Changing money for a trip

Most trips abroad start with some foreign cash.

Many people buy it from a bureau de change before they travel. A few rules sit behind that simple counter, and some of them apply to you as well as to the business.

These notes draw on guidance from GOV.UK, HMRC, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Who can run a bureau de change

A business that acts as a bureau de change has to register with HMRC under the money laundering regulations. A business already supervised by the FCA does not need to register with HMRC as well.

A business that applied after 10 January 2020 must not trade until HMRC confirms its registration.

Some shops change currency now and then as a small part of their main trade. They may not need to register if they meet all of HMRC's conditions. One condition is that the service is only for their own customers, and not for the public.

Why you may be asked for ID

Businesses covered by the money laundering regulations must check that customers are who they say they are in certain situations. HMRC's guidance lists the usual details.

Your name.
A photo on an official document that confirms who you are.
Your home address and date of birth.

The checks apply to large one-off transactions, and whenever the business suspects money laundering. If the business has doubts about who you are, it must stop dealing with you until it is sure.

Taking cash out of the UK

You must declare cash of £10,000 or more to UK customs if you carry it between Great Britain and a country outside the UK. Cash here includes notes, coins and travellers' cheques.

A family or group travelling together must declare if their total is £10,000 or more. That applies even if each person carries less.

If you are leaving the UK, you declare before you go. You can do it online or by phone, from 72 hours before you travel.

Cash that should have been declared can be seized. Getting it back can mean a penalty of up to £5,000. Travel to and from Northern Ireland has its own rules, set in euros.

Arriving with cash

The country you visit has its own rules too. The FCDO's travel advice for Spain and for France says to declare cash or travellers' cheques worth 10,000 euros or more.

You then get a certified declaration showing you brought the money in. Without one, the money could be seized when you leave.

Some countries also limit their own currency. The FCDO says there are restrictions on bringing Indian rupees into India. Each country's travel advice has an entry requirements page that covers its rules.

Prepaid travel cards

Some people load money onto a prepaid card instead of carrying it all in cash.

The FCA lists prepaid cards as a type of electronic money. A business that issues electronic money in the UK must be authorised or registered by the FCA, unless it holds another permission or is exempt.