All the information you’ll need to help you get started, whether you’re investing for the first time or have joined us from another broker.
With your new CommSec International Shares Account, trade shares in 13 global markets, including the U.S., Europe and Asia.
We’ve put together some handy guides to help you get started with your international account.
Check out our video how-to guide
Learn how to launch and fund your account, place a trade, download and review statements, plus so much more, with Market Analyst, Laura Besarati.
Before you place a trade, you must have Australian Dollars in your International Shares Account. Funding your account is as simple as:
If you’d like to manage your own currency conversions, you can switch to an International Shares Plus Account from an International Shares Account at any time:
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Feature |
International Shares |
International Shares Plus |
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Access to trade online in 13 global markets |
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Transfer AUD in and out of your International Wallet |
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Set up recurring investments |
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Access to U.S overnight trading |
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Foreign exchange conversion fee1,2 |
0.55% |
0.55% |
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Automatic foreign exchange conversions |
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Manage your own foreign currency conversions |
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Multi currency conversions |
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U.S brokerage fee |
USD$5 or 0.12% |
USD$9.95 or 0.20% |
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Order Expiry |
Day, Overnight and Overnight + Day |
Day, Overnight, Overnight + Day, Good till Cancel and At the Opening |
Please read our Financial Services Guide to understand the rates and fees
You can view your balance and withdraw Transferrable funds just as simply as funding your account:
To withdraw funds:
1. Navigate to your International Shares Account and select Transfer Funds.
2. Input the Amount (AUD) you wish to transfer To Bank Account.
3. Review to confirm the details then click Transfer to move the AUD funds real time into your linked bank account.
Terms explained
- Tradable funds is the equivalent amount in AUD that you have available to spend on BUY orders.
- Transferrable funds is the cleared funds in AUD that is available to withdraw back to your linked bank account.
- If you have open BUY orders resting (unexecuted) in the market, their value is not included in the Transferrable Funds Balance.
- If you withdraw funds from your International Wallet resulting in the remaining Tradable Funds being less than the amount required to settle your open BUY orders, we may cancel your BUY order(s).
To access your International Shares Account, place trades and utilise the wide range of functions and features available, simply:
This will bring you through to the CommSec International Shares Home page where you will be ready to start trading and exploring new international trading opportunities.
Once you’ve funded your International Shares account and launched the platform Home page, to place a trade:
For more information, we’ve created a step-by-step International Client Guide to help you use your new International Shares Account.
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Share market3 |
International Shares account (Whichever amount is greater) |
International Shares Plus account (Whichever amount is greater) |
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United States |
USD$5 or 0.12% |
USD$9.95 or 0.20% |
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Canada |
CAD$40 or 0.40% |
CAD$50 or 0.50% |
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United Kingdom |
GBP£12 or 0.40% |
GBP£20 or 0.50% |
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France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands |
EUR€12 or 0.40% |
EUR€20 or 0.50% |
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Hong Kong |
HKD$130 or 0.40% |
HKD$200 or 0.50% |
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Foreign Exchange (FX) fee1,2 |
0.55% |
0.55% |
Once you launch your account, there's a lot you can do. From the Home page you'll be able to access:
View the balance of your portfolio (securities and cash) in Australian Dollars
Insert widgets of your choosing including Watchlists, Trades, Market Overviews and more
Available to withdraw (Cash) | Available to trade (Buying Power) | Dividends yet to be paid
If you have the details of an order you want to trade, select Trade to quickly open an Order Ticket
The main menu bar also allows you to navigate through the platform and access:
From the Research drop down menu, you can access:
From the Trade drop down menu, you’ll be able to select:
Under the Performance & Reports tab you can access:
For more information on navigating your International Shares Account, go to the International Platform – Home section of the International Client Guide.
With over 6,000 companies in the U.S. market alone, there’s an easy way to keep track of stocks that interest you with a CommSec International Watchlist.
It’s easy to set up and manage Watchlists in the international platform or on the CommSec website or app.
Benefits of a Watchlist
Monitor performance, movements and trends of shares you own or are interested in
View company news and research pages or place a trade directly from your Watchlist
Access pricing, share volume and market data points for listed companies
Create multiple lists for different purposes such as ‘U.S. stocks’ or ‘tech stocks’ Create multiple lists for different purposes such as ‘U.S. stocks’ or ‘tech stocks’
With Watchlists across desktop and mobile app you can monitor the Aussie and international stocks (U.S. & U.K. markets) that you’re interested in. You can also then set up Alerts on specific stocks to notify you of price changes, trade volumes, company announcements, and ex-dividend dates.
By researching companies and sectors of interest, you can make more informed trading decisions and you can decide if it aligns with your international portfolio investment strategy.
With your International Shares Account, you have access to a range of research tools4 to help you analyse both market performance and individual companies.
This market update gives you a wealth of information on the current or previous trading session, ranging from top news, market movers, performance by sector and much more
This concise tool, powered by the team at Benzinga, gives one sentence reasons why a stock is trading higher or lower on any given day
This feature allows you to view news from markets around the world and see what markets are open for trading
Use this calendar to monitor upcoming events for a particular stock. You can filter by companies on your Watchlist, in your portfolio, recently held or competitor companies
View global Exchange Notices ranging from press releases to news alerts. Filter by Category, Venue or Date or even download for your personal records
Find stock based on price, volume and other criteria with the Market Screener
This tool helps you understand the fundamental value of an asset, and includes Company Profile, Financials, Key Ratios, Dividends and more
Find comprehensive news and research coverage on the products and topics that interest you - in a single, simplified interface. The News & Research tool makes it easy to stay on top of news relevant to your investments
For more information on these research tools, go to the International Platform – Research section of the International Client Guide.
Invest anytime, anywhere
Everything you need, all in the palm of your hand - monitor the markets, keep an eye on your portfolio and invest in Aussie and international stocks.
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Image for illustration purposes only.
Enhance your investing knowledge and refine your strategy with in-depth articles and videos from the experts. Explore strategies like asset diversification or knowing when to sell and find the right mix to help you achieve your goals.
Fully stock’d with all the support, information and resources you need to build your confidence and make the right money moves.
Whatever your level of investment experience, there’s always more to learn. CommSec Learn is designed to help you do just that.
Start and end your day with twice-daily market updates from Australia’s leading market experts.
Find the answers to your questions about investing with CommSec.
An International Shares Account allows you to trade online in 13 share markets around the globe. This includes access to major markets such as the U.S., Canada, UK, Hong Kong, Japan and other selected countries within Europe and Asia. Find out more.
To log into CommSec, you’ll need your Client ID. This is an 8-digit number beginning with a “5” or an "8" which allows you to access all your CommSec Accounts when you log into the website. If you don’t remember your Client ID, you can retrieve it online.
For security reasons, you’re unable to view your Client ID once you have logged into your account.
If you’re a CommBank customer, you can also access CommSec from NetBank. Just log into NetBank and select the CommSec tab in the top left corner of your screen.
It’s free to open an International Shares Account, however you will be charged brokerage for any trades that you execute. Brokerage rates can vary depending on the country and the size of the trade that is executed. Find out more.
Settlement for most markets around the world is the same as in Australia i.e. T+2 (trade day plus 2 business days, local public holidays may impact each specific market). However, the U.S. and Canadian share markets settle on T+1. Find out more.
Help when it matters
Find the support you need, when you need it.
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Send us your question Fill in our online form and hear from one of our experts within two business days |
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Call us 13 15 19 for calls within Australia |
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Reach out to us on X Tag @CommSec in your question on X |
CommSec’s Aussie Shares Hub has everything you need to kickstart your investing journey.
1 The FX fee is charged per currency conversion. Currency conversions are automatically performed for each trade unless the Plus feature enabling the foreign currency wallet has been activated and there are sufficient funds in the local currency to settle the trade.
2 For currency pairs that cannot be directly converted, an intermediate conversion to USD or another eligible currency will be necessary to facilitate the currency conversion. You will be charged FX fees for each leg, which is each individual currency conversion necessary to obtain the required currency pair conversion.
3 The share markets listed are most-traded by CommSec customers. To see the rates and fees for all available share markets, see our rates & fees.
4 CommSec does not authenticate the completeness or accuracy of externally sourced third-party information provided.
The information has been prepared without taking account of the objectives, financial situation or needs of any particular individual. For this reason, any individual should, before acting on this information, consider the appropriateness of the information, having regards to the individual's objectives, financial situation or needs, and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice. You can view the International Shares Terms and Conditions, and CommSec Financial Services Guide, and should consider them before making any decision about these products and services.
Investing in overseas markets exposes you to risks including those related to movements in foreign currency exchange rates and market prices.
CommSec accepts no responsibility for any connectivity delays, errors or disruptions caused by your phone service provider that may affect the performance of the CommSec mobile applications. The CommSec app is free to download however, CommSec accepts no responsibility for any fees that your phone service provider charges, such as fees for SMS, data services, or any other fees that your phone service provider may charge. For more information, visit the CommSec app page. Mobile App Terms of Service apply.
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