Fees with a global bite

Card users have had a win locally but overseas transactions are still slugged

The big four banks might have abolished ATM fees in Australia – and cynics might argue it had to do more with the fact that consumers are withdrawing less cash from ATMs anyway – but it’s a very different story when it comes to overseas ATMs and international purchases.

We’re also hit with fees when we make purchases online from overseas websites, which many of us do. According to ING, over the past year 10% of all online purchases by its customers were made on international websites. Nationwide 37% of Aussies shopped from a global site.

Use a credit card overseas or on an international website and you can be hit with an international transaction fee (2%-3% of the purchase price). If there is no international transaction fee then check what exchange rate you’re getting, because often the banks can put a margin on the wholesale rate.

Get a cash advance on your credit card and you can be hit with an ATM fee plus a cash advance fee, not to mention losing any interest-free period attached to your card.

Use your debit card when you are overseas and you could be charged a local ATM fee, an international ATM fee and an international purchase fee. The same problem with exchange rates can also apply on your debit card.

ING Australia has put an end to ATM fees globally and dropped its fees for international transactions made overseas or online. It’s a huge win for customers and one that Money will follow closely to see what other banks do.

The changes apply to both ING’s Orange Everyday transaction account and the Orange One credit card. To be eligible for these fee-free international transactions, Orange Everyday account holders must deposit at least $1000 a month from an external source and from March 1, 2018 also make five or more card purchases in a month.

The Orange One credit card is available only to existing ING customers but the bank plans to open it to all consumers in early 2018.