Watch out in Hungary if you use these bank cards

There are many domestic banks in Hungary that both locals and foreigners can choose from. The spread of internet banks such as Revolut or Wise, however, is sometimes forcing them into the shadow. With the international bank cards these 21st-century financial companies offer, we can pay virtually anywhere. In addition to these services, of course, we can also utilise the good old ATMs. 

It is important to note though, that it can widely differ how domestic banks process these cards. Recently in Hungary, a significant change has taken place regarding this matter. The Hungarian branch of the Austrian Erste Bank has introduced new fees and restrictions. The new measures particularly affect people with foreign bank accounts, writes Bankmonitor.

Withdrawal fee

When using the ATMs of Erste Bank, you will now have to pay an extra 1,200 HUF (EUR 3.2) whenever you aim to withdraw cash. This is a flat fee, it won’t change regardless of the amount. This will be implemented even in cases when according to the package provided by the foreign bank, the withdrawal should be free.

This is not necessarily a surprise. Financial institutions can decide for themselves what kind of fees they set when customers initiate withdrawal with foreign cards. However, those who have been using Erste ATMs should watch out from now on. The good news is the machine will inform you about this recent measure and will ask you if you want to proceed with the withdrawal with this change in mind.

Another change concerns the amount of money that can be withdrawn from the account linked to the card. From now on one can only withdraw a maximum of HUF 150.000 (EUR 400) from Erste’s machines per day with foreign cards. This does not concern only one ATM, but all of them that belong to Erste.

Currency exchange

You should also be mindful about using Erste’s machines if you are withdrawing HUF from an account with foreign currency denomination as the Austria-based bank recently introduced the system of Dynamic Currency Exchange.

This means that upon withdrawing Hungarian forint with an international bank card, the ATM will ask you if you prefer to use the currency exchange rate of Erste, or that of your card provider. It is more advisable to opt for your own bank, as they probably give you a better offer than the domestic bank. You can avoid this step if you convert your currency to HUF in the bank’s application before using your card.

Source: Bankmonitor