Need a Debit Card for Overseas Transactions and ATM Withdrawals

Drj55 on 21/09/2025 - 17:29

I need a new overseas debit card, now that NAB has nerfed my citibank card.

I have read the ozbargain wiki and have heard people talk about the Maquarie one a fair bit. Is this still considered good?

I need to have apple pay and google wallet and have no ATm fees or transaction fees, which this card seems to offer.

But what I also need is quick transfers between this card and my NAB account.

When travelling overseas, I might suddenly need to transfer several thousand dollars to pay for hotels or car rental. When citi was citi I needed to be very vigilant and forward thinking but then when the card became part of NAB I got very complacent as the transfers were instaneous.

Does anyone know if Macquarie debit card uses Osko payments for instant transfers?

Is there a better card?

Thanks

Financial Debit Card

Comments

  • sghetti on 21/09/2025 - 17:43
    +6

    Yes, the standard Macquarie accounts have Osko/instant transfers

    • Drj55 on 21/09/2025 - 23:20

      Perfect. Sounds sorted then

  • MeatyOne on 21/09/2025 - 17:50
    +5

    Macquarie works well overseas, but be careful with them. They can and will debank you for no reason at all, and won't give you any reason for it.

    UBank works just as well, and seeing as you're already with NAB, it'll be less likely to be debanked.

    • Drj55 on 21/09/2025 - 23:21
      +2

      Debanked?? How does that work? You mean that just close your account if they don't like your card usage?

      • MeatyOne on 22/09/2025 - 08:43
        -1

        Basically, yes. They can debank you for any reason, including frequency of deposits/transfers, etc. Macquarie are overly cautious and will debank you with no reason given, which if you're overseas can be a major problem.

      • cfuse on 22/09/2025 - 14:03
        +2

        It's more than that, they refuse service to you as a customer. You have been flagged and permanently excluded. You have no right to compel them to provide you service. Nor do you have any right of appeal in that.

        That is why debanking is such a toxic thing. It is denial of an essential service for which there is no alternative (because the government is gagging to get rid of cash, and there's currently no legal enforcement for any business to accept it anyway). People will rebut that by saying "Go elsewhere" but what happens when all the banks decide they don't like you?

  • AustriaBargain on 21/09/2025 - 17:59

    Um, which country overseas?

    • BewareOfThe Dog on 21/09/2025 - 19:33

      All of them. :)

    • Dollar General on 21/09/2025 - 20:23
      -1

      Nambia

    • Drj55 on 21/09/2025 - 23:19

      Usually Euro but probably south East Asia next year. Does Macquarie work better in some regions?

      • CharlieSheen on 22/09/2025 - 12:57
        +1

        Depends where in South East Asia. In Thailand you're charged a fee anywhere (220 baht), in Malaysia there are fee free ATMs avaliable- I personally use the MayBank ATMs with my WISE debit card and have no issue.

      • Mugsy on 22/09/2025 - 13:00
        +2

        Have at least one option for MC and VISA. Considering the number of debit cards with no account keeping fees, I would have at least two of each and stick the ones you're not using in a hidden spot in your luggage with no funds on it. Just transfer cash to it via phone banking.

        For both regions/continents, there are hotels/vendors that will only accept one or the other so keep your bases covered.

  • TassieTommy on 21/09/2025 - 18:05
    +7

    I have used Wise for everything overseas. Transfers from AU accounts are instant and currency rates are good. https://wise.com/au/card/

    • DashCam AKA Rolts on 21/09/2025 - 19:04

      Agreed.

    • clover on 21/09/2025 - 19:13
      +5

      There is a withdrawal limit with Wise. Not my first choice. Go with any other recommendations first.

    • tekisei on 22/09/2025 - 08:51

      You can't get your own money back out from Wise to your own accounts without paying 1% fee (no withdraw function, can only send to yourself).

    • relentless on 22/09/2025 - 11:55
      -2

      The withdrawal limit should be fine for most people and it has useful safety features.

  • Blokeinhisundies on 21/09/2025 - 18:51
    +1

    Have used Osko to instantly transfer large amounts from both Macquarie and Ubank ($20k+) and both have no foreign transaction fees. ATM fees really depend on the ATM provider and the country you are in. No card has no ATM fees worldwide.

    • Drj55 on 21/09/2025 - 23:22

      Yeah quite a few ATM in Europe charge a fee to use them but I think that once this nab card reverts back to "normal" I will double charged. Once by the atm and once by NAB.

  • ferry594 on 21/09/2025 - 19:01
    +1

    Personally I'll always use the HSBC multi-currency debit. It gets VISA rates which is basically the same as most MC cards. It also comes with the added bonus that the chances of bank/NAB/Macq having an ATM for fee free withdrawal overseas is 0, but with HSBC there's a small chance that particular place may have HSBC retail banks and thus free withdrawals.

    • igorekh on 21/09/2025 - 22:04
      +4

      Are you sure HSBC uses the Visa rate? My understanding is that it only applies when you can’t open an account in that currency. Otherwise, they use their internal, less favorable, rate.

      • knasty on 22/09/2025 - 06:26

        I have HSBC and Macquarie accounts. Did a back-to-back test in Japan and the Macquarie rate was better (Mastercard interbank rate).

        • pandadude on 22/09/2025 - 09:31
          +2

          Macquaire is mastercard. You can withdrawal from an 7 Eleven Japan atm without a fee. Most cards which dont charge for currency conversion in Australian are visa which get charged fees at 7 Eleven Japan. There is a visa partner atm but 7 Eleven is literally everyone in Metro Japan.

          Note Wise physical card is visa so same issue if we talking Japan.

          HBSC is useful if there is a HSBC in the country and the local banks charge fees. The worst is if you purchase or withdraw on the weekend from any currency listed on the global account.

          Note for ING if you still want the high interest you still need to do the 5 taps a month. The only removed it from the transaction account on the 15th of October.

      • ferry594 on 22/09/2025 - 06:27

        It's been a while since I've used it, but last time I was travelling around SE Asia I seem to remember getting spot on rates. ¯_(ツ)_/¯ maybe its changed

        • nned2say on 22/09/2025 - 09:24

          I don't know when you travelled to SE Asia, but when I tried to open an HSBC multi-currency account 9 years ago for my trip to the US, they used their internal exchange rate.

    • mrvaluepack on 22/09/2025 - 08:36
      +5

      Hsbc claims no international fee and no atm fee but doesnt use visa/mastercard rate like macquarie or ubank. Their internal exchange rate that they use applies a 2.5% implicit spread embedded in the FX rate, which i found to be a dodgy practice.

  • bargaino on 21/09/2025 - 19:28
    +2

    ING is still good, no?

    • timhn on 22/09/2025 - 07:22

      Yes, if you just use it for a regular debit account - not worry with hoops to jump for the bonus saving interest.

    • emoticon on 22/09/2025 - 07:27
      +3

      After October 15th ING gets closer to feature parity with Macquarie Bank.

      Right now they have a stupid deposit and spending requirement that you have to achieve in the previous month to activate zero international transaction fees and $0 international ATM transaction fees in the following month.

      But they are removing that in October.

      They’ve probably noticed customers being turned off by that policy and switching to banks with no jumping through hoops nonsense.

      • knitwear on 22/09/2025 - 08:33
        +3

        But they are removing that in October.

        Along with domestic ATM rebate, unfortunately, which Macquarie still give.

    • da1andonly on 22/09/2025 - 21:04

      I don't recommend ING, from my experience they've used random Osko transfer, sometimes they do and sometimes they don't. And they don't tell you beforehand too, so you'll sometimes have to wait 1 to 2 day for a bank transfer

  • altomic on 21/09/2025 - 19:28
    +3

    I used my Bankwest debit card in Japan in May. Worked everywhere, with out a problem

  • Stealtho on 21/09/2025 - 20:03

    Travellers cheques are best

    • Drj55 on 21/09/2025 - 23:25

      Thet were a lot of fun, especially getting them changed in less salubrious parts of town.

  • Far Cough on 21/09/2025 - 20:16

    i used my cba world debit

  • Sweet3st on 21/09/2025 - 20:34

    Trying to decide this as well. I do have a Wise card that I mostly use OS as I get paid in USD so saves converting twice. As I have a fair bit of $ in the Wise account, need a second debit card for small transactions and ATMs that I can afford to lose. Prefer Visa as Wise is MC.

  • aliam on 22/09/2025 - 07:14

    yes, macquarie was pretty much instant when for transferring from my Commonwealth account to the card whilst I was overseas.
    I also had a wise card, as best to have 2 methods.

    • Drj55 on 22/09/2025 - 07:39

      Does wise, work for apple/Google pay

  • Homr on 22/09/2025 - 07:16

    another vote for WISE

  • paul02 on 22/09/2025 - 07:30
    -5

    Qantas Pay, load with any currency and can be added to tap and pay devices. Plus you get points. When I used mine in Greece no fees.

    • Drj55 on 22/09/2025 - 07:39

      Don't you pay terrible conversion rates? Something has to pay for the points

      • gromit on 22/09/2025 - 12:18

        yes, avoid Qantas Pay, it is about the worst possible option.

    • unhuman on 22/09/2025 - 08:10
      +2

      Wow really bad advice. Qantas pay is for those who wants to spend extra cash for no reason and points you get is extremely negligible. You can get more points by buying Qantas wine with extra fees you pay for Qantas money. 2025 does not need a travel money card like Qantas.

    • TightAl on 22/09/2025 - 14:40

      Holy lol

  • 82norm on 22/09/2025 - 08:01
    +4

    Bendigo bank Up card, another option.

    • movieman on 22/09/2025 - 17:12

      Up Bank.

      It just works - no need to notify of travelling dates.

      Clearly shows the transaction value, and also shows balance in local currency.

      And MasterCard.

      Highly recommended.

    • bugsbunny on 22/09/2025 - 17:24

      Another +1 for UP Bank.

      like @movieman said above, it just works.

      Another positive with them is that if you're overseas, you don't have to worry about finding a number to call, you can just contact them via the app and they're quite prompt in their response. This has been very helpful.

  • Mugsy on 22/09/2025 - 08:28

    OP when you say you may need to suddenly transfer thousands of dollars to pay for hotels etc, how exactly does your transaction look?

    Are you paying in AUD funds and just letting the bank do the conversion at the time?

    If so, products like Wise or Revolut don't offer much benefit compared to a debit card with no international transaction fees and i would stick to your choice of Macquarie.

    But have a few back up debit cards from other banks and make sure you have at least one VISA and one MC option. Some hotels only accept one or the other.

    I would include Macquarie and Suncorp if you are using the cards to pay new payees due to authenticator apps being used (in case you don’t get that SMS OTP). HSBC everyday global also has authenticator but depending which currency you are converting to, they may be using their own, undesirable rates. But good as a back up if you other options are failing.

  • McSandwich on 22/09/2025 - 08:34

    The account and card given by NAB to replace the citibank has all the same benefits. I've been using it for my travels. No fees, okso payments and digital card.

    • Mugsy on 22/09/2025 - 08:46
      +4

      Those benefits are disappearing come November sometime.

      Check your emails for the notice

  • archiexyz on 22/09/2025 - 08:49

    Both Macquarie and HSBC only use part of the NPP so may not be instant between some banks.

    Use this as a guide (but may not be 100% up to date)
    https://ocnpp.notion.site/7d612d9c52d4479785d4237cb8bd772a?v…

    Also this list looks pretty comprehensive https://www.canstar.com.au/travel-money-cards/best-travel-de…

    • Mugsy on 22/09/2025 - 09:16

      I can confirm that transfers between Mac and NAB are instant.

      Though, if OP is using NAB due to the ex-Citi NAB Classic debit card, I hope they know that the no international transaction fees and no (NAB charged) ATM fees come to an end soon.

      I'm in the process of helping Dad get an alternative VISA debit card due to this.

    • quick-dry on 22/09/2025 - 19:00

      this is a problem with HSBC if you use St George as primary bank, transfers are not instant and don't clear the same day - not sure if this would mean Westpac is slow as well. (I have to shuffle to HSBC via uBank or mac - I use HSBC for tap pay under $100 with the cashback)

      instant:
      HSBC - uBank
      HSBC - Macquarie
      Macquarie - uBank
      Macquarie - St George

      Slow:
      HSBC - St George

      (I tested all these tonight since I'm moving from uBank to Macquarie. I'll keep the uBank open, as a backup, but the new hoops for bonus are a PITA and mac had a better rate. I also ditched my NAB card as it used to be Citi and NAB are adding fees soon)

      OP: it is worth keeping multiple options available, sometimes a card gets swallowed, or rejected, or one bank goes down but the other works. Don't be caught short - ideally one card with Visa, and one with Mastercard

      • timhn on 22/09/2025 - 19:52

        It was instant transfer for me between HSBC and StG (Complete Freedom account)

  • rake on 22/09/2025 - 09:38
    +3

    I would recommend Bankwest. Their app is quite good and their support is available within the app from anywhere you go. The response may be slow sometimes , but it's a human replying nonetheless with a precise answer.

    Also, they allow you to make one-time or multiple use virtual debit cards for online transactions (zero-fee).

    The only downside I can think of is that Osko transfers sometimes take up to 4 hours to new contacts.

    • tonester on 22/09/2025 - 10:35

      Also, they allow you to make one-time or multiple use virtual debit cards for online transactions (zero-fee).

      thanks - didn’t know that, though only 3 max, unlike unlimited with Revolut, and presumably just Mastercard?
      https://www.bankwest.com.au/virtual-cards

  • peteru on 22/09/2025 - 12:38
    -3

    I've just got my son a CBA Travelmoney card for his first overseas trip. A few hundred $ to get him started and the rest of the money in his CBA account so that he can top up the card as required. Zero fees, other than operator ATM fees, which are unavoidable with any bank.

    I looked at Wise, but it seemed to be less cost effective and less flexible.

  • dreamerman on 22/09/2025 - 13:17
    +1

    Understand the fear of being "debanked". I have always advised my card issuer dates when overseas and think this helped.

  • Pacoroma on 22/09/2025 - 13:34
    +3

    I use Up myself. As in travel mode, your account overview will then show your balance in AUD and your chosen local currency. And supported all currency in the world.

  • Spectatie on 22/09/2025 - 13:37

    Just coming to the end of a 3 month trip to Greece and here's my experience.

    Debit cards: UBank & Suncorp Everyday Options. Having 2 cards let me withdraw AUD4000 per day. They both use the Visa exchange rate which is easy to check as well.

    Credit cards: Bankwest Zero Platinum Mastercard & Bendigo Ready Credit Visa. I used the Bankwest for any non cash transactions and took advantage of the 6 month zero interest on trans offer they are currently running if you make the minimum payment each month. The Bendigo CC was a backup that was only used in Dubai. BPaying of these each month was no issue.

    All of the bank apps worked flawlessly. I get what you say about Osko but to reduce reliance on inter bank transfers I ended up making one transfer per month based on my estimated cash needs to each debit card.

    Only issue I had was that my UBank card got blocked by them after my 2nd withdrawal of just under $2000 in 2 days. I had to call their AU number to unblock They said it was because i used an ATM that was not on their list. I call bullshit as i had used the same ATM @ the same time with the Suncorp card without issue. I raised an interal complaint with them as I was pissed and haven't had any other problems. My use case was that I needed €6000 early in the trip to pay for a rental car and some accommodation that i had negotiated cash prices for.
    I will also add that my first large online transaction for some accommodation required a SMS pin but received that no worries on a postpaid AU sim without roaming.

  • Zondor on 22/09/2025 - 15:51

    Up bank is easy as

  • Essem on 22/09/2025 - 16:00
    +1

    Open a Macquarie Savings Account, good interest rate with no hoops to jump as with UBank. With this you will get a debit account which pays some interest. Also Authenticator app which is great for overseas as you don’t need SMS codes as with the old Citibank/NAB account. Then you can transfer as you need from savings account to debit account when you need funds.
    No international conversion fees, no monthly fee and only need in AUD as they use the Mastercard rate.
    I’ll be taking both Macquarie and UBank cards with me for OS travel next year with UBank as my backup.

    • Hangryuman on 22/09/2025 - 17:56

      'Open a Macquarie Savings Account, good interest rate'

      agreed - but I think when you start with Macquarie you have to have a transaction a/c which pays less interest (2%?) cf savings (4.25%?)

      MB transaction a/c can have a debit Mastercard - savings a/c cannot - but that's easily handled by checking/instant transferring across when you want to top up the transaction a/c for tap'n'pay e.g. set in Apple Wallet as default card while travelling overseas

      which we are using as a couple travelling now in Europe with a joint transaction a/c - for each spend transaction, it pops up immediately on each of our phones, showing the local currency amount and the AUD converted amount - which is handy to know as we both see it at the same time on our own separate iPhones.

  • sween64 on 22/09/2025 - 16:26

    Lots of love for Macquarie

  • wako on 22/09/2025 - 17:09

    I travel overseas regularly.

    I carry multiple cards as occasionally one gets blocked or swallowed by a atm. Or occasionally skimmed . I have had it all..

    I carry
    ING orange visa card {need to meet few conditions each month }

    UP MasterCard Debit

    I use these 2 mainly for paying with physical card or atm withdrawal I find the ING card gives slightly better exchange rate than MasterCard.

    Also as backup I have

    Wise card. But has withdrawal limits so use only as emergency card

    Revolut virtual card - I use for ride-sharing apps overseas and food deliverys. Online shopping like Lazada or shoppe whilst overseas.

    In ING and Up card I keep very little in the card account and transfer from linked savings if needed.

    Remember if you ever get stuck overseas without a card to ring your bank that u have a visa or MC with and ask them for emergency cash. They will transfer you to visa or MC services and they will western union you money from your account or cash advance from credit card.

  • bugsbunny on 22/09/2025 - 17:20

    UP Bank.

  • Atomik17 on 22/09/2025 - 20:30

    Just got back from 5 weeks on Europe. Wise card was amazing.

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