Uruguay is easy to navigate digitally in Montevideo and the main coastal destinations, but the useful setup changes outside those areas. Uber and Cabify currently document only Montevideo and Maldonado-area markets, while urban and intercity buses use different tools. Keep a physical card and some pesos because foreign-card authorization, rural acceptance and app availability can fail. Mercado Pago and Prex are local financial products that require Uruguayan identity documentation, so they are not sensible arrival downloads for an ordinary short visit. The special full VAT rebate for nonresident restaurant and car-rental payments ended on April 30, 2026. A separate current reduction applies to qualifying electronic payments by residents and nonresidents: 9 VAT points through September 2026 and 5 points from October 2026. Hotel accommodation remains invoiced at zero VAT for nonresidents who show foreign identification. Check the receipt rather than assuming a refund. Save bookings, addresses, emergency contacts and a route home offline, keep belongings close in terminals and busy streets, and check weather and road conditions before travel beyond the capital.
No Uruguay-specific payment app is worth installing for an ordinary short visit.
Mercado Pago's current personal-account flow asks for a Uruguayan identity card, and Prex's own help requires a current identity document and uses the Uruguayan card network. These are resident-oriented financial products, not tourist wallets. Pay larger businesses with a physical Visa or Mastercard and carry a sensible reserve of Uruguayan pesos for small vendors, tips, buses and outages. Bring two cards on different networks and keep them separately.
Use a bank-affiliated cash machine in a controlled location, cover the PIN and review the disclosed fee and limit before continuing. If an ATM or terminal offers to convert the charge into your home currency, decline that conversion and choose Uruguayan pesos so your own network handles the exchange. Uruguay's tax treatment needs precise wording. The special full VAT reduction for nonresident restaurant, catering and car-rental payments ran from November 15, 2025 through April 30, 2026 and has ended.
A separate current regime covers residents and nonresidents who pay qualifying services electronically: it reduces VAT by 9 percentage points through September 30, 2026 and by 5 points from October 1, 2026. The benefit is applied through the payment administrator, so inspect the receipt and card statement and do not assume every purchase qualifies. Hotel accommodation is invoiced at zero VAT year-round for nonresidents who prove that status with foreign identification. Tax Free shopping has separate participating-store and departure-validation rules.
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How to Pay in Uruguay