Not keen on throwing away your vacation budget on fees that add no value to your travel experience?
What Is a Foreign Transaction Fee?
How Much Do Foreign Transaction Fees Cost?
When you use your credit card in another country, the issuer will automatically convert the foreign currency amount to U.S. dollars and then charge the fee percentage based on that amount.Did you know?You Can Get Paid Up to $140/Month Just for Sharing Your Honest Opinion
Foreign transaction fees generally cost between 1% and 4% of the transaction.
No Interest Til Almost 2027?
Head to the website or pull out your paperwork from when you first opened the account.
International transaction fees are typically buried in the fine print of the accounts terms and conditions.
Online, you might find the surcharge details under the banks Rates and Fees section.
You usually wont be spending US dollars when swiping your debit card or credit card in another country.
Instead, prices may be in euros, pesos, yen or another denomination.
Did you know?
This is called dynamic currency conversion and its expensive.
Never say yes to dynamic currency conversion!
How Can I Avoid Foreign Transaction Fees?
If you dont want to incur foreign transaction fees when spending money abroad, you have a few options.
Open a credit card that doesnt charge foreign transaction fees.
Need help narrowing it down?
Customer service might be able to point you to certain partner banks or ATMs where fees will be lower.
Instead, plan ahead by visiting a local bank or credit union before your trip.
If you run out of cash during your trip, visit a foreign bank for lower conversion fees.
Thats $3 for every $100 you spend or $30 for every $1,000 you spend.
Not all credit cards charge foreign transaction fees.
To qualify for a credit card with no foreign transaction fees, you often need good to excellent credit.
To calculate foreign transaction fees, multiply the total purchase cost by the foreign transaction fee percentage.
That extra $0.58 will show up on your debit or credit card statement.
Probably not as good as youd like.
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