Hi,
I heard that pre-2006 are not accepted in Kenya. Is it true? Also would USD be accepted in hotels and shops in Nairobi and Maasai Mara? What denominations of USD is recommended?
Thanks.
Hi,
I heard that pre-2006 are not accepted in Kenya. Is it true? Also would USD be accepted in hotels and shops in Nairobi and Maasai Mara? What denominations of USD is recommended?
Thanks.
True. Get newer bills. Usd accepted in nairobi and mara. Take smaller bills for easy change. Can also withdraw usd by visa/mastercard etc cards.
Would ATMs dispense USD or only Shillings? Would there be conversion charges for USD?
Kenya Shillings is the legal tender in this country, so if you pay for goods & services that are not priced in USD, i.e. most shops, restaurants etc, you will be 'ripped off' by being given a very unfavourable exchange rate.
You can expect the majority of ATM's to dispense Kenya Shillings.
If your money is not already in US Dollars, it really doesn't make much sense to convert to US Dollars, then again to Kenya Shillings, as you will lose in the double exchange.
And yes, US Dollar Bills must be more recent than 2006, certainly for payment of your visa.
Do ATMs in India dispense US dollars?
Do hotels and shops in Bangalore accept US dollars?
On the question of validity of older USD bank notes, I think it's a non-issue, and I'm not sure where the 2006 date came from, though I've certainly advised the same thing myself more than once.
According to the official federal reserve website, uscurrency dot gov, $1 and $2 bills are exactly the same as they've been for decades, the current $5 note was introduced in 2008, the current$10 in 2006, the current $20 in 2003 and the current $50 in 2004. You're very unlikely to be given used notes at all by a forex bureau or bank, so you're almost bound to be getting the latest notes if they're crisp. Moreover, older notes are *all* still legal tender.
The only problem I've ever come across is resistance to accepting $100 notes because of a supposed susceptibility to counterfeiting, though I think that long ago ceased to be a real issue. Less informed business-owners probably wouldn't even want the latest version of the $100 bill, which was introduced in 2013.
Richard Trillo
The Rough Guide to Kenya
Kenya Programme Manager at Expert Africa
USD notes shouldn't be any older than 5-6/yrs.... that's it. Certainly not dated 2006. Got no guarantee if handing a local a note that is older will be accepted. Why best to use ATM for local Kenyan Shillings.
As to the USD$100 note this is the most counterfeit note worldwide, and though they seem to accept them in TNZ, not so in KEN, even the new USD $100 notes, be aware that the govt is in the process of reissuing it again... ugh!
Richard, I was only aware of this being an issue with regard to payment of the visa on entry, where they only accept recent bills.
I am not sure why someone would use US Dollars to pay for goods and services (apart from those priced in Dollars - Hotels, park fees, for example).
The reason, I asked is I would be converting INR to USD in India and then converting USD to Shillings in Kenya. So I will have to make sure that I get newer USD when I convert in India.
It is true, I just came back from Kenya and Tanzania in late January and my $100.00 bill was rejected at the border because it was issued prior to 2006. Take small denominations. Its hard to get change in USD so its best to use exact change.