If you've still got foreign currency on your travel money card after a trip or your card's about to expire, it's still possible to get your money back. Use this guide to learn how to get funds back and what mistakes to avoid so you can get as much value as possible from your prepaid travel card.
Finder survey: What do Australians do with leftover funds on their travel card?
More than half of the Australians we surveyed simply transferred leftover money from their travel money card to their bank account.
Response
I transferred the funds to my bank account
51.74%
I saved/am saving the money for a future trip
26.87%
I withdrew the funds in cash
12.94%
I've never returned with leftover funds
5.97%
Other
1.99%
I let it expire and forfeited the money
0.5%
Source: Finder survey by Pure Profile of 1009 Australians, December 2023
How to get the remaining funds off your travel money card
The way you get your unused money varies depending on the travel money card. In some cases, it can be as easy as Internet banking, while in others it might require a trip down to the bank. Here's how it works with the major Australian prepaid travel cards.
If you have a Cash Passport Platinum Mastercard, you can get your funds off it by logging in to your account at auspost.com.au/cashpassport or by visiting a participating Australia Post outlet and presenting the card along with a valid form of photo ID. You can get funds even if the card has expired (check the expiry date on the front).
Just take note that the Cash Passport charges a monthly inactivity fee of $0 if you haven't used your card in 12 months. So if you want to cancel your card instead of keeping it for another trip, you can move the remaining balance to your bank account for a fee of $10 by calling Customer Service at +44 20 7166 7822.
The Travelex Travel Money Card
The card attracts a monthly inactivity fee of after 12 months of no usage, which can whittle away at your balance. It also charges a 2.95% withdrawal fee on domestic withdrawals within Australia. You can close your card at any distribution outlet and move remaining funds to your nominated bank account for an extra fee of .
If your card has expired, you can still get your funds through one of these options. Or, if you want to continue to use the account, you can request a new and have the money transferred over to it.
Valid for up to 3 years with no monthly inactivity fee, you can use the CommBank Travel Money Cardon your next holiday or close it off and empty the remaining funds into your account at no charge. If you have an everyday CommBank account, you can transfer the money in real-time through NetBank. You can do this up to three months after the card has expired.
If you don't bank with CommBank, you can get your money off the travel card by visiting a branch. You can also withdraw the funds from any CommBank ATM free-of-charge after converting the foreign currency to Australian dollars.
With the , you can withdraw your remaining funds from a local ATM or close your account and have the funds transferred into your nominated account. Do note that withdrawals within Australia incur a 2.95% fee. A fee is also charged for account closures and cashing out any remaining value. You can do this by logging into the Suncorp Bank Multi-Cash Currency portal.
The Qantas Travel Money card doesn't incur an inactivity fee or ATM withdrawal fees, but a foreign exchange rate will apply when withdrawal is made in Australia on funds that are not in Australian dollars. You can close your card at any time at no cost by calling Mastercard Qantas Cash Global Support on 1300 825 302.
Australia Post
If you have funds remaining on your , you can either exchange the money back into your Australian dollars currency wallet and withdraw the funds from an ATM or fill out the Load&Go balance redemption form to have the funds sent to you via an Australia Post Money Order. It doesn't cost anything to close the account, but you will be charged $1 every month a balance remains in your account following expiry.
Some mistakes to avoid with leftover funds in your travel card
If you have money left over on your travel card, be sure to take note of and avoid the following possible pitfalls:
Leaving your card open. If you're not travelling anytime soon, you might want to close the card once you've withdrawn your funds. Otherwise, you may still have to pay any inactivity fees or annual maintenance fees attached to the card.
Expired cards. Most providers send a goodwill email to remind you of an impending expiry date. You can then request for closure, but failure to do so will unfortunately result in "Unclaimed Monies".
Unclaimed monies. While banks previously forfeited your money once your card expired, unclaimed monies legislation now dictates that balances above $500 (which are left untouched after three years or unclaimed after card expiry) must be transferred to the Commonwealth Bank and held in trust. You can run a free search of all unclaimed monies through the MoneySmart website. Amounts below $500 are essentially forfeited if you don't close your account and claim them.
Spending foreign currencies in Australia. Some banks charge domestic ATM withdrawal fees on your travel card, so be very careful reading the fine print. Since all fees are debited in Australian dollars, if you only have foreign currency on your card, that will incur more foreign currency conversion fees.
It is important to know the rules and conditions around your travel card. Depending on the fees and exclusions set by your provider, it may be wiser to withdraw remaining funds and close the account instead of keeping it for your next vacation. It is also worthwhile to factor in things like the card's loading and reloading fees as well as foreign currency trends when comparing your options.
Sally McMullen was a creative content producer at Finder. Sally wrote about credit cards for almost 5 years, authoring almost 900 articles on Finder alone. She has also been published in Yahoo Finance, Dynamic Business, Financy and Mamamia, as well as Music Feeds and Rolling Stone. Sally has a Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies majoring in Journalism (Hons) from the University of Wollongong.
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I’ve added some information regarding the Australia Post Load&Go card to this page.
If you have money left on your Australia Post Load&Go card when you return from your holiday, you can either exchange the money back into your Australian dollars currency wallet and withdraw the funds from an ATM or fill out the Load&Go balance redemption form to have the funds sent to you via an Australia Post Money Order.
Please note that while you won’t be charged for closing the account, you will be charged $1 every month a balance remains in your account following expiry.
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what about Post Office purchased travel Vis card?
Hi Heather,
Thanks for your question!
I’ve added some information regarding the Australia Post Load&Go card to this page.
If you have money left on your Australia Post Load&Go card when you return from your holiday, you can either exchange the money back into your Australian dollars currency wallet and withdraw the funds from an ATM or fill out the Load&Go balance redemption form to have the funds sent to you via an Australia Post Money Order.
Please note that while you won’t be charged for closing the account, you will be charged $1 every month a balance remains in your account following expiry.
I hope this has helped.
Cheers,
Sally