Heidilr1

My son has been living in Morocco for the past 6 months and is returning to the US on 8/1. Where would be the best place for him to convert his dirhams back to USD? Since he was there for so long, he opened an account there and has quite a few dirhams to convert. We live near Charlotte, NC, so we do have a pretty good size city to access. Thank you.

doug_stallings

I believe that you can't actually bring dirhams out of Morocco, but I'm not entirely certain of that. So it may not be possible to convert currency in the U.S. Even if it is, he'll get a lousy exchange rate since it's not a major currency. So he probably needs to convert everything at his bank before he departs when he closes his account. He'll likely get the best rate that way, though he needs to check soon. The bank may need to order cash, and if it's a smaller town, that may be easier said than done, but if it's a big Moroccan bank, there are branches everywhere, and he can probably withdraw his funds and close the account at a branch in Casablanca.

If he carries out more than US$10K in cash, he needs to report that on his customs form. He can bring out as much as he wants, but it has to be reported.

An additional option would be to do a wire transfer directly into a U.S. bank account from his bank in Morocco if he has one (or your account if he does not). That might cost more since you usually have to pay for a foreign bank transfer on both ends, but it would be safer than carrying the cash.

UNDERMOROCCANSUN

He can not transfer funds directly into his US bank account from a Moroccan bank account, Moroccan gov does not like to have their Dirhams sent out of the country but welcomes alot otherwise.
The solution would be to go to an office in the city of Rabat, where they can convert Dirhams to US dollars and permits him to carry out of the country,the office name can not really remember, but am sure any banker at one of the big cities can advise on the name.
G luck

astein12

How many Dirhams are you talking about?

astein12

Just of a couple of notes for those with Dirhams in pocket at the end of a Morocco trip.

1) There is no easy, convenient, 'legal' way to convert Dirhams once outside of Morocco.

2) ATM's in Morocco are reasonably easy to find and reliable, so getting local currency is not really a problem. The ATM's offer (at least in my case) significantly better exchange rates than money exchanges.

3) Many places accept euros (especially hotels, riads, and restuarant), so they can be used as a backup.

4) If you have leftover Dirhams at the end of your trip, there are money exchanges as most of the airports. Just make sure that you change the money BEFORE going through security (as there is no place after it). If you do have Dirhams after security, there are a few shops (e.g. duty free, Hudson News, and a coffee shop in Rabat) that will take Dirhams.