
The Westpac travel money card is for anyone planning on travelling overseas and wants to hold or spend money in one of the supported foreign currencies. This card is also works for those who want to easily budget their trip by loading their desired amount ahead of their trip.¹ It is only available for personal use.²
The Westpac travel card comes with features and benefits. Some of the main features include:¹
When it comes to your actual money, you’ll be able to access 11 supported currencies.
Read more: Prepaid Debit/Credit Card Australia Compared |
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The main account is denominated in AUD.² From there, you’ll be able to convert your cash into 10 other supported major foreign currencies. These currencies include¹:
You’ll be able to transfer your AUD directly into your account from a Westpac transaction or savings account.
Here are some of the cons when using this card.¹
Some people may need to hold or spend larger amounts than available, so let’s see some of the amount limits associated with this card.
You’ll only be able to load a maximum of $100,000 AUD per 12 month period onto this card and hold a maximum balance of $50,000 AUD at any one time. A
TM withdrawals depend on the specific ATM provider or are limited to $2000 AUD per 24 hour period.²
When choosing a travel card, it’s important to take note of some common fees that you may incur in maintaining an account and making certain transactions. Let’s go through the fees you might be charged with the Westpac travel card and compare it with Wise, an alternative provider.
Westpac Worldwide Wallet prepaid card*¹ | *Wise Card ** | |
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Card order fee | Free | $10 AUD |
Minimum load amount | No minimum | No minimum |
Max limit on card | $50,000 AUD² | No limit but fees for holding large amounts are incurred. For example: You can hold up to $23,000 AUD for free then a 0.033% monthly fee accrues for any amount over. |
Monthly/yearly maintenance fee | None | None |
Renewal fee once expired | None | Free |
Digital card available? | No | Yes |
ATM fees | No withdrawal fees on Westpac Group ATMs domestically or Global Alliance Partners internationally | Two free withdrawals up to $350 total a month per account Over 2 withdrawals per month: A fee of $1.50 + 1.75% of amount withdrawn over $350 AUD Note: ATM operators may charge their own fees. |
International payments fee % for spending 100 AUD in GBP | No foreign transaction fees on conversions | 0.47% to spend convert 100 AUD spent in GBP |
Exchange rate used | Mastercards exchange rate for purchases with card² Westpac exchange rate for conversions through online banking or the App² | Mid-market rate |
*As seen on 22 May 2023
Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information. Where ATM withdrawals are listed as free or fee-free, the card issuer will not charge, but ATM operators may charge their own fees. |
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There are two exchange rates applied using the Westpac Worldwide Wallet card, which depend on the type of transaction being made. If you make a purchase using your travel card in a currency you do not hold a balance in, you’ll access Mastercards exchange rate.²
When making conversions through your online banking portal or the Westpac App for your travel card, you’ll access Westpacs exchange rate. Westpac or Mastercard does not disclose whether a margin is applied in their exchange rates, so we’ll compare the rates with Wise that uses the mid-market rate.²
We’ll convert 1000 AUD into GBP using the Westpac conversion calculator and the Wise pricing calculator.
*Westpac⁴ | *Wise⁵ |
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To convert $1000 AUD into GBP, the exchange rate is 1 AUD = 0.5141 GBP This means when you’ll get 514.10 GBP to spend using your Westpac Travel card⁵ | To convert $1000 AUD into GBP, the exchange rate is 0.534277. You’ll also have to pay a small variable fee of 0.47% which equates to 4.68 AUD on this conversion. This means you’ll be converting 995.32 AUD. In your GBP account, you’ll get 531.78 GBP to spend |
*Rate indicative of the 22nd May 2023
As you can see there is a difference in how much GBP you’ll receive after the conversions with either provider. This example would indicate that there is a margin incorporated into Westpacs exchange rate everytime you convert your AUD into one of the supported currencies in your travel card.
When it comes to making purchases, we’ll see if there is a difference between using the Mastercard rate at the time of a foreign purchase rather than converting ahead of time.
*Mastercard Exchange rate⁶ |
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The exchange rate at the time of simulation is: 1 Great British Pound = 1.877731 Australian Dollar Based on this exchange rate, to spend $1000 AUD in GBP would equate to a 532.56 GBP purchase. |
*Rate indicative of the 22nd May 2023
This simulation would suggest that the Mastercard exchange rate is similar to the mid-market rate used by Wise. It’s important to recognise that exchange rates are constantly fluctuating, so sometimes you may save money converting cash ahead of time rather than using the real-time exchange rate.
Read more: Australia Post Everyday Mastercard. The Fees & Need-to-knows |
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So now let’s tackle how you can get a Westpac prepaid travel card. We’ll take you through who is eligible and the steps to order your own below.
Before you apply, you need to make sure you meet these requirements:¹
You can apply for this card online or through a Westpac Branch.
You can pick up a card in the branch or if you order yours online from home, you’ll receive them in the mail in 5-8 days.¹
To load your card, you’ll need to make an AUD transfer from your existing Westpac everyday transaction or savings account. You can do this through the online banking portal or in the Westpac App.
From there, you can choose when to convert your cash into your desired supported currency.¹
There are two other things you should know before applying for this card.
Although you can hold any unused balances on the Westpac Worldwide Card, Any balance that remains on the card is not protected under the Financial Claims Scheme. This means that in the unlikely event that Westpac becomes insolvent, you may lose your available balance.²
If your card gets lost, stolen or damaged overseas, you may be able to request emergency cash from Westpac up to $3000 or what is in your Worldwide Wallet card account.
To get in touch with Westpac you can Call from within Australia on 1300 655 505 or from overseas on +612 9155 7700.
If you’d prefer mid-market rates when spending money internationally, rather than being tied to a preset rate, and require accounts in multiple currencies, open a Wise Account so you can apply for a Wise debit card instead.
With a Wise Account and card, you can hold over 40 currencies all in one place. When you spend money using your Wise debit card, money will be withdrawn from the money available in your wise account.
If you have the currency in your account, it’s free to spend
If you don’t have the currency in your account, there’s a conversion fee.
Wise’s smart technology ensures that the Wise card only spends from the balance that’ll be fee-free, otherwise it uses the one with the cheapest fee.
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Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information. |
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Sources
Sources:
Sources checked on: 22 May 2023
*Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.
This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.
We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content in the publication is accurate, complete or up to date.
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