How to change currency as profitably as possible? Financial life hacks

Buying cash at an exchange office

For many years now, by law, we have not had separate exchange offices and exchange offices - they are all divisions of banks. Those same small exchangers often belong to the same small banks. You can find out their name at the stand in any exchange office - the name of the bank is indicated there. That is, yes, you come to the bank.

This measure at one time made the currency purchase and sale market more civil for citizens. But they often try to deceive the client here too. The most common methods are shortchanging and incorrect course on the sign. Ask why they gave you so little currency for your rubles. And they will tell you that the old course was on the board. No fines have yet helped combat this trick.

What is the commission at Sberbank when exchanging currency?

Banks, including Sberbank, carry out the following operations with foreign currency:

• purchase/sale;
• exchange;
• exchange of foreign currency for foreign currency or conversion;
• exchange or replacement of damaged foreign banknotes at a bank;
• accepting currency for collection;
• determining the authenticity of a banknote.

Information about what commission is provided for currency exchange and other transactions at Sberbank is presented in the table.

What percentage Sberbank will take when conducting a transaction depends on the type of transaction. For non-cash exchange, a calculator is available in Online Sberbank. With its help, you can calculate what amounts will be credited after the transaction is completed. The exchange is available on accounts, cards and deposits, which provide for partial or full spending of funds from the account.

about the author

Klavdiya Treskova - higher education with qualification “Economist”, with specializations “Economics and Management” and “Computer Technologies” at PSU. She worked in a bank in positions from operator to acting. Head of the Department for servicing private and corporate clients. Every year she successfully passed certifications, education and training in banking services. Total work experience in the bank is more than 15 years. [email protected]

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Buy money in online banking or mobile banking

There are two options here. First: many banks allow you to open a foreign currency account directly in the application or personal account on the website. You can transfer money there from a ruble account. Accordingly, the exchange rate to the dollar or euro will be written there. It is usually lower than in the same bank in the branch. But higher than in exchange offices from small banks (they work with physicists to a limited extent and, as a rule, do not have Internet banks).

If dollars or euros were bought to save money from depreciation and as an alternative to cash, then they can be left in the account. Or here: buy dollars today for conditionally 79 rubles, if the exchange rate in a month is 85 rubles - transfer it back to a ruble account and remain a little in the black.

If you need to withdraw dollars and euros, then you must either go to a bank branch or have a dollar or euro card that is linked to this account into which you bought the currency.

Comments: 2

Your comment (question) If you have questions about this article, you can tell us. Our team consists of only experienced experts and specialists with specialized education. We will try to help you in this topic:

Author of the article: Klavdiya Treskova

Consultant, author Popovich Anna

Financial author Olga Pikhotskaya

1. Eugene
   12/08/2020 at 10:27 am If I change dollars to rubles, will they charge a commission?
   Reply ↓ Anna Popovich
   08.12.2020 at 10:55

   Dear Evgeniy, the conversion will be made at the current rate, and the issue of withholding the commission depends on the method of currency exchange and additional services, for example, fixing the rate when exchanging a large amount. As a rule, commission is not charged at currency exchange offices and when using online services.

   Reply ↓

Withdraw euros and dollars from an ATM

You don’t need a dollar or euro card for this - you can withdraw it from a ruble card. In some places the exchange rate is unfavorable, in others it is normal. This can be found in the tariffs on the bank’s website (yes, those long files with small print).

There is another aspect: currency is not available at every ATM. Usually it is always loaded into ATMs at the central office of the city. In the case of Moscow, go to ATMs simply at branches in the very center (but not always). You can check the availability of currency at the ATM by calling the bank's support phone number.

Tax legislation in the field of foreign exchange transactions

According to the laws of the Russian Federation, any income received by an individual is subject to personal income tax (NDFL).

). Its rate depends on the status of the taxpayer: for citizens and residents of the Russian Federation it is 13%, for foreigners – 30%.

So, if an individual received income as a result of currency transactions, he must pay personal income tax. But there are exceptions.

If the taxpayer received income as a result of foreign exchange transactions, and the money for the purchase or sale of currency was in the account at the client’s disposal for 3 years

, thanks to the investment tax deduction, you can avoid paying personal income tax.

Let's give an example . The client purchased 5 thousand US dollars three years ago, which he decided to sell at a rate favorable to him. If he has proof that the currency was purchased three years ago, he does not pay income tax.

The situation is similar with the purchase of currency for rubles. If they were at the client’s disposal for three years or more, there is no need to pay

.

Buy currency from a brokerage account

If you buy stocks and bonds, you can buy currencies from your brokerage account. There the rate is more favorable than banks and exchangers. However, it’s worth creating an account specifically only if you regularly purchase currency. The fact is that brokers charge a fee either for servicing the account or for individual transactions. It is not profitable to create an account specifically to buy $300 once a year.

Brokers also have restrictions on the minimum amount for currency purchases. All brokers have different minimum thresholds.

Currency exchange tips

To minimize losses from buying and selling currencies, experts suggest using useful tips:

• change large amounts;
• take into account the time when to carry out an exchange operation;
• use all available online services;
• become familiar with how transactions take place on the stock exchange, especially if currency purchases occur with a certain frequency.

Large amounts

For large amounts, banks provide a more favorable rate for the client than for those who conduct small transactions. Some exchangers are initially aimed at working with clients who exchange 5-10 thousand dollars or euros at a time. And a citizen passing by will be annoyed when, during the operation, he sees a different exchange rate on the receipt. It is advisable to check with the cashier in advance which transactions are covered by the rate posted on the board.

Reputable banks place rates one to one. Information about the fees charged when exchanging currency is posted on stands near the cash desks. And unpromoted credit and financial institutions can resort to tricks, showing numbers of 1: 100. They can also hide data on the percentage of the transaction, which misleads clients.

Trade time

It is most profitable to convert currency on weekdays during bank operating hours. On average, they focus on the period from 10 to 16 hours. This is due to trading on the currency exchange. There is no trading on weekends, so from Friday evenings, on weekends or on the eve of holidays, rates become more unfavorable for citizens. In this way, banks factor future fluctuations into the exchange rate. For example, if on Monday trading takes place at an increased rate, then the currency sold over the weekend will leave with the least losses for the bank.

The same rules apply to rates before the start of trading on weekdays and after their completion. Morning and evening courses are the least profitable for clients. And when the exchange is open, the spread between buying and selling is minimal.

In addition to the time of day, there is an analytical opinion that the ruble exchange rate is most stable in January and early October. It is during these months that experts advise purchasing foreign currency for long-term accumulation. But the Russian foreign exchange market is unstable, so it is more logical to carry out a transaction when the current exchange rate suits the buyer. This approach will save nerves and time.

Online services

The leading banks of the Russian Federation, which have developed online versions for clients, sell and buy currency there at a rate more favorable to users.

This is justified by the fact that the credit institution does not incur losses on currency conversion, its delivery, collection, storage, payment for the cashier’s work and other additional costs. Non-cash transactions are beneficial to both the bank and citizens.

The second reason why an online rate is more attractive to clients is that it can be changed much faster in the event of a sharp jump in trading than offline. This allows you to reduce risks and reduce the spread between purchase and sale.

But an online course is not always more profitable. Therefore, before making an exchange, go to the official website of several banks and evaluate what rates are offered in their offices, branches and cash registers. The attractiveness of the exchange rate in real exchangers may be related to geographic specifics. The online course is set for the whole of Russia, and the course in the OVP is tied to a specific area. It may happen that a bank representative office in a given locality does not have enough cash in currency to carry out its operations. That’s why it offers quotes that are more attractive to clients.

Exchange on the stock exchange

Suitable for those who carry out regular exchange transactions for the purchase and sale of currency in volumes starting from 1,000 dollars or euros. The exchange rate on the foreign exchange exchange is always more favorable than in banks. But for those who do not own large monetary assets or will carry out conversion occasionally, it is more profitable to work with banks than with brokers. A commission is charged for maintaining a brokerage account and withdrawing funds from the client, so one-time transactions are unprofitable.

Experienced traders advise buying currency on the exchange in portions, that is, 1,000, after two or three days or a week another one or two thousand. When you gain experience, you can give orders to the broker for transactions more often. Not everyone manages to make money from exchange rate fluctuations. Therefore, those who do not aim to earn money, but only to accumulate, can be given a more specific task to their broker. For example, the order may contain an indication of a maximum or minimum price, above which a transaction cannot be carried out.

Commissions and limits

The presence and amount of commissions, as well as limits on foreign exchange transactions, are influenced by several factors. The most significant of them are two: the method of withdrawing dollars and the type of card. It is important to highlight several important points:

• when using ATMs and branches of Sberbank, as well as its subsidiaries, there is no commission for most classic and premium currency cards;
• 0.75% of the withdrawal amount will only need to be paid when using instant cards and other plastics of a similar class;
• in a situation where funds in US dollars are withdrawn from ATMs of third-party banks, the Sberbank commission is 1% of the amount, but not less than $3. In this case, as noted above, you will probably have to pay the bank providing the service.

A roughly similar situation arises with limits on the type of transaction under consideration. When using the capabilities of ATMs and Sberbank offices, they vary between $200 thousand and $1.5 million per month, depending on the status of the currency card. Similar restrictions are set for daily withdrawals – they range from $6 thousand to $25 thousand per day.

The specified daily limits also apply to ATMs and terminals of third-party financial institutions. There are no restrictions for withdrawals of US dollars through bank cash desks.

How to cash out currency abroad?

Sberbank credit and debit cards issued in the international payment systems VISA and MasterCard can be used during trips abroad. At the same time, their functionality is practically not inferior to that available in Russia.

However, when using Sberbank currency cards, several important points must be taken into account:

• the most favorable cash withdrawal conditions are offered in divisions of a financial organization that successfully operate in many countries around the world, including Germany, India, China, as well as subsidiaries in several countries of Central and Eastern Europe;
• When using branches and ATMs of other financial institutions, additional fees are possible and almost applicable. Therefore, before performing an operation, it is extremely important to thoroughly study its conditions;
• when using credit cards in US dollars, it is much more correct to make non-cash payments using them, since withdrawing funds is simply unprofitable for the client;
• Whenever using a ruble card - both in the process of cashing out and when making purchases - you should take into account the costs of converting Russian currency into US dollars. Their value is determined by Sberbank’s internal exchange rate established on the day the transaction was completed or recorded.