Find out how you can safely and commission-free withdraw money from a bank card in Crimea. I compare the conditions of Sberbank and Tinkoff.
Why there are no Russian banks in Crimea
Crimea has become a part of Russia for many years, but so far neither Russian banks, nor well-known gas station networks, nor telecom operators, and even McDuck are not working there. Why is that? It's all about the sanctions of the United States and Europe: because of them, international companies cannot operate in Crimea. More precisely, they can work, but this will quickly be punished by the West, and no one needs these problems. Given that no one is going to lift the sanctions, Sberbank and other large companies will almost never appear in Crimea.
Instead of well-known banks and other organizations, their own local ones work in Crimea. You can use their services. They are not afraid of sanctions, because they do not work anywhere else outside the peninsula, so the long arm of Western sanctions will not reach them.
Which card is better to go to Crimea
On the peninsula, you can pay for purchases with any card without any commissions or restrictions.
I’ll make an important reservation right away: sometimes problems can arise with social bank cards of the entry level (Visa Electron or Maestro), because they initially have many restrictions, this is not even about Crimea. Check with your bank if these cards will work in Crimea. But in general, it's better to get a full-fledged card.
To pay in shops and cafes I use my Tinkoff credit card, because it is super profitable, gives me a good cashback, and in general it is the best bank in Russia. Read my review of the card on the link to find out why it is so good and how to use it to return 10% cashback from a booked hotel in Crimea. By the way, now this card can be issued free of charge for a year under the special offer. In general, you can pay for your purchases in Crimea with any card of any Russian bank.
For cash withdrawals in ATMs of the Crimea, almost any card is suitable. Specify in advance - perhaps your bank will take a commission for this operation. Normal banks have not taken commissions for a long time, but such as Sberbank still trade in such ancient ways of taking money from a client. This is one of the reasons why I stopped using Sberbank cards long ago - I do not want to deal with a bank that does not respect its customers. When withdrawing money from a card in Crimea, Sberbank takes a commission of 100 rubles, but not less than 1% of the amount. That is, it is not profitable to shoot less than 10 thousand rubles at a time.
In Crimea, I withdraw money from my Tinkoff Black debit card. It allows you to cash out at any ATM around the world without commission. In this case, only the bank in which you withdraw money can take a commission, but this rarely happens. I deliberately choose ATMs that do not take a commission, and I withdraw money there. In Crimea, I usually use the RNKB (Russian National Commercial Bank) - this is a large bank, its ATMs are available in all major resorts, and it does not take a commission.
To withdraw money, it is worth using only debit cards, because when cashing a credit card, any bank charges a very large commission and charges high interest.
conclusions... Before traveling to Crimea, I advise you to apply for a debit card of a normal Russian bank, which does not take a commission for withdrawing money from someone else's ATMs (in Crimea, all ATMs are someone else's). Based on my personal experience, I recommend the Tinkoff Black card, which I have been using all over the world for more than three years and have never paid a single commission. By the way, now, when issuing this card, the bank gives customers 1000 rubles to the account.
Withdrawal Tips
I will give you standard security advice: withdraw money from reliable ATMs located in guarded premises, best of all - in the branches of the banks themselves. Fraudsters can put a reader on unattended ATMs and quickly reset your balance to zero.
To always have small money on hand, I advise you to withdraw not a round amount, but ending in 4900. So the ATM will give you bills of 100, 200, 500 and 1000 rubles, and not just 5000. That is, instead of 15000, withdraw 14900 rubles is better.
Also in Crimea, a network of services for transferring money from card to card with the subsequent issuance of cash for a small percentage is developed. This is what all sorts of private traders do. This business is kind of muddy and completely inconvenient, I can't even imagine who else is using it.
