A personal loan can be many things to many people. They’re flexible, reliable, short-term, and ideal for getting immediate funding for something important in your life: whether that’s a new business, a medical emergency, a personal project, or purchasing something that you ordinarily wouldn’t be able to get hold of.
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However, many people don’t consider the idea of using them abroad, and how that actually impacts them financially. Long story short, it usually doesn’t make much of a difference, but only if those loans are handled in the correct way.
So how do you use a loan abroad, and can a loan (lån) from somewhere like Norway still be used in places like the United States?
What are Personal Loans For?
Personal loans are exactly what the name implies – a loan that’s for personal use, meaning that you can use it for nearly anything. People have used these to jumpstart their businesses, bust out of bad housing situations, fund their dreams, or even just indulge in their hobbies for a week or two.
Using personal loans can give you a massive amount of control over the money you get, meaning that it can be applied to nearly any situation or niche with ease. They’re perfect for accomplishing a goal, whether that goal is part of some necessary emergency or is just a personal project that you want to complete.
This means that they tend to be very flexible, with a lot of different ways to use them and very few restrictions. As such, many people use them in ways that span more than one country – under the right circumstances, they can become a huge boon to people traveling or working internationally.
Can You Use Personal Loans Abroad?
If you’ve taken out a personal loan, then that money is effectively yours – you still have to pay it back eventually, along with interest, but you can generally use the money however you like. As such, it’s perfectly viable to use it internationally, either to buy something or fund a trip that you can’t normally afford.
This means that you shouldn’t run into any problems with the bank or lender that provided you with the loan. Other than them potentially contacting you about multiple foreign purchases (just to make sure that they’re legitimate, and that your account hasn’t been hijacked), they will usually leave you completely alone.
This gives you a lot of ways to use your personal loans, as well as cutting back on the number of limitations or roadblocks you might run into while trying to use them. Just be sure to clear everything with your bank ahead of time, since they might block your card if they assume that your account has been hijacked – necessitating a frantic phone call to unblock it.
Can You Get Personal Loans From Foreign Banks?
One of the biggest misconceptions that many people run into involves foreign banks. While it’s possible to get emergency loans, you won’t necessarily have the same luck as somebody who is staying in the country long-term and will be under a lot more scrutiny.
Generally, personal loans are reserved for people who actually reside in that country and have a decent financial history within said country. While it’s possible to get one of your own, you also need to remember that you’re basically an unknown there – one who might leave at any moment.
This is especially true during holidays, rather than education-related visits or longer-term stays. If you’re only in the country for a couple of months or less, then your loan options will become extremely limited, since these banks know that you’ll be gone soon. In many cases, they may not offer anything at all.
In short, getting a lån (the Norwegian word for “Loan”) from a source like Billigeforbrukslån.no can be an option, but it really depends on your situation. If you need money immediately in a foreign country, then banks and lenders like this are the best way to go, rather than unreliable (and potentially not-even-legal) independent lenders that are aiming to give you a high-interest loan.
Can You Get Personal Loans From Your Existing Bank While Abroad?
Banking on the go has become a lot more common, and most banks now have their online or over-the-phone loan options. This means that you can always get another loan from home rather than having to find one in the country you’re staying in, which can be a significantly easier option.
Independent lenders might not have a phone number or an easy way to contact them abroad, but major banks and financial institutions are a great way to ensure that you can get loans as needed. Since the money goes into your normal bank account, you’ll be fine as long as you can actually spend it in the country you’re visiting.
If you need physical money, then make sure there’s a way for you to withdraw it. Some banks operate across multiple countries, and there can be multiple ways that you’ll be able to withdraw money or exchange currency – but you should still look into this ahead of time.
Finding a Good Personal Loan
Personal loans are a very fiddly thing, with a lot of different elements that go into deciding whether or not they’re actually useful and reliable. Of course, this also means that you’ll want to spend some time looking over your options, picking out whichever loans work best for you, and making sure that you’re getting something you can trust.
Finding a good personal loan isn’t always easy, but there are a few ways to make it much simpler without putting too much pressure on yourself. The more you know about the options you have available, the easier it can become to choose one that will work.
Interest Rate
The higher your interest rate, the more you’ll get added to your loan value each month. A high-interest rate means that the loan will get more and more expensive as time goes on, which makes it important to repay it as quickly as possible.
However, this isn’t always a bad thing. If you know that you can pay the loan off – with interest – after a month or two, then it can be a good way to get some emergency money ahead of time. High-interest rates are only a problem when you can’t be certain that you’ll actually have a way to pay it off.
Lower interest rates are always better, but these are usually tied to smaller or lower-risk loans, ones that might not be as impactful. If you want a big injection of cash in the short term, then you might have to be prepared for a high-interest rate, because there isn’t always another way around it.
Total Cost
The interest rate is tied to the total cost of the loan, meaning that a higher-value loan is going to add up to more when combined with a higher interest rate. Having a high value and low-interest rate – or even a low value and high-interest rate – can be a great combination that still keeps the costs fairly low.
The biggest problem is any loan that mixes high values with high-interest rates since they are very likely to spiral out of control if you don’t pay them off quickly. In some cases, these can even be scam loans from loan sharks, meant to prey on people who don’t have many other options.
The higher the cost, the more you pay back, so it helps to try and estimate how much you actually need. Getting a loan that’s much larger than necessary just adds to the interest, forcing you to pay back more even if you don’t spend all of the money – it can be smart to try and loan the bare minimum you need for a project.
Terms and Conditions
If you’re planning to use your loan abroad, then it helps to look at any terms and conditions that might be related to the loan itself. There could be stipulations in the loan contract related to how you use the money, or what you can actually do with it.
While most personal loans are very flexible, you might still be asked to explain what you’ll be using the loan for. Purchases that seem sketchy or inconsistent might end up getting your account temporarily frozen while your bank checks to make sure that they were legitimate, for example.
It’s always a good idea to go over the terms and conditions whenever you can, no matter how daunting it might seem. Even if this is your first loan, it can make a big difference, since you can learn a bit about how the terms and conditions actually apply to your money.
Comfort
Most importantly, you want a loan that you’re happy with, regardless of what that entails. Never try to push yourself to accept something that you’re not comfortable with, especially if that involves a higher interest rate or value than you were anticipating.
