Working year in New Zealand

rai78

My daughter is going to New Zealand for a year on a working visa. She has sorted a bank account for over there but isn’t sure about moving money from her current UK bank account into the new bank and about spending in the interim. There seems to be various apps/cards etc but does anyone know of the easiest and cheapest way to make transfers? She is also in need of travel insurance so any advice for this would be useful too. Thanks.

Ayr_Rage

Wise for the transfers.
https://wise.com/
You will get near mid-market rates and even if the fees look larger than some methods, check how many NZD you actually end up with.

eskbanker

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/foreign-currency-exchange/ summarises options for sending money to overseas accounts, and https://www.monito.com/ is a handy comparison site to assess rates and fees....

Bicycleman22

Wise is great, I have used them many times.

zagfles

Does she really need to transfer money into the NZ account? If she only needs to spend in cash/by card, she could spend & withdraw cash using a fee free debit/credit card. See https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/travel-credit-cards/

She'll probably need a NZ account for any earnings there, but accessing money she already has in the UK would likely be better value spending on a UK credit/debit card than transferring to a NZ account.

ampersand

Longtime expat. Kiwi here.
Whether back in Aotearoa or in Europe, have always followed a tip given long ago and ask for cashback when shopping in supermarkets or grand surface.  
Excellent for tiding over or short European ditch jumps.

youth_leader

I'm just back from NZ.  I have the Chase current account on my Iphone, I was on tour on north and south islands and didn't have any problems.

clarkyson

Though I didn't send money to New Zealand, But used Wise to send money in other country. It's excellent and super fast.