Compare Maldivian Rufiyaa Exchange Rates in the Maldives

Getting rufiyaa for your trip to the Maldives

The rufiyaa (MVR) is the national currency, but UK visitors mostly spend US dollars: resorts quote in them, and MIRA, the tax authority, sets the green tax and departure taxes in dollars. Visit Maldives says dollars and euros are taken in most places; do not plan to spend sterling notes.

Exchange is tightly regulated. According to The Edition, anyone changing money as a business must be licensed by the Maldives Monetary Authority, and from 1 September 2026 dollars may only change hands at the authority's rates. The same law makes businesses convert 40% of foreign earnings into rufiyaa, with no reported change to guest billing. Use banks and licensed changers only.

Best ways to pay in the Maldives

Fee-free debit cards

The simplest way to settle resort bills. Read the cash terms too: Which? warns that some cards sold as free abroad still charge you to take out cash.

Credit cards

Visit Maldives says the major credit cards work throughout the country. Pay with them rather than drawing cash, which Which? says usually attracts interest straight away.

Cash machines

Bank of Maldives and Maldives Islamic Bank run machines; MIB says tourists can take out rufiyaa at its Maafushi centre. Neither publishes a foreign-card fee.

US dollars

Clean notes are a handy back-up on local islands. Where a price is in rufiyaa, pay in rufiyaa if you can, so the seller does not pick the conversion rate.

Using cards in the Maldives

Cards are the easy option at resorts, hotels and bigger guesthouses, but Visit Maldives still advises carrying cash on a local island.

• Resorts and hotels
• Larger guesthouses in Male and Hulhumale
• Restaurants and dive centres showing card logos
• Street taxis, ferries and small island shops: carry cash

Tips

• Pay in the bill's currency: If a terminal offers pounds, decline and pay in dollars or rufiyaa: Which? notes that choosing sterling lets the retailer fix the rate.
• Check what is added: Expect 17% tourism GST, often a service charge, and the daily green tax on top of prices.

ATMs in the Maldives

Bank of Maldives (BML) lists dollar machines at Velana International Airport and two other sites, but the daily limit it gives is for customers with BML dollar accounts, and it says nothing about UK cards. MIB's ATM centres on tourist islands such as Maafushi handle dollars and rufiyaa.

Cash machines to use

• BML machines in Male and on larger islands
• MIB centres such as Maafushi, open to tourists for rufiyaa

Cash machines to think twice about

• Any prompt to be billed in pounds
• Relying on one machine on a small island

No foreign-card fee is published, so check the screen before you accept; your own bank may add a fee.

Taxes on your Maldives bill

Your accommodation adds green tax, payable in US dollars, for every night of your stay. Since 1 January 2025 MIRA has set it at USD 12 a day at resorts, hotels, guesthouses and tourist vessels; smaller places on inhabited islands, with 50 registered rooms or fewer, charge USD 6. Children below two do not pay.

On 1 July 2025 tourism GST went up from 16% to 17%, according to MIRA. The Visit Maldives travel page has not caught up, so budget with MIRA's figures.

From 1 December 2024 a foreign passenger in economy is charged USD 50 in departure tax plus USD 50 as an airport development fee, more in business and first. Airlines collect these, so they should be in your ticket price; check before you book.

Changing money in the Maldives

We could not confirm any exchange office or airport desk open to visitors. A fee-free card and some dollars from the UK is simpler; for rufiyaa, use a bank or licensed changer. Carrying a large sum? Check Maldives Customs' declaration rules first.

Tipping in the Maldives

Resort and restaurant bills often include a service charge shared among staff, so a further tip is your choice.

• Resorts: the service charge is already on the bill
• Taxis: fares are fixed by the ministry