How much Moroccan currency can I bring in or take out?
Morocco's foreign-exchange regulator, the Office des Changes, starts from a ban: "the import and export of dirhams are prohibited". The exception is for travellers, who may carry up to 2,000 dirhams in banknotes in or out, so they have money for immediate expenses when they return. The same rule appears in the Instruction Générale des Opérations de Change 2026 (IGOC 2026), in force since 1 January 2026.
Foreign currency is treated differently. Under the IGOC, cash, bearer instruments and other means of payment worth 100,000 dirhams or more must be declared to customs when you enter Morocco, and again when you leave. The UK Foreign Office puts that at roughly £8,000, and the US State Department summarises it as 100,000 dirhams or USD 10,000.
| Situation | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Arriving with dirham notes | Maximum 2,000 MAD | Office des Changes FAQ; IGOC 2026 |
| Leaving with dirham notes | Maximum 2,000 MAD | Office des Changes FAQ; IGOC 2026 |
| Arriving with foreign cash of 100,000 MAD or more | Declaration to customs required | IGOC 2026 |
| Arriving with less than 100,000 MAD in foreign cash | Declaration optional; valid six months for non-residents | IGOC 2026 |
| Leaving with foreign cash you brought in | Allowed; declare it and show your entry declaration | Office des Changes FAQ |
Where to get dirhams, and what the rate should look like
Because you can bring in only a small amount of dirhams, your first dirhams will come from an ATM or a bank or licensed exchange desk in Morocco. The IGOC requires banks and exchange operators to give you a written exchange slip (bordereau de change) for every purchase or sale of currency.
Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank, publishes two sets of rates you can use to check a quote. On 23 September 2026 its reference rates were 1 EUR = 10.9451 MAD, 1 USD = 9.5905 MAD and 1 GBP = 12.743 MAD. Its foreign banknote table, displayed the same day, showed customer buying and selling rates of 10.1597 and 11.8073 MAD for the euro, 8.8965 and 10.3391 MAD for the US dollar, and 11.8370 and 13.7570 MAD for sterling.
Worked example: what the spread costs you
The table uses the Bank Al-Maghrib banknote rates above. Individual banks and bureaux set their own rates, so use these figures to check a quote, not to predict one.
| Step | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Change €500 cash at the banknote buying rate | 500 × 10.1597 | 5,079.85 MAD |
| Same €500 at the reference rate | 500 × 10.9451 | 5,472.55 MAD |
| Gap between the two | 5,472.55 − 5,079.85 | 392.70 MAD, about 7% |
| Change 1,000 unused MAD back at the selling rate | 1,000 ÷ 11.8073 | €84.69 |
The last line is why changing too much is expensive. At these rates, every 1,000 dirhams you change back loses about 7% compared with the reference rate, on top of the 7% lost on the way in. Withdraw or exchange in smaller amounts as your trip goes on.
Will my card work in Marrakesh?
Cards are well established but cash still dominates daily life. Bank Al-Maghrib's report on payment systems for 2024 counted 43.5 million transactions by international cards in Morocco that year, worth 47.8 billion dirhams, up 14% in number from 2023. The same report shows that for Moroccan cardholders, cash withdrawals still made up 68% of all card transactions by number.
Where card terminals are used, tapping is now the norm. Contactless payments made up 74% of terminal payments by number in December 2024, up from 57% a year earlier.
Taken together, the figures point to a split approach. Use a card wherever you see a terminal and it is accepted. Carry dirham notes for taxis, market stalls, small cafés and tips. Bank Al-Maghrib lists 20, 50, 100 and 200 dirham notes in circulation. Smaller notes make it easier to pay exact amounts.
There is no official tipping scale, so we do not quote figures. If you plan to tip, keep some 20 dirham notes separate for tips so you are not handing over a large note and waiting for change.
Changing dirhams back before you leave
The IGOC gives non-resident foreigners three routes to change leftover dirhams back into foreign currency:
- With your arrival declaration. Present the original currency import declaration and the original exchange slips in your name; the bank annotates the declaration with the amount changed.
- Without a declaration. Banks and exchange operators may change up to 20,000 dirhams, against an exchange slip in your name that is less than six months old.
- At a port or airport desk. Exchange desks inside ports and airports may change up to 2,000 dirhams per passport on presentation of a boarding pass or ticket to a foreign destination.
The US State Department describes the same principle: you can convert dirhams back only if you have documentation showing that you exchanged foreign money for them in Morocco.
What to do if something goes wrong
If you will be driving around Marrakesh, our guide to renting a car in Marrakesh covers deposits and tolls, both of which depend on having the right card and cash.