Photo by Shahed.
On a February evening last year, my family and I were at Dulles airport outside Washington DC en route to Abu Dhabi. Our excitement was cruising very high but suddenly nose dived like a Boeing plane when a US Homeland Security Police stopped us on the boarding bridge. I’ve read some stories of people being taken out of the airplane by police or the FBI, so in this first of its kind incident to me, I couldn’t have guessed anything great. Not that there were reasons that I knew of to stop me.
The heavily armed tactically geared up officer asked us for the passports followed by our destination and how much cash we were carrying. I then realized it was about the money in our pockets. Then I noticed a few other officers were stopping some other passengers too. Since he was not a buddy of mine asking for a quick drink, I gave him crystal clear answers for every question he asked, including that we were only carrying around five hundred dollars and some change in cash. The officer then reminded us about the 10 thousand dollar cash limit for carrying overseas but that didn’t change our answers. After a few more exchanges he sent us on our way. He must have thought of us being the poorest immigrants in America for carrying only 500 dollars while five people going on vacation. To his credit, he wasn’t entirely wrong.
Given the worldwide familiarity of the US dollar, it’s risky to carry a lot of cash while traveling overseas. The USD is a magnet for good and bad people alike. It’s the ultimate ‘religion’ everyone believes in. To prevent being a victim of an unpleasant scenario, I propose two of my own tools for going cash-free overseas and minimize the risks.
One, use credit cards as much as possible when on a trip abroad. My own experiences show that credit cards are accepted even at remote places nowadays. There’s minimal risk in going around with credit cards. Unlike cash, credit cards come with fraud protection and can be easily replaced if lost or stolen. Ideal candidates for overseas expenses would be VISA, Mastercard, or American Express with no foreign transaction fees. Pack at least two different cards.
Two, carry debit cards for cash withdrawal at ATMs. Even though credit card acceptance is ubiquitous, some shop owners still prefer cash to avoid paying fees. For them you need to have some cash in your hands. ATM machines are like candy shops, they’re in more and more places. I’ve had no problems getting cash any time I needed in any places I visited overseas. Ideal candidates for taking on a trip overseas are VISA and Mastercard debit cards with no foreign transaction fees or ATM fees. Even better, if the bank returns you any fees charged by the local ATM owners. I know a few banks do. I’m not naming them here because this isn’t a paid article. Like credit cards, debit cards also come with the same fraud protection and other benefits but the only thing different for debit cards is that they’re directly linked to the checking accounts. Pack at least two different debit cards in case one card doesn’t like you anymore.
Having used these two tools, there’ll be little reason to carry cash any more than what’s for some emergencies. Spending will be minimized as well because cash can be spent anywhere even for unnecessary feel good things such as eating junk from the streets.
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SHAHED I. NOYON 
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