Good Reminder for Canadians too

[Been There, Planning That]

We travel with both Cdn and a USD visa cards. When cruising we only take ashore the one we want to use.  We use the Cdn, one for anything but items priced in US currency.

 

I appreciated this reminder having been 'grounded' for a couple of years.

 

Ruth

 

[gubby]

1 hour ago, Been There, Planning That said:

We travel with both Cdn and a USD visa cards. When cruising we only take ashore the one we want to use.  We use the Cdn, one for anything but items priced in US currency.

 

I appreciated this reminder having been 'grounded' for a couple of years.

 

Ruth

 

Me too, Ruth.. We use our Cdn card and instruct the customer service to allow our bank to do the exchange. I also forgot about the extra 2 1/2 % that most cc companies tack on to these transactions, and made a note to myself to use our Scotia passport card that doesn't charge that fee. But because we have been stuck at home for all these months, these ideas needed to be revisited. Thanks for the  memory jolt been there, planning that.

[dawnvip]

There are several credit cards available in Canada that don't charge foreign exchange fees. Some even have no annual fee!

I gave up my Scotia Passport visa when they raised the yearly fee to $199 and no longer include Priority Pass lounge access... just not worth it.

[gnome12]

14 hours ago, Been There, Planning That said:

We travel with both Cdn and a USD visa cards. When cruising we only take ashore the one we want to use.  We use the Cdn, one for anything but items priced in US currency.

 

I appreciated this reminder having been 'grounded' for a couple of years.

 

Ruth

 

Unless you have a source of income in US$, you will pay a fee when you convert Cdn$ to US$, whenever that is. If you hold it in a US$ account, you will likely earn no interest. And, since you use your Cdn card for foreign purchases, you are paying an exchange fee for that. Having a card that doesn't change foreign currency fees, but that is paid in Cdn$ makes sense.

[squadron]

On 1/15/2022 at 5:39 AM, gnome12 said:

Unless you have a source of income in US$, you will pay a fee when you convert Cdn$ to US$, whenever that is. If you hold it in a US$ account, you will likely earn no interest. And, since you use your Cdn card for foreign purchases, you are paying an exchange fee for that. Having a card that doesn't change foreign currency fees, but that is paid in Cdn$ makes sense.

My TD card offers a free US card so I keep AM money in a account and just pay the visa bill after a cruise from that account with  no additional charges

[gnome12]

22 minutes ago, squadron said:

My TD card offers a free US card so I keep AM money in a account and just pay the visa bill after a cruise from that account with  no additional charges

Yes, but how do you fund that account? As I stated, unless you have income in US dollars, you have to  purchase them, and are charged a fee for that purchase.

Edited January 16, 2022 by gnome12

[Been There, Planning That]

We do all this online and depending upon the amount exchanged the rate varies slightly.

 

[gubby]

On 1/14/2022 at 10:47 PM, dawnvip said:

There are several credit cards available in Canada that don't charge foreign exchange fees. Some even have no annual fee!

I gave up my Scotia Passport visa when they raised the yearly fee to $199 and no longer include Priority Pass lounge access... just not worth it.

I checked last week and fee was still 

$ 129 and I have 6 airline lounge visits this year. That makes 3 flights for spouse and I. Then $ 27 for each visit if needed.

[dawnvip]

@gubby I received notice of increase to annual fees at last renewal, so maybe Scotiabank isn't advertising the fact that annual fees are increasing but they are doing it.

As for lounge passes, you are right in 6 lounge pass allotment but good luck using them:

"Plaza Premium lounges recently left the Priority Pass network. Unfortunately, most of the Canadian airport lounges are operated by Plaza Premium (especially in Toronto and Vancouver). That means your lounge passes won’t go very far when you’re flying out of Canada. That said, you can use your lounge passes as a credit at select restaurants inside Canadian airports."

[gubby]

Thanks for this Dawn. I guess we will need to look elsewhere for lounge. And a less pricey card without the 2 1/2 % fee. Especially when we make payment on our Antarctic/SA cruise. That one will really add up quickly!

[bennybear]

Yikes, it if the Scotia card is going up that much, we won’t be renewing.  Boy are they choosing the wrong time for that kind of increase!   We also have home trust and now an RBC US Credit card.  

[Fouremco]

This recent article should be of interest to those contemplating a change in cards or the acquisition of an additional card. https://www.moneysense.ca/spend/credit-cards/best-credit-cards-in-canada/?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NL-MS-Weekly-01-11-22

[Been There, Planning That]

24 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

This recent article should be of interest to those contemplating a change in cards or the acquisition of an additional card.

It's an interesting article, confirming that our TD card is the right choice for us.

 

Thanks for the link.

 

Ruth

[Fouremco]

26 minutes ago, Been There, Planning That said:

It's an interesting article, confirming that our TD card is the right choice for us.

 

Thanks for the link.

 

Ruth

And that's the key, isn't it? Lots of card with lots of good features, but with different spending habits and different lifestyles, what's right for me may be very different than what's right for you. The fact that there are so many Canadian cards with so many benefits today is quite amazing compared to the not too distant past.

[Oceangoer2]

On 1/15/2022 at 7:39 AM, gnome12 said:

Unless you have a source of income in US$, you will pay a fee when you convert Cdn$ to US$, whenever that is. If you hold it in a US$ account, you will likely earn no interest. And, since you use your Cdn card for foreign purchases, you are paying an exchange fee for that. Having a card that doesn't change foreign currency fees, but that is paid in Cdn$ makes sense.

FYI....We earn interest on our TD American $$ account.

[Oceangoer2]

On 1/16/2022 at 1:33 PM, gnome12 said:

Yes, but how do you fund that account? As I stated, unless you have income in US dollars, you have to  purchase them, and are charged a fee for that purchase.

yes true....but it does pay interest (not as much as the fee for purchase though...LOL).

[Oceangoer2]

1 hour ago, Fouremco said:

This recent article should be of interest to those contemplating a change in cards or the acquisition of an additional card. https://www.moneysense.ca/spend/credit-cards/best-credit-cards-in-canada/?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NL-MS-Weekly-01-11-22

Thanks for the link....we use the TD FC Infinite Travel ...... the points have been a great return.  Although you do have to spend a lot to get a lot...LOL. 

[Jen1971]

I have Scotia Visa Passport because it waives the fee.  I seen an earlier post where they say the fee is now 199 an no lounge passes.  I never received any info on this.  I just went an looked the perk is still there an the fee is 139.

[bennybear]

6 hours ago, Fouremco said:

This recent article should be of interest to those contemplating a change in cards or the acquisition of an additional card. https://www.moneysense.ca/spend/credit-cards/best-credit-cards-in-canada/?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NL-MS-Weekly-01-11-22

I happened to read it earlier today, the problem is I need a crystal ball.  I have always used cards geared to travel points and they’ve been great.  But the last two years are making me rethink things.    I have a plethora of points on British Airways but they’ve cut their routes in Canada. And Aeroplan has devalued the points badly.   So perhaps it’s time to consider a cash back.

 

I really wonder what fundamental shifts will happen post Covid.  I know many are very disenchanted with the Canadian airlines.   We just had a wonderful easy extension of some credits with Alaska.  I’m hoping the cruise lines continue to treat people fairly .   Things to consider. 

[dawnvip]

The OP was reminding us of the need to consider foreign exchange fees when travel starts up again. How Canadians navigate those fees is indeed an individual choice as Fouremco graciously pointed out.

 

What my earlier post mentioned (and what is not mentioned in the moneysense article) is that almost all Canadian credit cards charge 2 &1/2 % forex fee in addition to the currency conversion, which is not a mid-market conversion, so heavily favours the bank. The Brim card mentioned in the article does not have forex fees, so is a good card to consider for use when travelling out of Canada. HomeTrust Visa is also a good choice for the same reason. Also, both of these cards have no annual fee, so its easy to keep these cards with your passport and only use them when you are travelling. ✈️

[Fouremco]

13 hours ago, dawnvip said:

The OP was reminding us of the need to consider foreign exchange fees when travel starts up again. How Canadians navigate those fees is indeed an individual choice as Fouremco graciously pointed out.

 

What my earlier post mentioned (and what is not mentioned in the moneysense article) is that almost all Canadian credit cards charge 2 &1/2 % forex fee in addition to the currency conversion, which is not a mid-market conversion, so heavily favours the bank. The Brim card mentioned in the article does not have forex fees, so is a good card to consider for use when travelling out of Canada. HomeTrust Visa is also a good choice for the same reason. Also, both of these cards have no annual fee, so its easy to keep these cards with your passport and only use them when you are travelling. ✈️

Excellent point. I keep a Home Trust Preferred VISA for that very reason when travelling or making online purchases outside of Canada. For those looking for a primary card that doesn't charge forex fees, the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card is definitely worth considering. 

[Iwantsun]

We gave up on credit cards charging conversion fees and 5 years ago switched to Cash Passport.  It’s a prepaid MasterCard that you load with CAD$.  Then you log on to their website or the app and convert the CAD$ in US$ or AUD$ or EUR or GBP or any other accepted currency (7 in all).  When your trip is finished you can leave the money as is or convert it to another currency (using daily bank rates).  The card is $15 ($0 for a second one on the same account).  You purchase the card at Canada Post locations. The card is good for up to 5 years and uses a PIN number just like a regular CC.  You can have money in multiple currencies at the same time on your card.  You can also use it as a bank card and withdraw funds in an ATM if you have the local currency loaded on your card.  So now when we travel, we use the Cash Passport if the currency where we are travelling is covered if not we use our regular CAD$ credit card (with the exchange rate + fees).  Unfortunately, Canada Post doesn’t do a lot of marketing with this product so very few people know about it (even seasoned travelers).  Here is the link if you want to read about it.  https://www.cashpassport.ca/en/ 

[Fouremco]

20 minutes ago, Iwantsun said:

We gave up on credit cards charging conversion fees and 5 years ago switched to Cash Passport.  It’s a prepaid MasterCard that you load with CAD$.  Then you log on to their website or the app and convert the CAD$ in US$ or AUD$ or EUR or GBP or any other accepted currency (7 in all).  When your trip is finished you can leave the money as is or convert it to another currency (using daily bank rates).  The card is $15 ($0 for a second one on the same account).  You purchase the card at Canada Post locations. The card is good for up to 5 years and uses a PIN number just like a regular CC.  You can have money in multiple currencies at the same time on your card.  You can also use it as a bank card and withdraw funds in an ATM if you have the local currency loaded on your card.  So now when we travel, we use the Cash Passport if the currency where we are travelling is covered if not we use our regular CAD$ credit card (with the exchange rate + fees).  Unfortunately, Canada Post doesn’t do a lot of marketing with this product so very few people know about it (even seasoned travelers).  Here is the link if you want to read about it.  https://www.cashpassport.ca/en/ 

A similar approach is taken with the Stack MasterCard. I acquired one, then the pandemic hit. https://www.getstack.ca

[dawnvip]

2 hours ago, Fouremco said:

A similar approach is taken with the Stack MasterCard. I acquired one, then the pandemic hit. https://www.getstack.ca

And similar to the CIBC AC Conversion visa. I am in the same place, acquired right before the pandemic hit! https://www.cibc.com/en/personal-banking/prepaid/ac-conversion-card.html

 

[TeaBag]

Thanks for all the good info, people.  I think we need to make a change.  We have used Amex for about 40 years.  It was great when DH earned money in USD.