Using U.S. dollars (paper money) in Guatemala
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If you plan to bring U.S. money to Guat (which I do not recommend, as it is NOT universally accepted for transactions), make sure you go to the bank and get PRISTINE, NEW MONEY. Your bills will NOT BE ACCEPTED IF THERE IS !!! ANY !! form of disfiguring. That means ABSOLUTELY NO:
- marks or writing of ANY kind
- holes or tears AT ALL, no matter how small
-fading such as near the fold in the bill
- tape or gluing
- excessive folding
If you do choose to bring pristine brand new (preferably NON folded) bills, the best way I''ve found to use or exchange them in Guat City (haven''t tried outside the City) is PAIZ or Walmart. I suspect all Dispensa Familiar, Paiz, Clubco, Maxi Despensa, and Walmarts, as Walmart owns all of them. They will accept perfect paper money IF you make a large enough purchase. (that amount may vary, but usually at least Q30.) I''ve used a $100 bill at Paiz for a purchase of only Q33 and gotten change in local ''Q'' currency. And the great part is that when you use this at these stores, they do not charge ANY exchange rate fee; The transaction is automatic at yesterday''s official closing rate and is shown on the receipt (factura).
Submitted on Aug 14, 2014 - Category: Expat Finance, Network: Guatemala
Submitted By
Tex2Guat
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