Not everyone decides to open a local bank account when they move to Cambodia. Should you? We help you break down the cost of taking money out of ATMs, so you can decide for yourself.
Which one will you choose?
Luckily, there are plenty of ATMs to choose from in Phnom Penh, so you can access your foreign bank accounts and buy all of the cheap beers you can drink.
ATM fees have, unfortunately, been going up and up in the past few years. Canadia Bank ATMs used to be free, now it charges $5 per withdrawal. Mekong Bank also used to have no fees and now has joined the $5 per transaction crowd. Unfortunately it sounds like Maybank no longer offers free ATM withdrawals, either.
The rest of us will generally have to pay fees of $4 to 6 per transaction. At the time of writing, of the banks that charge fees, ABA, ACLEDA, and Vattanak have the lowest, at $4, at Cathay United has the highest, at $6. (Additionally, Cathay United’s notification appears to be an advertisement and does not require consent, much to the chagrin of many unsuspecting cardholders.)
These fees add up — withdrawing just four times per month (which, if you have a typical daily withdrawal maximum of $500, means you have a fairly average $2000/month Phnom Penh lifestyle) and you’ll pay $240 per year in fees (plus any fees your own bank can add!).
Are you one of the unfortunate souls with a MasterCard Debit/ATM card in Phnom Penh? There are a few Visa-only ATMs in Phnom Penh, but it’s not that bad. ABA, ACLEDA, ANZ, Canadia, and Mekong all take both Visa and MasterCard and are the most ubiquitous.
Keeping it riel: there are a few ATMs that dispense Cambodian riel.
Most ATMs dispense US Dollars if you use a foreign card. This is really helpful if you are staying in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap (and the main parts of Battambang, Kampot, and Kep) where most prices are in USD, but not so much if you are headed to any of the other provinces and lovely towns villages outside of these urban centers. If you prefer to take out riel rather than go to a money changer, ABA Bank and Mekong Bank ATMs dispense riel.
ABA on Street 57 (next to Sunshine Mart, between St 278 and St 282)
Mekong Bank in Phnom Penh Tower (#445, Monivong Blvd, at the corner with St. 232)
(If you use a card from a local bank, you can always withdraw riel.)
Warning: most Phnom Penh ATMs spit out the largest bills possible, and it can be hard to get change (unless you want to be the one in charge of making sure everyone pays their share of food and drink at your next big group dinner). We recommend withdrawing an amount in USD that is not a multiple of $50– taking out $380, for example, will give you four $20s and three $100s rather than the four awkward $100 notes you would generally be saddled with if you withdrew $400.
(NB: Our favorite places to break $100 bills are: Lucky Supermarket, Brown Coffee, and Supercheap. I’m pretty sure they all know this, but they never give us a hard time.)
There are new banks popping up all the time, let us know in the comments if you discover any no-fee ATMs in Phnom Penh.
MayBank not free fee anymore. It charged me for like 7bucks when when i took over 300bucks out in Siem Reap. Visa credit card from europe
That doesn’t sound right. Did it give you a notice saying $7 would be deducted? If not, that is a charge on your bank’s side for an overseas transaction. Most banks have a $3-5 charge for the transaction PLUS 3% of the total for currency conversion.
I use maybank all the time and have no charge using a UK issued debit card, possibly credit card there may be a charge, but the last thing anyone wants to do is lift cash from a credit card account.
ABA on St 142 just tried to charge me $9 for a withdrawal. An ABA charge, not from my home bank, which is an extra $3 or so.
What?? I have never heard of such a thing.
Happened to me, too. ABA charged $9 for a $600 USD withdrawal.
Does it warn you in advance of the fee?
Yes, it does. But in addition to that there was a 1% foreign transaction fee from my bank. How is that justified? The machine uses USD’s, and I’m American.
I have a MasterCard that allows me to withdraw more than $500, that way makes the fee smaller.
I do get $15 USD reimbursed every month for ATM fees, but the foreign transaction fee seems like an excuse. Other than the ATM being outside the US, there’s no reason to charge 1% because there’s no currency conversion. Everything is in dollars.
I contacted my bank and asked them. I’m awaiting a response.
In Thailand I didn’t have this problem. There’s a way to easily avoid ATM and preset foreign transaction fees. Sure there’s conversion from the USD to the baht, but it’s almost unnoticeable.
Canadia Bank charges Europeans (at least danes) $5 fee
Same for Belgians – $5 it is.
Me too. Canadia charged $5 when I used a NZ ANZ Visa debit card
Finnish too 5$
Being a new visitor to Cambodia, I made the mistake of using my American VISA A.T.M. card in an ANZ Bank A.T.M. today. When I took out my money it said it would charge me a $5 service fee. Okay, I accepted that. But when I looked at my bank statement later that night on-line this is what in found:
1. my withdrawal was listed as $305, not the $300 I actually received.
2. the International Service Assessment Fee was $6.10 (2% of the original amount), and
3. I had an additional ATM fee charged by ANZ Bank for another $3.
So, to take out $300 I was charged $14.10 in fees, including double-billing by ANZ Bank for $8. What a bunch of crooks!
I use my US ATM card at ANZ all the time, and they only charge $5. I’m certain that the other fees are from your American bank, most of whom charge exorbitant rates to withdraw money abroad (in this case, $3 plus 2% of the total).
The additional $3 was definitely from ANZ Bank by the details I saw. My bank charged the 2 % fee, as usual.
Tried to get some dollars out on my European MasterCard at May bank this morning and it was rejected.Does anyone know why ? I had this at Maybank in Bohol Philippines last month although it was accepted at HSBC in Cebu.
An Australian bank, what do you expect?
They all charge 5 USD now (also Canadian bank). Maybank is still free, but was not working at the airport so I had to pay the stupid 5$ to get cash with my Debit card (Maestro). Above that, Canadian Bank swallowed my card as I did not take out my card fast enough (I was helping somebody else). Tomorrow I can collect my card at their main building they said on the phone.
As for Vattanac I figured it out myself in the meantime. But again, they now charging 4 Dollars (at least on my European visa credit card)
Maybank is still free!
Canadia now (19.12.2015) charges 5 Dollars even on credit cards issued in Europe (as mine is) As Peter Hessel has posted: Vattanac is still free: What´s Vattanac? A bank or an ATM in the Vattanac building?
Hi
Acleda now Charles 4$ for a maximum of 250.…..!
Vattanac is free . !!! maximum 500
Hey! This is what Canadia states about ATM fees at their website:
“MasterCard, Cirrus, Maestro, Plus and UnionPay, which are issued outside of Cambodia will now charge US$4 for Cash Withdrawal (except for Visa issued by banks in Europe).
It will take into effect from December 15, 2014 onward.”
Thanx lina
Hey,
I wanted to gather some info about forex cards, i will be travelling from india and was wondering whether my forex card containing US$ will be charged a fee when used to dispense cash. Though the forex site says it will be free of charge, but i am not quite sure.
If your card company says that withdrawals are free of charge, it just means that they won’t charge you anything. You will still be charged by the ATM’s bank in the countries that you travel.
Having spent most of today trying to get cash with a UK visa debit, I have tried all the above and the only to give free cash withdrawals for me was Maybank. Socam bank is a decent option for smaller withdrawals if Maybank is not available as this charges 1.5% rather than the $ 4-5 the others charged. Good luck!