How to Activate Wise Card in Australia & Use it?

Last Updated on December, 2024

Australia has so much to offer as a tourist destination and as a developed nation. Whether you are traveling there for study, pleasure, or business, it’s not gonna be a short trip, and you won’t be staying there just for a few days. 

So for a longer trip, you need to have the budget to cover it all up. And thank goodness Wise is available in Australia as well. So you can use it exactly the same way you use any other card in Australia. 

But how do you use a Wise Card in Australia? To help you with that, we have developed this guide, so continue reading till the end. 

How to Use a Wise Card in Australia?

You can easily use your Wise Card in Australia to spend and withdraw in AUD. Your Wise Card has a linked multi-currency account. 

It enables you to top-up in USD and convert it into AUD in advance or let your Wise Card do it for you when making a payment. 

Therefore, you’ll always pay in local currency and won’t have to deal with any extra charges under dynamic currency conversion or DCC (what’s that? We hear you say!).

You might not have heard about DCC, but it is a major problem for travelers all across the globe. When abroad, some merchants might ask you whether you want to pay in your home currency or the local currency. That’s what DCC is. 

Now, that might not sound too alarming as you can instantly check the price in the USD. But the merchant doesn’t tell you that they will be able to pick the exchange rate. 

Plus, they can collect the extra fees over it. Consequently, your overall cost will increase significantly. 

Read our Wise review if you want to learn more about it.

Why the Wise Card? 

It’s an international debit card and is linked to a multi-currency account. This means that it can be held and exchanged in more than 40 currencies. 

With your online Wise account, you can operate the Wise app and order your Wise card for a small fee. 

It will enable you to make payments and withdrawals in more than 150 countries (of course, Australia is one of them). 

Individual Wise accounts are free of cost, and there are no minimum balance requirements or concurrent charges. 

Wise Card – How Does it Work? 

You can use your Wise Card just like you would use any other debit/credit card. One major difference is that your Wise card is connected with a multi-currency account. 

It allows you to hold and exchange in more than 40 currencies without additional charges. 

Your bank account is not linked to your Wise account. So you need to top up your Wise account beforehand to spend in USD or 20 other currencies. 

From there, you can switch to AUD to use in Australia or let your card handle the exchange at the point of payment.

Wise Card Charges in Australia

You need to pay a small fee first to get your Wise Card. After that, you can use it globally with no maintenance charges. 

You can spend from the funds in your Wise account without any charges. But what if you don’t have a balance in the destination currency (case in point, AUD)? 

Wise can use its smart conversion technology to use mid-market exchange rates and convert from your currency balance in your account, incurring the lowest charges.

Withdrawing Money in Australia Using Wise Card

With your Wise Card, you can also withdraw at ATMs Down Under.

ATM Withdrawal Limits

There are ATAM withdrawal limits on your Wase Card as well. These limits can apply per day, per month, or withdrawal. 

Initially, the limits are set to default, but you can adjust and alter them later using your Wise app. 

Here are the Wise ATM withdrawal limits that you need to consider, 

Wise Card ATM Withdrawal Fees

Wise offers some free-of-cost transactions each month and, after that, charges a low fee. A couple of monthly transactions (Up to USD 100) are free. 

After that, a charge of $1.5 + 2 percent of the withdrawal value applies to each transaction until the next month. 

Earlier, we talked about DCC, right? Well, this DCC can appear at the ATM as well. Again, just stick to the local currency, AUD, to avoid additional charges. 

Getting a Wise Card

You can order a Wise Debit Card after verifying your Wise account. You just need to provide them with your valid email address, a working phone number, and a valid ID document. 

US citizens overseas must provide their SSN or ITIN. 

Activating Wise Card

You need to activate your Wise card before you can use it. Being a US citizen traveling to Australia, you must activate your US card to use it in Australia. 

Adding Money to Your Wise Card

You can top up your Wise Card in the US via ACH, debit card, credit card, or wire transfer. You must add some money to your account before you can start spending with your Wise Card. 

Different fees might be applied for your top-up based on your chosen methods. However, there are no hidden charges, and all fees are properly disclosed with full details. 

Is Wise Card Safe to Use in Australia? 

Wise cards are regulated in the US and Australia. Wise is registered in the US and holds a license in Australia. 

Moreover, Wise cards also come with built-in safety features. These include quick transaction notifications, freeze and unfreeze cards from the app, etc. 

Benefits of Using Wise Card Down Under

With your Wise card, you can append in AUD just like you would in USD (in the US). You can put in USD and switch to AUD if you want a good exchange rate. 

Otherwise, your card can do that for you at the point of payment. You only have to go for the local currency when asked for DCC. 

It will allow you to reduce your costs under the exchange rate. This is the primary benefit that you can have when using a Wise card. 

Most people don’t know about DCC and end up paying additional charges on exchange margins each time they make a payment. 

Read more about Wise exchange rate here.

So, Is a Wise Card Worth it in Australia?

Heck yeah, it’s worth it. It is one of the best AUD cards you can use in Australia. You can easily add money to it and convert it into AUD at a mid-market rate.

Get your Wise Card in Australia. You can do it in advance or let the card handle it at the point of payment each time you make a purchase. 

With this card, your fees and charges are very low because you don’t have to worry about DCC, as the card will handle it for you. Pay in local currency each time you purchase, and everything will be fine. 

Frequently Asked Questions

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