U.S. Credit Cards Without Foreign Transaction Fees - Survey

[OnMyWay]

31 minutes ago, baronapart said:

I looked back at my records. I was charged a 1% VISA ISA CHARGE / VISA INTERNATIONAL SERVICE ASSESSMENT fee. No other fees.

Thanks, that must be the card I would get as that is the only account with 2% cashback.  I think I will request one, for emergencies. 

If I get the credit card, I will ask if they can send it to my Philippine address on Fedex, etc.  SFDU is very accommodating to foreign residents.

Edited February 3 by OnMyWay

[OnMyWay]

On 2/2/2024 at 4:06 PM, OnMyWay said:

Considering a card from SDFU.  They don't care where you live.  No FTC, $200 signup bonus, 2% Cashback on everything, and no annual fee.

I received my SDFCU Premium Cashback credit card today, sent to my Philippines address.  Initially they were going to send it snail mail, and I said no, stop.  No problem, they sent it Fedex for free.

No problem with Philippines address

No foreign transaction fees

2% cashback on every purchase

$200 bonus if you spend 3 k USD in the first 90 days.

Syncs with my Quicken software so I can download all transactions.

Excellent exchange rate.  I tried my first purchase at my fav Petron.  1960.21 pesos billed as $35.27 = ~55.58.

Very good experience getting the card.  Good customer service.

[baronapart]

12 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

I received my SDFCU Premium Cashback credit card today, sent to my Philippines address.  Initially they were going to send it snail mail, and I said no, stop.  No problem, they sent it Fedex for free.

No problem with Philippines address

No foreign transaction fees

2% cashback on every purchase

$200 bonus if you spend 3 k USD in the first 90 days.

Syncs with my Quicken software so I can download all transactions.

Excellent exchange rate.  I tried my first purchase at my fav Petron.  1960.21 pesos billed as $35.27 = ~55.58.

Very good experience getting the card.  Good customer service.

Thanks. This is good to know that I can have my renewal card sent directly to the Philippines instead of having to use my oldest son as a middle man.

Edited March 10 by baronapart

[baronapart]

12 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

I received my SDFCU Premium Cashback credit card today, sent to my Philippines address.  Initially they were going to send it snail mail, and I said no, stop.  No problem, they sent it Fedex for free.

No problem with Philippines address

No foreign transaction fees

2% cashback on every purchase

$200 bonus if you spend 3 k USD in the first 90 days.

Syncs with my Quicken software so I can download all transactions.

Excellent exchange rate.  I tried my first purchase at my fav Petron.  1960.21 pesos billed as $35.27 = ~55.58.

Very good experience getting the card.  Good customer service.

OMW, when you paid at Petron did you have to use a PIN or just sign?

[OnMyWay]

37 minutes ago, baronapart said:

OMW, when you paid at Petron did you have to use a PIN or just sign?

Nothing.  No PIN, no signature.

With my CapOne credit card, sometimes at Petron they make me sign, sometimes not.  It might be subject to the amount.  I usually fill up and it is 4-5 K, but yesterday it was half full so only 1.9 k.

I have the Petron Value card.  Maybe that makes a diff?  I only got it a month ago.  Never bothered before but you can save a lot in the long run.

[OnMyWay]

49 minutes ago, baronapart said:

Thanks. This is good to know that I can have my renewal card sent directly to the Philippines instead of having to use my oldest son as a middle man.

I hope it will be free like mine was.  Make sure you have your correct address on file with them.  They will not ship for 30 days after an address change.

[hk blues]

12 minutes ago, OnMyWay said:

Nothing.  No PIN, no signature....

Doesn't that leave you very open to fraud - anyone with the card can charge to it.

Here, I've never not been asked to enter my PIN but that's with my debit card. I wonder if that makes a difference and if so, why?

[OnMyWay]

38 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Doesn't that leave you very open to fraud - anyone with the card can charge to it.

Here, I've never not been asked to enter my PIN but that's with my debit card. I wonder if that makes a difference and if so, why?

There are many variables here.

First, Debit Cards are PIN based.  I think this is mainly because of ATMs usage where you can get cash.  Credit cards that I have had were never PIN based.  With this new card, I did chose a PIN but it was optional.  I figured if I had a real super emergency I could get cash from the card, but that would be super expensive, most likely.  I have had my CapOne Mastercard for 22 years and never used it for cash at an ATM.

For my BPI debit Mastercard, most places I use it ask for PIN.  However, the Petron usually does not.  I think many establishments like my groceries have a flexible policy and for small amount amounts they don't ask for PIN, larger they ask.  Most restos ask for PIN with debit cards.

With the newer chip cards, I think fraud is much harder, both for debit and credit cards.  My CapOne Mastercard sends me an e-mail if anything out of the ordinary pops up, and if I don't confirm, the account will lock.  I need to check if the SDFCU card is set up like that.  I'm planning to spend a lot on appliances in the next few days.

And I think the "Know me" factor comes into play as well.  If the business knows you, they may have a policy that is more lenient than the one for irregular customers.  I go to the same Petron for 95% of my fuel purchases for two vehicles, so most of the crew know me.  BTW, excellent manager there who encourages good customer service.  If they are not busy, they will even hand wash your car for free while sitting there gassing up.  Tipping the guys/gals is optional.

And. at this Petron, they always write down the license plate, so that gives them a bit of tracing capability.

Signatures for credit cards are old school.  I can't see how they provide much fraud prevention.  Asking for ID, yes.  For larger purchases, my grocery often asks for ID.  They have a huge staff with a big rotation, so most follow the store policy.  A few I have known for 10+ years, but most move up to management or supervisor roles.

Overall, I don't worry much about credit cards now.  I had attempted fraud in Germany in 2008, and it was a mess to clean up, but I think the systems are much better now.  The new card is a "tap" card, my first, so I think I need to careful about that.  Wallet shield?

[OnMyWay]

3 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

I have had my CapOne Mastercard for 22 years and never used it for cash at an ATM.

I forgot to mention this side topic that some members might find helpful.  I recently checked my credit report and they gave some of the factors that were considered.  The fact that I have had this card for 22 years was in the top 3 reasons contributing to having a high credit rating.  For that reason, I will bite the bullet and have it renewed in July.  I think I will have to pay ~$100 to have it sent over from my Travelling Mailbox.

[craftbeerlover]

2 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

I forgot to mention this side topic that some members might find helpful.  I recently checked my credit report and they gave some of the factors that were considered.  The fact that I have had this card for 22 years was in the top 3 reasons contributing to having a high credit rating.  For that reason, I will bite the bullet and have it renewed in July.  I think I will have to pay ~$100 to have it sent over from my Travelling Mailbox.

100 dollars isnt so bad.  Like you, I have had both my credit cards for many many many years.   I did downgrade the AMEX after I stopped working/traveling so that annual cost decreased substantially.  Neither of my cards have ever had a foreign transaction fee.