Canadian Credit Cards with No Foreign Transaction Fee

The Foreign Transaction Fee is the charge applied to your credit card when paying for a service or product in a foreign (non-local) currency. 

The currency in Canada is the Canadian Dollar. If you pay for something in a different currency; let’s say US Dollars, Euros, Pound Sterling, etc., then you might get charged with a Foreign Transaction Fee.

The Foreign Transaction Fee is apparently a big business for banks and other credit cards issuers in Canada. They charge a 2.5% of the amount spent that is NOT in Canadian Dollars. So, be advised that if you pay in US Dollars, Euros, or any other currency that’s not the Canadian currency, then you‘ll get busted with the 2.5% Foreign Transaction Fee.

As far as I know, to this date, the only issuer of credits cards in Canada that do NOT charge a Foreign Transaction Fee is Chase. Chase is an American bank authorized to conduct businesses in Canada.

Chase offers various credit cards with No Foreign Currency Transaction Fee. These are some examples:

• Amazon.ca Rewards Visa Card
• Sears Financial™ MasterCard®
• Marriott Rewards® Premier Visa® Card
• Sears Financial™ Voyage™ MasterCard®

For the more information about the cards provided by Chase visit: Chase for Canadian customers.

I got myself an Amazon.ca Rewards Visa Card. In the details of the card you can read:

Foreign Currency Conversion: We will bill you in Canadian Currency if you use your account to make a transaction in foreign currency. We will convert it into Canadian currency at the exchange rate set by Visa International in effect at the time we post the transaction to your account. This exchange rate may be different from the rate in effect on the transaction date. We will not charge you any additional foreign currency conversion charge.

This is the card I use whenever I pay for something in non-Canadian dollars; thus avoiding the sneaky Foreign Transaction Fee. You can do the same and save yourself a few bucks ;-)

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How to open a checking account at Tangerine?

Everything at Tangerine is done online… opening a checking account is no different: you can do it in 10 minutes (at the most) from the comfort of your home computer while you are in your pajamas. What I have found so far about Tangerine (formerly ING DIRECT) is that all procedures can be done with an extreme simplicity and from the comfort of your home.

Tangerine calls its checking account: Tangerine Checking Account. It was called THRiVE Chequing Account in the times when the bank was called  ING DIRECT.

Most checking accounts in Canadian banking institutions charge you a monthly fee. This is ridiculous if you ask me: banks are profiting from our own money, but that’s not enough for them: they still charge us a monthly fee for having our own money within their grasp, money from which they are profiting already.

This is what a Tangerine Checking Account has to offer:

• NO MONTHLY FEES. Ask yourself if your current bank charges you a monthly fee and ask yourself if you should be paying for it?
• Unlimited transitions: once again, you can perform unlimited transitions at Tangerine for free.
• Earn interest on the money you put on your Tangerine Checking Account (yes, you heard well: this is a checking account that pays interest, just as saving accounts do).

I am not going to load you with more details…if you want to know more about the benefits of opening a Tangerine Checking Account come here: http://www.tangerine.ca/en/chequing/chequing-account/index.html.

Now, in order to open a Tangerine Checking Account you have to do only TWO things:

1. Complete an online form that won’t take you more than 10 minutes. I am not exaggerating: this form won’t take you more than 10 minutes to fill. In order to fill the form click here: Open a new Tangerine Checking Account.
2. Write your initial deposit cheque (payable to yourself) for at least $100, and mail it to Tangerine Bank, 3389 Steeles Avenue East, Toronto, Ontario, M2H 3S8. Note: all new clients of Tangerine opening accounts for at least $100 bucks get a $50 bonus. What does this means? It means that you open your account with $100, but you are credited with $150; so Tangerine welcomes you with $50 bucks.

That’s all: by completing the two steps above you will open a Tangerine Checking Account, that will treat you with unlimited transactions, no monthly fees, saving interests and a $50 bucks welcome gift.

If you have any questions, drop a line in the comments section below. I’ll do my best to answer.

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Scene Visa card login: check your balance online or by phone?

I have a Scotiabank Scene VISA credit card, but I am not a client of Scotiabank per say. I mean, I do not have a checking/saving account with this bank. The only thing that I have with Scotiabank is the Scene VISA card.

Scotiabank Scene VISA credit card

When I first got this card, I was checking out the balance by phone. It was relatively easy to check the outstanding balance over the phone, but it was painful to perform other actions like listing past transactions. (There’s a section at the end of this post explaining how to consult the balance by phone).

Thankfully there’s a simple way to do this. You can sign in to Scotiabank online and mobile services using your Scene Visa card. 

In order to do this, you need to activate the online and mobile banking services in the following page:

https://www1.scotiaonline.scotiabank.com/online/authentication/authentication.bns

In that page, you need to click the Activate Now button in order to enable these services. If for any reason you have an issue when doing the activation online, then you will have to go to a Scotiabank branch and ask for help.  It matters not that you aren’t a client of Scotiabank; if you have a Scene Visa card they will help you out.

An important tip: if in addition to your Scene Visa card you have a ScotiaCard, then you will have to activate the services using the ScotiaCard, NOT your Scene Visa card. 

On the other hand, if you ONLY have a Scene Visa credit card, then you can use it directly to activate the online and mobile services.

I don’t know why the guys at Scotiabank did this process so confusing; but that’s how it is. See the following images from the FAQ section at Scotiabank.

Can I sign in to Scotia OnLine and Mobile Banking services with my Credit Card?

Scotiabank - How do I register for online and mobile banking services?

Anyhow, once you have completed the activation, you can login using the same card used for the registration. You can login in the same link as before: 

https://www1.scotiaonline.scotiabank.com/online/authentication/authentication.bns

That is all! I hope the post was useful :-) If it was, please show your appreciation clicking the Google+ button at the beginning of this post.

Annex: how to check the Scene Visa card balance by phone

The easiest way that I have found is to call the number in the back of your card. You will be calling an automated system, so a machine will be doing the talking to you.The number that appears in the back of my card is 1-800-387-6556 (for US/Canada calls). I guess you can use this number as well.

You simply have to enter your credit card number (16 digits in the front of your card) and home telephone number (10 digits) so that the system can authenticate you.

After this you just have to pick the proper option from the possibilities you are given. Don’t worry, it’s straightforward.

Just make sure to select the option that allows you to inquire your balance. In addition, you can request the list of transaction since your last statement. Again, a machine will be doing the talking and providing you with the transactions.

That’s it! You can get this done from your phone in 5 minutes. No need to talk to an agent and the system is available 24 hours a day, 7 days of the week. If you found this information helpful, I would appreciate if you click the Google+ button at the beginning of this post.

If you know other ways to check the Scotiabank Scene VISA credit card balance, share it with us in the comments section below. Thanks!

How to open a checking account at ING DIRECT?

ING DIRECT (Canada) was re-branded (renamed) as Tangerine as of Tuesday April 8th, 2014.

For instructions about how to open a checking account at Tangerine go to the following up-to-date article: How to open a checking account at Tangerine?

Tangerine kept most of the things from ING DIRECT. In their own words: “We’re changing our name, but we’ll never change who we are”. From the customer’s perspective, it was mainly about changes in the names of the services (products) provided and the organization itself.

Here is a summary of the name changes (old account names to the left and the new names to the right of the -> symbol):

• THRiVE Checking Account -> Tangerine Checking Account.
• Investment Savings Account (ISA)  -> Tangerine Savings Account.
• unmortgage ->Tangerine Mortgage.
• ING DIRECT Streetwise Portfolio ->Tangerine Investment Funds.
• Streetwise Balanced Income Portfolio ->Tangerine Balanced Income Portfolio
• Streetwise Balanced Portfolio ->Tangerine Balanced Portfolio.
• Streetwise Balanced Growth Portfolio -> Tangerine Balanced Growth Portfolio.
• Streetwise Equity Growth Portfolio -> Tangerine Equity Growth Portfolio.

The only real change I see as a customer, is the about the access to ATM machines. In the times of  ING DIRECT, THE EXCHANGE  Network was used for free. This will continue to be free until September 30th, 2014. After this date, you won’t be able to access ATM machines THE EXCHANGE  Network for free. This will impact some people I guess.

Instead you could use the Scotiabank ABM Network (containing nearly 4000 machines) and the Tangerine ABMs (which allow you to withdraw US dollars) for free.

Tangerine (formerly ING DIRECT) is a great banking alternative to the traditional ones (RBC, TD, Scotiabank…).

With Tangerine (formerly ING DIRECT), you don’t pay monthly fees, you get interest even on your checking account…You won’t be disappointed. My advice: switch to Tangerine. For details click the following link: How to open a checking account at Tangerine?

SERVICE FEE – 7EPMT/WD/TFR@$.150 at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)

The other day I was surfing my savings account's details and I noticed a withdrawal of $10.50 (CAD) that I never did. The description was SERVICE FEE - 7EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50 and was done on September 2nd, 2010. See the red rectangle in the picture below:

Going back in time a little bit, I noticed that I also had a SERVICE FEE – 4EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50 on August 2nd, 2010. At that time I was charged with $6.00 (CAD).

I found a pattern in those withdrawals:

1. They apply always on the second day of every month.
2. The amount of the fee is the result of multiplying $1.50 by the number preceding “EPMT” in the description.

See the relation below for a trivial mathematical calculation of the fees:

Description:                                                                Fee value:

SERVICE FEE - 1EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>   $1.50 (CAD)

SERVICE FEE - 2EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>   $3.00 (CAD)

SERVICE FEE - 3EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>   $4.50 (CAD)

SERVICE FEE - 4EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>   $6.00 (CAD)

SERVICE FEE - 5EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>   $7.50 (CAD)

SERVICE FEE - 6EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>   $9.00 (CAD)

SERVICE FEE - 7EPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50       =>  $10.50 (CAD)

…...............................................................................................

SERVICE FEE - NEPMT/WD/TFR@$1.50      =>  $1.50 * N (CAD)

At this point I decided to go to the nearest branch of the RBC and ask about the reason for those fees. They said I was charged because I had withdrawn money from my “savings account”, which is intended for “saving” and not for “making payments”. So, if you plan to pay for anything, don't use directly your “savings account”, instead use your “checking account”.

Most Canadian institutions do unfair tricks like the one described above to eat your money. Fortunately, I found a bank in Canada (Tangerine) that does not seem to trick you and eat your money. If you are interested, you might take a look at the link below:

How to open a checking account at Tangerine?

Note: I am a client of Tangerine. These guys conduct a very clear business. They don’t trick, they don’t hide stuff and above all, they don’t charge any fees.

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RBC online banking: Choose the right Savings Account type

Savings accounts are intended to save... or so RBC [1] says. There's one golden rule: the money that goes into the savings account should stay there. If you don't follow this norm, you will be charged $1.50 per each transaction you make directly from your savings account.These charges are named service fees.

Service fees apply in most situations that you have moved money out from your savings account. For example, whether you withdraw money in an ATM machine, pay with your debit card or make any kind of transaction using your savings account, you are busted and then you should pay the corresponding service fee.

If you need to use the  money in your savings account, first, transfer that money to your checking account by means of the RBC online banking. Then use your checking account to make the payments or withdraw the amount you need.

Even this way you might be charged, because sometimes transferring from savings to checking is penalized with $1.50 per transaction. This depends on the type of savings account your are using. My advice: use RBC High Interest eSavings™ account, which gives you higher savings interests and also allows you to transfer money from savings to checking without being charged.

A better advice, do you banking with an institution that is not waiting for you to make a “mistake” in order to fine you for it. So far, my best candidate is Tangerine. I outlined some of the benefits of banking with Tangerine and how to open a checking account at this institution in almost no time and from the comfort of your home. The details can be found here: How to open a checking account at Tangerine?.

If you decide to remain at RBC, this is how you can change your savings account type:

1.) Login into your online banking account.

2.) Expand your savings account details by clicking on the corresponding link.

3.) Click Personal Accounts --> Change Account Type or Add Owners in the left column of the page.

4.) At his point, follow the instructions your are given, but make sure to choose RBC High Interest eSavings™ as your new account type. [2]

Hopefully you can achieve more freedom with your new RBC High Interest eSavings™ account. It will give you the ability to move money from your savings account to your checking account  without being penalized by the unpleasant service fees. [3]

Notes:

[1]: RBC stands for Royal Bank of Canada.

[2]: There are 7 types of account by default:

• RBC High Interest eSavings™
• RBC VIP Banking™
• RBC Signature No Limit Banking™
• RBC No Limit Banking™
• RBC Day to Day Banking™
• RBC Enhanced Savings™
• RBC Day to Day Savings™

[3]: Important: The money being moved (transferred) is extent of charge only if you use online banking.