credit and debit cards

Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 04:06 AM
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credit and debit cards

Recommendations please for credit and debit cards with no conversion and transaction fees in Spain
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 07:22 AM
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No.

Go googling.

You have given no information regarding your country of residence, what banks operate near you, what access you have to financial institutions, your nationality or any other possible fact of relevance to this issue (like military status, which would allow access to military credit unions). Can't answer in a vacuum.

Do your own homework.
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 09:14 AM
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Presuming you are American (and what banks are near you is irrelevant for both, actually, although more so for a debit card, in that case):

credit cards
Capital One
AAA Visa
many cards for which you pay a fee of about $100 per year (airlines branded, etc)--in fact, if you pay a fee and don't have this, you shouldn't pay for that card.

debit cards
Charles Schwab (your location is irrelevant, it is an online acct)
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 09:38 AM
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Lists of cards like the one above are useless. Capital One has many (dozens?) of different cards, each has different rules.

First, find out what the bank you use now charges for use of your debit card in an ATM not belonging to the bank; what does it charge for use at a foreign bank? Typically, there are several different kinds of charges:
Per use charge for using a an ATM (foreign or domestic)
For a foreign transaction, what does it charge for foreign exchange?
And what does your credit card charge for foreign transactions?

The best deals are banks/credit unions/brokerage accounts that no not charge you to use a foreign ATM, and refund any charges from the ATM you used.

You also want to know about foreign exchange fees. The big banks often charge 3% on foreign exchange; some banks. credits unions, etc charge only 1%, and a few do not charge anything.

You need to do some reading so you understand what the issues are, then do your research on which accounts available to you are the best for you.
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 10:39 AM
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For the average person, it's not worth the trouble of doing all this research and opening a new account. These fees are usually a very small percent of your travel costs. If you travel a lot, it may be worth your while.
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 11:14 AM
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I am always amused curious re this sort of question. Besides the problems BigRuss and Kathie list which make your question unanswerable - you also don't tell us which banks/cards you use now. Are the fees your own bank(s) charge so onerous it is worth opening new accounts?

Unless you are talking multi thousands of $$/££/€€ your fees may be insignificant.
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 11:51 AM
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If you're from the United States, almost every Capital One credit card has the proper foreign transaction fee which is 0%. Any more is a rip off.

Many other banks, as noted, have a variety of different cards all with different fee structures. The fee structure is required by US law on the application form.

Example is Bank of America. Its Travel Rewards card has no annual fee and no foreign transaction fee. Its cash rewards card has no annual fee, pays 3% rebates on gasoline purchases, 2% on groceries and 1% on everything else but has a 3% foreign transaction fee.

I have a fidelity cash rewards card which gives me 2% on all purchases but has an asinine 1% foreign transaction fee with no annual fee.

The point being every card issuers has different policies. I am still searching for a card with no foreign transaction fee, no annual fee and at least 2% rewards. I think I have found one in the new Pen Fed Credit Union card.

Of course if anybody comes up with a card giving 5% cash rebates with no annual fee but a 3% foreign transaction fee, I would sign up.
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 12:55 PM
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janecantravel but janecantgoogle
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Old Mar 22nd, 2017, 01:05 PM
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I won't do business with Capitol One due to past bad experiences. I do use credit cards from big banks like BofA or Chase for short-term gain (award miles) and some of them have 0% foreign transaction fees, so I will use them when I travel. It's easy to find one of these cards - just look for the fine print regarding conversion fees, but if it has 0% foreign transaction fees, that is usually a prominent, advertised feature. Just pick a card that has some benefit to you - award miles or points for your favorite airline or hotel chain, whatever. I have a credit union Mastercard with true chip and PIN with no foreign transaction fees but no (significant) "rewards" so I use it as a backup.

I have a couple of credit union ATM cards that work great when I travel - one has 0% foreign transaction fees and no fee per use. Most ATMs in Europe charge no fees themselves - a few do, generally not the ones owned by banks - but your own institution could charge you.
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 09:23 AM
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I'm with BigRuss at least as far as you first having to provide basic information. To assume everyone on this forum is the same as you in terms of nationality etc. is ridiculous.

For those from the USA commenting on various US cards, if I were you and looking at getting a new card (or giving advise on getting one, to others) for travel, I would be looking for a true Chip and Pin card, not just one that was transaction fee free.

https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-ti...chip-pin-cards

If you're going to get a new card, you might as well get one that works everywhere without hassle. Try pumping gas for your rental car in an unmanned service station in rural France on a Sunday and you'll discover what 'hassle' means.

The rest of the world uses Chip and Pin. The USA is the only country that does not.
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 10:23 AM
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I use Capital One Quicksilver World Mastercard.

No foreign transaction fees, no annual fee and 1.5% cash back on all purchase.

I use a Capital One Debit Card from a 360 Checking account for ATM withrdawals. While they don't charge a transaction fee or an ATM fee, they also don't rebate any fee that might be charged by the foreign bank. These can be substantial depending on where you're going. There is no annual fee and it earns 1.5% cash back on everything, which make ups for the handful of foreign ATM fees that I have paid.

Like Andrew I also have a credit union Visa debit card as a backup, which charges a 1% fee. Sometimes it works when the Mastercard doesn't.

The rewards cards I churn for the most part so if you can find one you want to use just for a year when they wave the $95 or so, they can come with lots of international benefits plus the bonus miles. Just don't forget to cancel them at the end of the year if the annual fee isn't worthwhile to you.

And they ARE both chip and pin cards. So I don't know why the above "expert" Dogeared thinks we don't have those.

Unlike Andrew I've had great experiences with the Capitol One CS staff.. I believe they are all based in the US. A few times they've offered to call an overseas merchant for me to help resolve a dispute (in one case it was just a potential dispute with a reservation made for the wrong date). I also really like their website for online banking.
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 11:16 AM
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mlgb wrote:
"I use a Capital One Debit Card from a 360 Checking account for ATM withrdawals. While they don't charge a transaction fee or an ATM fee, they also don't rebate any fee that might be charged by the foreign bank. These can be substantial depending on where you're going. There is no annual fee and it earns 1.5% cash back on everything, which make ups for the handful of foreign ATM fees that I have paid. "

I don't think that's accurate. Cap One 360 checking does not earn 1.5% cash back (only the credit card, not the debit card, does that). At least mine doesn't! (They do earn interest, but it's about .2%)
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 12:00 PM
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Dogeread...In theory, you are absolutely right. But, and it's a big but, there are very few US banks which issue what might be called chip and pin cards. The overwhelming majority of banks in this country have chosen to issue chip and signature cards. It is senseless here to rehash the whole history of this thing. You and others can research that through.

Without scaring people, the overwhelming vast majority of time, there is no problem with chip and signature cards. Yes every so often one will run into some trouble at automated petrol pumps or local transport kiosks but these are few in number. There are other factors such as having no annual fee, no foreign transaction fee and the best rewards program possible that are more important.

Now if having a "true" chip and pin card is important, there are three financial institutions in the USA you can look to. They are UNFCU, First Tech FCU and upon specific request State Department FCU. That's it. Some other cards can fall back on pins but like I said, the vast overwhelming majority of time it makes no difference.
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 12:05 PM
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I would recommend the Andrews Federal Credit Union Visa - it is "conditional" chip and PIN meaning you can use a PIN at automated kiosks but a signature will be required when a human is involved. I don't have the card anymore because I have another card now and just didn't need two. I used it for a few years for trips to Europe, and it worked everywhere (though I don't think I used it at any unattended gas bumps). It worked in Amsterdam to buy a train ticket at the airport when my Chase chip and signature Visa did not.

Andrews FCU should be easy to join - I don't know what is required today to join, join some other group first or something, just a formality.
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 12:13 PM
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You are right joan, Quicksilver is the credit card and has all the benefits..like1..1.5% cash back. Neither charges a extra forex fee. The interest rates are tiered but either the money or savings give better rates. Although at first I think the checking account was better.
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Old Mar 23rd, 2017, 04:59 PM
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Thank you for the information. I regret that I did not include the fact that I am from the US, and have checked with my bank and with the two cards I have and all three charge transaction and conversion fees. I appreciate the many comments that people took the time to write.
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Old Mar 24th, 2017, 01:44 PM
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First, mlgb. Capitol One Quicksilver cards are 'chip and signature' cards, not 'chip and pin' cards. They even try to tell the suckers that that is 'good news'. Don't confuse being given a PIN to use at ATMs, with a PIN that you can use with merchants.


https://www.capitalone.com/credit-cards/chip-cards/

So to answer your question, "So I don't know why the above "expert" Dogeared thinks we don't have those.", the answer is, because YOU DON'T.

Next, xyz123. What you write is correct as far as it goes. However, while it is fair to say, " the overwhelming vast majority of time, there is no problem with chip and signature cards.", that is also 100% meaningless when the 1 time it occurs, happens to YOU.

It's like saying, if everyone else in the world has 100% hassle free cards, YOU are happy to accept a card that is only 99% hassle free and will accept that hassle! Really?

You would make a better argument to say that while Chip and PIN is preferable to Chip and Signature, if you can't GET a Chip and PIN card, you have to live with what you can get.

What I wrote was, IF you are going to get a NEW card, then you should TRY to get a Chip and PIN card if you can. I don't think anyone can argue with that statement.


The wisest thing to do if you are going to get a new card, is to try to get a Chip and PIN card. Do not think that Chip and Signature is just fine, it only takes ONE instance for you to know why it isn't 'fine' at all.

Get a Chip and PIN.

http://milecards.com/6084/3-full-chi...-with-no-fees/
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Old Mar 24th, 2017, 02:25 PM
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jancantravel

You took this very well. You must be a nice person.
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Old Mar 24th, 2017, 02:43 PM
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Presumably, thousands of Americans travel to Europe without chip and PIN credit cards and survive to tell the tell. "Chip and PIN" is nice to have (I'm glad I have one) but really not required in all cases. The most likely case when you will really wish you had one might be at an automated gas pump. If you are not renting a car, then it's probably not something to worry much about too much. If you need to buy a train ticket and your chip and signature card won't work in the automated machine, you can either buy it from a human being or try to use cash - at worst a delay or slight inconvenience, not something to ruin your vacation.
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Old Mar 24th, 2017, 03:36 PM
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I have a money market account and there are no fees with my debit card on cash withdraws which I love. 3% if I pay using debit so I withdraw cash and I spend less that way so works. Capital one for credit card purchases.
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