Latitude 28 Degrees $8 per month starting September 2024

[RooFlyer]

What would you recommend for fee-free spending in NZD$?

SYD has it

 

[Catweazle]

As mentioned earlier, plenty of fee free Debit Card options eg UBank

QF earn cards are becoming scarce.

I personally wouldn’t “pre-purchase” NZD. You’ll get a cough exchange rate.

Otherwise, bite the bullet and use a regular earn card and take the 3% fee (you’ll still get the spot rate plus fee and be no worse off than getting cash in advance).

Cash from an ATM would be better than pre-purchase.

But, NZ is pretty much cashless - so do get a DC and/or CC.

Lousy exchange rate and bugger all earn is not worth it.

Useful, ok, thanks.

No, we're really going to the Cook Islands – the usual RAR and AIT.

 

[SYD]

Useful, ok, thanks.

No, we're really going to the Cook Islands – the usual RAR and AIT.

In that case, you might need some cash - not sure. But peeps here could help.

Cash or Card? Countries where you still need cash.

Using debit and CCs overseas (preferably ones that are international transaction fee free!) is becoming a lot easier - pushed along by you know what, but I thought a seperate thread to provide actual current experiences on the need for cash (irrespective of one’s preference for cash v card)...

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[SYD]

Has anyone jumped over to the ING no annual fee, no international transaction fee CC?

Credit Cards - Credit Cards Australia | ING

ING offers different credit cards in Australia, with features such as low rates, no annual fees, and cashback rewards. Apply now.

www.ing.com.au

How easy/difficult to obtain?

The hoops and jumps don’t bother me as I already do them for the Saving Maximiser interest rate and international / ATM fee free debit card.

 

[Legoman]

I am trying to get one. I am unkeen on the whole conventional starting from scratch, new customer application process though, so am trying to appeal to an as yet invisible common sense trait by using the fact I have two offset mortgages with them for the last 10 years, an unblemished repayment record and a credit rating that starts over 900/1000.

So far, they admit to seeing my point that an unsecured line of credit for say $2,000 is much less than they've already approved me for via the mortgages and that most banks would include a free credit card anyway with an offset mortgage as just part of the deal, however, computer says 'no' and as we all know, there is no reasoning or arguing or rationalising with a computer algorithm. The ONE credit card didn't even exist as an ING product at all when I got my mortgages, so it wasn't included. I guess it probably would today, but that's another logic anomaly they seemingly won't entertain.

 

[Pushka]

Has anyone jumped over to the ING no annual fee, no international transaction fee CC?

Credit Cards - Credit Cards Australia | ING

ING offers different credit cards in Australia, with features such as low rates, no annual fees, and cashback rewards. Apply now.

www.ing.com.au

How easy/difficult to obtain?

The hoops and jumps don’t bother me as I already do them for the Saving Maximiser interest rate and international / ATM fee free debit card.

I tried and failed.

 

[Legoman]

To get a credit card these days, even the most basic, generic, no-frills, bargain basement, $500 credit limit card, you have to tick every box right in the middle and don't dare to even touch a line or heaven forbid go outside the borders. You need to be the most bland John C Citizen with a dead-end salary 38hr/week job that's government guaranteed with superannuation included right at the median level the bureau of statistics for your industry says you should be paid. You need to produce 6 months' worth of PAYG payslips proving such and a signed letter from your employer of confirmation of employment. Even if you can jump all those hoops, you'll still be waiting several weeks for a result after they've done a credit check, a police clearance, a working with children check and cross-referenced all that with all the stored ANPR and AI data the 'system' has on you from all your interactions with government service bodies via your MyGov surveillance ID

 

[Viridis]

To get a credit card these days, even the most basic, generic, no-frills, bargain basement, $500 credit limit card, you have to tick every box right in the middle and don't dare to even touch a line or heaven forbid go outside the borders. You need to be the most bland John C Citizen with a dead-end salary 38hr/week job that's government guaranteed with superannuation included right at the median level the bureau of statistics for your industry says you should be paid. You need to produce 6 months' worth of PAYG payslips proving such and a signed letter from your employer of confirmation of employment. Even if you can jump all those hoops, you'll still be waiting several weeks for a result after they've done a credit check, a police clearance, a working with children check and cross-referenced all that with all the stored ANPR and AI data the 'system' has on you from all your interactions with government service bodies via your MyGov surveillance ID

Didn’t have a good night’s sleep last night ?

 

[Legoman]

Didn’t have a good night’s sleep last night ?

It was this morning that really wound me up. Driver's Licence renewal at post office. Price has gone up by 254% since last time, so that's reasonable. Passport 2 months ago was $346. Driver's Licence $327. Fair comparison you think? Passport is a proper (if shoddily produced) book with high tech embedded biometric data and is universally recognised and accepted worldwide. Driver's Licence is none of that and costs just $19 less. But that was just the beginning of my many, many complaints about the whole debacle of the renewal process, but the TLDR is… for the money spent it was basically the biggest rip-off in all of the worst bureaucratic human history

 

[Flashback]

It was this morning that really wound me up. Driver's Licence renewal at post office. Price has gone up by 254% since last time, so that's reasonable. Passport 2 months ago was $346. Driver's Licence $327. Fair comparison you think? Passport is a proper (if shoddily produced) book with high tech embedded biometric data and is universally recognised and accepted worldwide. Driver's Licence is none of that and costs just $19 less. But that was just the beginning of my many, many complaints about the whole debacle of the renewal process, but the TLDR is… for the money spent it was basically the biggest rip-off in all of the worst bureaucratic human history

Welcome to Australia. The price of a passport compared to Ireland, UK, heck ..... anywhere, is a real joke.

 

[LondonAussie]

It was this morning that really wound me up. Driver's Licence renewal at post office. Price has gone up by 254% since last time, so that's reasonable. Passport 2 months ago was $346. Driver's Licence $327. Fair comparison you think? Passport is a proper (if shoddily produced) book with high tech embedded biometric data and is universally recognised and accepted worldwide. Driver's Licence is none of that and costs just $19 less. But that was just the beginning of my many, many complaints about the whole debacle of the renewal process, but the TLDR is… for the money spent it was basically the biggest rip-off in all of the worst bureaucratic human history

You won't want to hear that a 10-year UK Driving Licence renewal costs £14, or free if you're over 70.

 

[Viridis]

It was this morning that really wound me up. Driver's Licence renewal at post office. Price has gone up by 254% since last time, so that's reasonable. Passport 2 months ago was $346. Driver's Licence $327. Fair comparison you think? Passport is a proper (if shoddily produced) book with high tech embedded biometric data and is universally recognised and accepted worldwide. Driver's Licence is none of that and costs just $19 less. But that was just the beginning of my many, many complaints about the whole debacle of the renewal process, but the TLDR is… for the money spent it was basically the biggest rip-off in all of the worst bureaucratic human history

Fair enough; I do feel your pain - hopefully you won't have to do either of those things again for at least another 10/5yrs. Amazing how we 'learn' to take these bureaucratic abuses for granted isn't it (although, clearly, you haven't ).

 

[Legoman]

Amazing how we 'learn' to take these bureaucratic abuses for granted isn't it?

Yep and the govmunt know exactly which psychological buttons not to push to get them over the line with the least resistance. For example, Most people do not keep records like I do, so I am able to look up exactly when and for how much my last driver's licence was renewed for. It was 10 years ago to the day and it cost $128.70. Yesterday I paid $163.50 for the same thing and the normal reaction to that would be… "why are you whinging you big girly sook, haven't you heard of inflation?". Yes I have, but what they nicely hid in the renewal notice is that there's no longer a 10 year renewal option, only 5 years, so yeah, double that price.

They know damn well of course that 99% of people won't be able to remember from 10 years ago when they last renewed their driver's licence and will just assume the new terms are the same as they were 10 years ago, because why change them? Therefore a price rise of $163 from $128 is not too bad is it? Shrinkflation FTW!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Yep and the govmunt know exactly which psychological buttons not to push to get them over the line with the least resistance. For example, Most people do not keep records like I do, so I am able to look up exactly when and for how much my last driver's licence was renewed for. It was 10 years ago to the day and it cost $128.70. Yesterday I paid $163.50 for the same thing and the normal reaction to that would be… "why are you whinging you big girly sook, haven't you heard of inflation?". Yes I have, but what they nicely hid in the renewal notice is that there's no longer a 10 year renewal option, only 5 years, so yeah, double that price.

They know damn well of course that 99% of people won't be able to remember from 10 years ago when they last renewed their driver's licence and will just assume the new terms are the same as they were 10 years ago, because why change them? Therefore a price rise of $163 from $128 is not too bad is it? Shrinkflation FTW!

True, but we are also moving towards a ‘user pays’ system. Ten years ago general government spending might have been applied to agencies that issue things like licences. Today, we got general tax cuts, but we pay more for the things we use.

Those with genuine needs will have access to various concessions to off-set the costs.

 

[Legoman]

True, but we are also moving towards a ‘user pays’ system. Ten years ago general government spending might have been applied to agencies that issue things like licences. Today, we got general tax cuts, but we pay more for the things we use.

Equally as true though is that one is never going to fully offset the other. Your tax cuts will be trivial at best - a token gesture that looks good but actually makes no tangible difference, while the charges will gallop ahead at percentages measured in the hundreds. So you'll end up paying much, much more, but you'll at least feel good about doing so.

 

[RAM]

Some good news of sort - $8 monthly fee is per account not per card - so with 4 supplementary cards fee remains $8.
Now 2 separate accounts are getting shut.

 

[PLANT]

So for Best international rate on another card for online purchases is it UBANK, Citi Premier or Plat Bankwest card????
Ditching 28 degrees after 25 years.. ex Wizard...

 

[Coops1]

So for Best international rate on another card for online purchases is it UBANK, Citi Premier or Plat Bankwest card????
Ditching 28 degrees after 25 years.. ex Wizard...

UBank is only a debit card, Citi premier has higher fees than 28D. So why use these….?

I was thinking Bendigo Bank, but not a lot of chatter here

 

[PLANT]

Citi higher fees?
Exchange Rate fees as card is Citi is Free...?
So need Zero Plat Backwest?

 

[Cynicor]

Citi premier is not a card that offers a decent exchange rate or no fees. It has the usual 3ish % margin.
Ubank is a debit card.
Have a search for “no foreign exchange fee credit card”