Comoros

Money & costs

Money

The currency of the Union des Comores (the official name of the Comoros, excluding Mayotte) is the Comorian franc (CF), which is tied to the euro.

You can pay for major items such as accommodation, air tickets and boat fares in either Comorian francs or euros. For smaller purchases the local currency is usually preferable.

You can re-convert Comorian francs into euros at the bank if you have the original bank receipt. In Mayotte, the official currency is the euro, and Comorian or Malagasycurrency is entirely useless.

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Credit cards

Credit cards (Visa and MasterCard) are accepted by many hotels and restaurants in Mayotte, but in the other Comoros islands only the most upmarket establishments accept cards, and all charge high rates of commission.

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Exchanging money

The best foreign currency to carry in the Union des Comores is the euro, although you can in theory also change US dollars, British pounds, Swiss francs and Japanese yen in the Banque pour l’Industrie et le Commerce (BIC), which has branches on the islands of Grande Comore and Anjouan. The BIC, which is the only bank to change foreign cash or travellers cheques, can also do advances on Visa cards for a hefty commission.

In Mayotte, only one bank, Banque Française Commerciale Ocean Indien (BFC-OI), will change cash or travellers cheques. BFC-OI’s ATMs theoretically should advance you money on a Visa card.

You cannot change Comorian or Malagasy currency anywhere on Mayotte. There are no money-changing facilities at the airport.

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