Travel Money Card | Avoid Dynamic Currency Conversion (2024)

FAQs

Travel Money Card | Avoid Dynamic Currency Conversion? ›

To avoid currency conversion fees abroad, always choose 'local currency' whether you're withdrawing cash from an international ATM or spending on a prepaid travel money card.

How To Avoid Paying Dynamic Currency. Avoiding a DCC is easy—all you have to do is decline when given the option at a store, restaurant or ATM in a foreign country. Rejecting the DCC will ensure you're not paying more than you absolutely have to. A DCC should always be an option.

If the cardholder declines DCC, the transaction is processed in the local currency, and the cardholder's bank will convert it using the bank's exchange rate.

Declining Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) is a simple process – just say no when presented with the option at a store, restaurant, or ATM in a foreign country. By rejecting DCC, you guarantee that you won't be paying more than necessary while using your Forex card abroad.

Note that if you don't see the required details or feel pressure to choose one currency over the other, Visa recommends that you decline the currency conversion offer and report the incident to your card issuer.

The way to avoid DCC fees is simple. When paying with your card in a foreign country, always use the local currency, never your home currency. Your credit card company will convert currency for you at a more favorable rate.

To avoid dynamic currency conversion fees when traveling internationally, choose to pay credit card transactions in the local currency rather than in US dollars.

With DCC, customers can choose to pay in either the local currency or their own. If they choose DCC, our terminal applies a fixed conversion rate, showing the amount in the customer's currency. This benefits your business by enhancing the customer experience, potentially increasing sales, and reducing chargebacks.

What does DCC Markup Fees Mean? For MasterCard and Visa, the typical foreign exchange transaction fee is 1%. Most credit card companies add on the cost as an extra percentage, and it can vary from 1.5% to 3% or even more. This means that the price varies according on the credit card provider.

How do I avoid CCY conversion fees? ›

A good rule of thumb when traveling is to select the local currency during payment to avoid conversion fees and to use a card that doesn't charge foreign transaction fees. Cash withdrawals from international ATMs are also subject to fees.

If you agree, the merchant will use the conversion rate provided by its DCC service provider. If you refuse, your payment network, such as Visa or Mastercard, will convert the currency, and you'll see the conversion on your statement in U.S. dollars.

If you want to opt out of the automatic conversion, you must submit a written request to the USCIS office that approved your Form I-130. You (not your parent) should send a signed letter stating that you wish to opt out of the conversion from F2B to F1.

Specifically, how you choose to handle currency conversions with your credit card can make a significant difference in how much you spend. Here's why you should always decline the currency conversion option when paying with your credit card abroad.

DCC enables a customer to know the cost of a transaction in their home currency. In a non-DCC transaction the customer would not know the exchange rate that the credit card company will apply (and the final cost) until the transaction appears on a monthly statement.

Both Mastercard and Visa calculate exchange rates to convert all foreign-denominated transactions to USD. Foreign transaction fees are charged based on the USD transaction after currency conversion has taken place.

One of the simplest ways to avoid the risks associated with fluctuations in exchange rates is to quote prices and require payment in U.S. dollars. Then both the burden of exchanging currencies and the risk are placed on the buyer.

Another way to avoid currency conversions when performing separate charges and transfers is to use the on_behalf_of parameter. A currency conversion occurs if the presentment currency differs from the settlement currency. The presentment currency is the currency that's used for charges.