# Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite (No-FX)



## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

New Scotiabank Visa Infinite *No-FX* card announced today












*0% FX fee*
$139/year
25k signup after $1k purchases within 3 months (~$150 CAD value) or $75 amazon.ca gift certificate
2 points grocery/dining/entertainment/transit (50k cap)
1 point on all other purchases (no cap)
free PriorityPass membership + 6 passes yearly
after 40k spend, extra 10k points. after another 10k spend, extra 2k points
25 days/$1M travel medical insurance
trip cancellation/interruption, flight delay, delayed/lost baggage
hotel/motel burglary, rental car collision/lost damage
common carrier travel accident
purchase security, extended warranty
price protection
visa infinite benefits
avis preferred plus membership
transfer from scotia points => scene points, v.v

Wait didn't Scotiabank take over Chase Canada a few years ago? Did they kill the popular amazon and marriott visas for this? The announcement date certainly indicates this is the case..


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## Synergy (Mar 18, 2013)

Interesting find, thanks.

I think Chase may have taken over / acquired the Merchant division of Scotia. Isn't Chase owned by JPM??


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

I seem to remember Scotia taking over some of the Chase Canada cards? Bit of digging it appears that Scotia had been providing the back end service, processing, call center and such for Chase Canada. Unclear


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## Synergy (Mar 18, 2013)

^ I think you may be right. I should know better as I've been a customer of Scotia and Chase for many yrs.


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## agent99 (Sep 11, 2013)

Seems like a reasonable card for those who travel a lot. More here on RFD. Correct me if I am wrong, but the rewards are for points that can only be used for travel expenses like hotels etc? So not much use if those don't amount to much of your spending.

Another Scotia card that I mentioned earlier, seems a better choice if cashback is more important. 4%/2%/1%. 0% FX is important to some, but a US$ account and card from your bank plus a NG from time to time achieves same thing. Besides for $5000 spending 2 1/2% is only $125. Better to get the better cashback for those that don't need travel points.


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## milhouse (Nov 16, 2016)

Thanks again m3s. 
I think I like this card slightly better than the Brim card. 
The lounge access sounds a bit better defined with membership and 6 passes yearly while Brim is kind of vague so I'm guessing it's only providing membership to LoungeKey (subset of PP) without any passes.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

Yea I much prefer cash back to rewards points as they get devalued and are always such a hassle to redeem

I don't agree that a USD account/card achieves the same thing. The No-FX cards are not limited to USD currency and they can also have perks on top like this Infinite Visa does (amazon visa had 1% cash back for free vs USD card with an annual fee for nothing)

The worst situation for FX mark-up is if you have to return something or get a charge reversed you get hit twice (one reason why Rogers cards don't work for me). For example, I run major expenses through my current Visa Infinite for the insurance/warranty/protection etc where the reward points should defeat the FX fee.. until the receptionist accidentally charges you for 2 rooms and 2 weeks later when you notice she reverses it but you can't claim that FX fee to work as it was not a claimable expense. In this case alone this No-FX Infinite Visa would outshine both my amazon and TD Visa Infinite and pays for itself in a single transaction

I'm looking for the No-FX fee and/or premium travel card for insurance etc. I already have a free 2%/.5% cash back visa (although quick math Scotia Momentum would have more than paid for itself last year with 4% gas and groceries alone)


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

milhouse said:


> The lounge access sounds a bit better defined with membership and 6 passes yearly while Brim is kind of vague so I'm guessing it's only providing membership to LoungeKey (subset of PP) without any passes.


The LoungeKey detail is buried in the FAQ:



> What is Lounge Key?
> The Brim World and World Elite Cards give you LoungeKey membership and access to hundreds of exclusive airport lounges around the world, regardless of airline, frequent flyer membership, or class of ticket. Please note, it will cost you *$27 USD per visit*, per person. You can find more information about LoungeKey here, including the full list of accessible airport lounges around the world.


I already signed up for the mysterious Brim adventure for the sake of supporting something new. The lounge access would easily tip the scale. I have Maple Leaf lounge access but that's only good if you fly AC

It will be a pleasant surprise if it actually shows up before my next trip


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## agent99 (Sep 11, 2013)

m3s said:


> I don't agree that a USD account/card achieves the same thing. The No-FX cards are not limited to USD currency and they can also have perks on top like this Infinite Visa does (amazon visa had 1% cash back for free vs USD card with an annual fee for nothing)


It's true that FX is not limited to US$, but with US$ CC, you can use it it countries other than USA that we are likely to visit. For others, we have used US$ Travellers Cheques (no cost to us at BMO), but not for a while. 

Also true that we do not get the 1% cashback on BMO US$ CC that we got on Amazon Visa. Worth about $50 for our 3 month stay in USA. Many other things that we waste $50 on down here!

BMO US$ CC has no annual fee or need for balance in US$ account. May be a senior thing or because we are long term valued customers  . 

Many changes in CCs it seems, so no rush to get something to replace our BMO Airmiles Mastercard and US$ Mastercard. (only 1 day left for Amazon Visa!)


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

agent99 said:


> Many changes in CCs it seems, so no rush to get something to replace our BMO Airmiles Mastercard and US$ Mastercard. (only 1 day left for Amazon Visa!)


I would expect all the big banks to cave and offer something to compete with the No-FX Scotiabank Passport now. I am in a bit of a rush because I'm going away for 2 months soon

I'm looking into BMO USD accounts now. They do seem to have some extras that TD may not such as USD bill payment (never tried before with TD or Tangerine but I will need this) I'm not a senior but BMO does offer my work the performance plan for free and a few other perks, but the USD perks are on the higher premium account so it's useless. The other perks they offer my group are available to me elsewhere

One advantage I've heard about TD is that they have TD bank in the US and that may let me get a US domiciled credit card sooner using credit history at TD


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## lightcycle (Mar 24, 2012)

The $139 AF is a tough pill to swallow for those who don't need or want lounge access, considering Amazon.ca was $0 AF.

Also just found out Brim is only for Ontario residents...


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

lightcycle said:


> Also just found out Brim is only for Ontario residents...


Brim is free and it's available to more than Ontario (I signed up with Quebec address) Not all provinces are included yet but Brim is still "pre-launch" so I would expect the remaining ones to be added. Usually Quebec is the odd one out


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

i don't necessarily believe all these *No-FX* cards/promotions presently being offered. I think it's possible they're referring to the fact that there's no network FX fee, which normally is 2.50%. 

i think it's possible that each CC could charge its own independent fee, the way the so-called Visa No-FX calculator once presented in the forum was actually charging around 1% more than spot.

when you think about it, spot rates are the only No-FX rates available. Yet they can be attained only via multi-million dollar currency transactions among the world's biggest money centre banks. Although it's true that nimble arbitrage traders & forex traders can obtain close to spot rates or even spot, everybody else - with a few rare exceptions - is paying some degree of FX fee.

i think it's particularly hopeless to expect a true zero-FX credit card for every single currency in the world. Offers such as Brim or Scotia that specify No-FX actually mean no 2.50% network fee, i believe.

of course, no one would be more pleased to be proven wrong on the above than myself. It would mean a much better deal for retail consumers. But i don't think consumers are anywhere near there yet.


.


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## lightcycle (Mar 24, 2012)

Regardless of whether it's true spot-rate or not, at the end of the day, it's still 2.5% less than what FX-fee cards charge.


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## BC Eddie (Feb 2, 2014)

m3s said:


> One advantage I've heard about TD is that they have TD bank in the US and that may let me get a US domiciled credit card sooner using credit history at TD


Not sure if it is still the case but when I lived/worked in the US American Express would quickly give you a US based card on moving there if you had an established Canadian Amex card with them.


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## BC Eddie (Feb 2, 2014)

humble_pie said:


> i don't necessarily believe all these *No-FX* cards/promotions presently being offered. I think it's possible they're referring to the fact that there's no network FX fee, which normally is 2.50%.
> 
> i think it's possible that each CC could charge its own independent fee, the way the so-called Visa No-FX calculator once presented in the forum was actually charging around 1% more than spot.
> 
> ...


Well Yesterday, as a test. I purchased a minor item on Ebay for $3.99 USD. The Bank of Canada site today shows March 12th's daily rate as 1.2830.

I now see a pending transaction in my Home Trust account for $5.13 CAD which is one penny over a conversion to two decimal places (3.99 X 1.2830 = 5.11917). (Not sure what the rate was at time of purchase)


So while it is still pending and such numbers have changed in the past even with my Amazon card, for now it looks like no extra fees are added.


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## milhouse (Nov 16, 2016)

Rob Carrick of the G&M just posted an article referencing this Scotia Bank card and mentioned that TD is increasing the Forex fee it charges on it's ATM withdrawals and debit transactions (no mention of credit card transactions) from 2.5% to 3.5% beginning May 1. The TD forex fee is on top of any foreign ATM usage charges your card/account has. 

He also summarized some of the perks of the Scotiabank card for the $139 annual fee you're paying. 

It's just nice seeing some options with 0% forex fee some with no annual fee and some with annual fee but additional perks.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

BC Eddie said:


> Not sure if it is still the case but when I lived/worked in the US American Express would quickly give you a US based card on moving there if you had an established Canadian Amex card with them.


Thanks

I actually just applied online for a TD Bank (US) chequing account. The process I went through made clear at every step that it was ok as a Canadian resident. It took about 10 minutes and only required 2 forms of Canadian ID (Canadian SIN was optional and US SSN/ITIN was not required) They are mailing me a TD Bank (US) Visa debit card to my Canadian address and then I will transfer USD to activate it via Visa direct from TD Canada Trust. It asked for my TD Canada access card number to link my accounts for cross border banking but I don't think that was even required.

Once that is activated I should be able to apply for a few different TD Bank (US) Visa cards. Min balance is $100 USD or $2500 USD depending on the account you chose


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## lightcycle (Mar 24, 2012)

Are you talking about the Canadian TD Bank USD account? https://www.td.com/ca/en/personal-banking/products/bank-accounts/us-dollar-accounts/

Or actually opening up an account at the US TD Bank? https://www.tdbank.com/personal/checking.html

If it's the latter, why would you do that instead of doing it with the Canadian organization?


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

BC Eddie said:


> Well Yesterday, as a test. I purchased a minor item on Ebay for $3.99 USD. The Bank of Canada site today shows March 12th's daily rate as 1.2830.
> 
> I now see a pending transaction in my Home Trust account for $5.13 CAD which is one penny over a conversion to two decimal places (3.99 X 1.2830 = 5.11917). (Not sure what the rate was at time of purchase)
> 
> So while it is still pending and such numbers have changed in the past even with my Amazon card, for now it looks like no extra fees are added.





actually an FX fee is indeed being charged in your example. The problem is that the example itself is too small for the difference in applicable FX rates to be noticeable. 

try enlarging the example to make its small embedded FX fee more visible. If you multiply by 100, you could have been charged $511.92 (399 x 1.2830) on the actual purchase. But you were billed $513. 

the difference is $1.08, which means a small FX fee of roughly 20 basis points. This is a standard forex fee for USD/CAD.

a credit card company can carry on business by charging customers ultra-low fees that are on the scale of forex trading fees. Its costs are at least covered by these small fees, so the No-FX policy becomes one of the card company's promotional loss leaders.

what might also be going on is that some banks are able to use blockchain operations to process retail FX transactions, so the costs to themselves are even less than conventional forex. This would be a development of very recent years, i would think.

it's all beneficial for retail consumers. It means better deals are opening up for credit card customers who take the trouble to search.


.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

lightcycle said:


> If it's the latter, why would you do that instead of doing it with the Canadian organization?


It's the latter

Canadian domiciled USD accounts and Canadian USD credit cards might work fine for for snowbirds and tourists but they have their limitation both in my experience working in US outside of major tourist areas and according to people I'll be working with. Zip codes are one problem, not all merchants in all regions accept Canadian USD accounts or USD bill payments. And then there are always better deals for everything in the US because competition is much higher. The TD Bank (US) account is $100USD min vs TD Canada $3000USD to waive fees for nothing (says banking via ATM and debit payment purchase is not available!?)

No-FX credit cards are the norm in the US and they have regulation for credit cards to openly display FX fees whereas in Canada they are hidden so the vast majority are oblivious. Their reward cards always blow ours out of the water and this article doesn't even touch on all the cards we don't even have a comparable for (US also has a lending act where they basically don't charge military annual fees for credit cards or other bs fees) I was advised to take a day to open a US bank account but TD branches doesn't exist there and I don't have a SSN/ITIR yet anyways.

I was surprised TD Bank (US) accepts Canadian residents online. It took 10 minutes. Now I'll spend a day at the beach instead of in line at Wells Fargo


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## GoldStone (Mar 6, 2011)

m3s said:


> I actually just applied online for a TD Bank (US) chequing account. The process I went through made clear at every step that it was ok as a Canadian resident. It took about 10 minutes and only required 2 forms of Canadian ID (Canadian SIN was optional and US SSN/ITIN was not required) They are mailing me a TD Bank (US) Visa debit card to my Canadian address and then I will transfer USD to activate it via Visa direct from TD Canada Trust. It asked for my TD Canada access card number to link my accounts for cross border banking but I don't think that was even required.


Do you know their currency conversion fee on foreign ATM cash withdrawals? I'm talking about TD Bank (US) chequing account (not the credit credits).


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

GoldStone said:


> Do you know their currency conversion fee on foreign ATM cash withdrawals? I'm talking about TD Bank (US) chequing account (not the credit credits).


You mean like using a TD (US) debit card outside the US? Not sure if they would set the rate or the owner of the foreign ATM? I'm looking to use it at US ATMs but I do find my TD Canada debit is handy for foreign ATMs



> Non-TD fees reimbursed when minimum daily balance is at least $2,500 in checking account. For non-TD ATM transactions, the institution that owns the terminal (or the network) may assess a fee (surcharge) at the time of your transaction, including balance inquiries.


PayPal will transfer USD to the TD Bank (US) yet not the TD Canada USD account. A Tangerine USD account can't actually withdraw USD from a US ATM (it will withdraw from the CAD account instead) The more I look into it the more pointless Canadian USD accounts seem to be


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## GoldStone (Mar 6, 2011)

m3s said:


> You mean like using a TD (US) debit card outside the US?


Yes.




m3s said:


> Not sure if they would set the rate or the owner of the foreign ATM? I'm looking to use it at US ATMs but I do find my TD Canada debit is handy for foreign ATMs


As far as I know, your home bank (TD US in this case) sets the exchange rate. The owner of the foreign ATM may add a flat service fee ($3-$5). I think you can avoid the ATM fee if you use Visa card in a Visa-branded ATM.

TD Canada Trust is raising their forex fee from 2.5% to 3.5% on foreign ATM withdrawals. I wonder what TD US charges. If their forex fee is significantly lower, it might be worthwhile to have a US chequing account on stand-by to avoid paying 3.5% when I travel and need foreign cash.


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## agent99 (Sep 11, 2013)

m3s said:


> PayPal will transfer USD to the TD Bank (US) yet not the TD Canada USD account. A Tangerine USD account can't actually withdraw USD from a US ATM (it will withdraw from the CAD account instead) The more I look into it the more pointless Canadian USD accounts seem to be


Not sure if relevant, but we move US$ (produced by gambit or sale of stocks on US side) from our BMO Investorline account to our BMO US$ account. We pay our BMO US$ credit card charges from that account. So everything in same house. Just starting to do that again now FX rate is down and Chase card is defunct.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

GoldStone said:


> ... The owner of the foreign ATM may add a flat service fee ($3-$5).


Don't know about the rest ... but are you sure that a foreign ATM is as low as $5?
I seem to recall the white label ATM at the local US company charging $9 USD then the Canadian FI tacking on their $1.50 CAD charge.

Or maybe you mean the major US bank ATMs stick to the $3 to $5 USD range?


Cheers


*PS*
I didn't need a ton of cash but the $9 USD fee encouraged me to be sure I have more than enough before my weekly flight.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

Eclectic12 said:


> Don't know about the rest ... but are you sure that a foreign ATM is as low as $5?
> I seem to recall the white label ATM at the local US company charging $9 USD then the Canadian FI tacking on their $1.50 CAD charge.
> 
> Or maybe you mean the major US bank ATMs stick to the $3 to $5 USD range?


Always go to a real bank's ATM plus some bank plans waive their $1.50 ATM fees. TD Bank (US) even refunds the other side's fee, but I doubt this works in foreign country's or at those sketchy skinny ATMs in convenient stores/airports


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

agent99 said:


> Not sure if relevant, but we move US$ (produced by gambit or sale of stocks on US side) from our BMO Investorline account to our BMO US$ account. We pay our BMO US$ credit card charges from that account. So everything in same house. Just starting to do that again now FX rate is down and Chase card is defunct.


The ONLY Canadian USD account that is known to connect to Paypal via USD is BMO, however it's a loophole and it sounds like it's been closed.

I managed to setup a Pre-authorized deposit from Tangerine USD savings to Questrade USD but I had to convince Tangerine to write a signed letter as there was no VOID cheque available.

I'll try to connect Questrade USD to the TD Bank (US) USD chequing account for NG


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## BC Eddie (Feb 2, 2014)

humble_pie said:


> actually an FX fee is indeed being charged in your example. The problem is that the example itself is too small for the difference in applicable FX rates to be noticeable.
> 
> try enlarging the example to make its small embedded FX fee more visible. If you multiply by 100, you could have been charged $511.92 (399 x 1.2830) on the actual purchase. But you were billed $513.
> 
> .



How can you be sure that there is an FX fee being charged As I say the 1.2830 rate was what I saw at the end of the day. Is it not possible that, at the time of my transaction, the rate was actually 1.28572 (i.e., virtually no rounding at all)?


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## milhouse (Nov 16, 2016)

Just to try to get everyone on the same page where all the fees can potentially come in, here's my take on it and please feel free to challenge my assumptions if you think they are incorrect.

1. The rules on your card (be it bank/debit or credit card).
1a. Forex fee
Cards typically charge you a forex fee from 0% to about 3% when withdrawing from an ATM spitting out foreign cash or when you make a purchase in foreign currency. I think we're all on the trail of credit cards with 0% forex fees but I haven't found a bank card that would allow foreign ATM withdrawals without a forex fee. I haven't looked too hard partly because it seems kind of hidden deeply in the fine print IMO. 

1b. ATM Network
Bank/debit cards may charge you an additional fee of a few dollars to obtain cash from an ATM that's not on their network both in Canada and worldwide. Some banks obviously have a wider network of ATM's through local presence or partnership agreements. Scotiabank/Tangerine comes to mind here with an extensive global network. TD on the otherhand had a large presence in the US east coast. 

1c. Credit Card Cash Withdrawals
Credit cards will typically charge you a flat fee for using your credit card to withdraw cash from an ATM (foreign or local). 
It might be worth it if preload your credit card with positive balance so you don't incur interest charges which start immediately on withdrawal day and your credit card has a 0% forex fee. 

2. Interbank Network and Currency Exchange Rate
Currency exchange rates are likely based on the interbanking system that your card is using. 
American Express has their own global network with their own exchange rate.
Visa has their own Plus global network with their own exchange rate.
Mastercard has their Cirrus global network (that other cards like Diners Club, etc also use) with their own exchange rate.

I suspect whatever is earned in the currency spread is used to support the network. 

My TD bank card is branded with a Plus logo (and Interac, Green Machine, and Interlink logos which are other banking networks).
My credit union card is branded with a Cirrus logo (and The Exchange, Acculink, Accel, and Interac logos which are other banking networks). 
Have you ever gone overseas and tried to use an ATM with your bank card but it didn't work but another card worked? The reason is likely the local ATM/Bank is associated with one interbank network (which will likely be labeled on the ATM) that one of your cards is associated with and the other is not. 

3. Local ATM/bank fees. 
Some local ATM's will charge a fee on your withdrawal that goes to them. For example, most of Thailand's ATM's charge like a $5 fee on top of what your card/bank charges and the forex rate. But it's whatever they want to charge. It's like using the a non-bank ATM in a bar; they can charge whatever "convenience fee" they want. Typically, the ATM will give you a warning on what the fee will be before completing the transaction.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

BC Eddie said:


> How can you be sure that there is an FX fee being charged As I say the 1.2830 rate was what I saw at the end of the day. Is it not possible that, at the time of my transaction, the rate was actually 1.28572 (i.e., virtually no rounding at all)?



how can you be sure that the FX rate used on the statement is, in fact, spot at the moment of purchase? why wouldn't it be related to the spot rate at the moment of processing? even a 15 minute delay can make a difference each:

one should be tickled pink that one's CC company is only using an ultra-low forex fee kind of rate. This is so low that the package - no network fee, low FX transaction fee around 20 basis points - is just barely sufficient to cover processing costs. For canadians, it's a wild bargain, especially if it can be combined with cashback & other rewards.

there's no such thing as a free lunch, goes the well-known saying. It would be unrealistic to expect that credit card companies would continually run their vast FX operations at a loss to themselves. I for one am happy to see this minimal pennies-only FX fee outed at last, because it means that another much bigger fee isn't lurking hidden in the depths. Thankx very much for your useful example.

.


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## BC Eddie (Feb 2, 2014)

humble_pie said:


> there's no such thing as a free lunch, goes the well-known saying. It would be unrealistic to expect that credit card companies would continually run their vast FX operations at a loss to themselves. I for one am happy to see this minimal pennies-only FX fee outed at last, because it means that another much bigger fee isn't lurking hidden in the depths. Thankx very much for your useful example.
> 
> .


Alas my transaction has moved from pending to posted and the converted charge is now $5.18 so the exchange rate is now 1.2982. Not huge and certainly better than with a 2.5% or 3.5% admin fee but not 1.2830. Visa is certainly skimming its slice.


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## lightcycle (Mar 24, 2012)

m3s said:


> Canadian domiciled USD accounts and Canadian USD credit cards might work fine for for snowbirds and tourists but they have their limitation...


Makes perfect sense, thank you for the explanation.


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## lightcycle (Mar 24, 2012)

humble_pie said:


> there's no such thing as a free lunch, goes the well-known saying. It would be unrealistic to expect that credit card companies would continually run their vast FX operations at a loss to themselves. I for one am happy to see this minimal pennies-only FX fee outed at last, because it means that another much bigger fee isn't lurking hidden in the depths.


Whatever they don't make (or lose out) on FX charges to the client, they more than make up for with the 3% they charge the merchant.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

BC Eddie said:


> Alas my transaction has moved from pending to posted and the converted charge is now $5.18 so the exchange rate is now 1.2982. Not huge and certainly better than with a 2.5% or 3.5% admin fee but not 1.2830. Visa is certainly skimming its slice.




thanks for your refreshing honesty. It's the painstaking publication of details, the way you've done, that helps folks to see more clearly what's really going to happen with at least the billing portion of their oh-so-difficult-to-manage foreign exchange CCs.

as mentioned above, i'm actually happy to see that a small FX fee is indeed being charged. There's nothing worse than a stonewalled marketing claim that says it's a *No-FX-Fee* account; while the whole time a deeply hidden FX fee is indeed being charged, except that nobody can find out what it is. 

so now we have clearer, more accurate information about this Scotia CC product

i rather suspect that something similar will turn out to be true with the new Brim card. There will be no network fee in any currency; however Brim wlll apply a fee of its own which will vary according to the foreign currency involved, but in most cases will turn out to be quite reasonable, as is the above-mentioned fee for this scotia passport visa card.

here's another belief that i'll likely hold until reliable field checks come in to substantiate what is actually going on: i believe that USD/CAD will be among the lowest FX fee to be charged by these new No-FX-fee cards. Rates for more exotic currencies such as rubles, yuan or rupees will be higher, i think.

.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

lightcycle said:


> Whatever they don't make (or lose out) on FX charges to the client, they more than make up for with the 3% they charge the merchant.



you've got it!

still, no business in its right mind is going to run a humungously huge division as a loss. At the least, the business will seek to break even. 

it's clear by now that some pioneer credit card companies can operate comfortably with no FX network fee plus only a small FX fee that is individuated to the particular CC company itself. These are the companies that will attract more & more clients, as time goes by.

my question - to brokers as well - has always been, Why are financial institutions dinging retail consumers 1-3% in FX fees, when in fact global currency networks operated by the giant moneycentre banks are getting cheaper & faster & bigger all of the time?

what it's boiled down to is that the financial institutions are able to ding only the retail consumers who aren't nimble enough to find the most advantageous options.


.


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## seh (Nov 10, 2014)

Haven't seen much about this in the comments, but the big attractions for me with this Scotia Passport Visa Infinite are:
- $2,500 PER PERSON trip cancellation and $2,500 per person trip interruption insurance. (my current RB Visa limit it $2,500 total for everyone on the trip). Also, only need to charge 75% of trip costs to card to cover the full amount, unlike all other cards which require 100% to be charged.
- 10 days Out of Country Medical, for 65+. (RB Visa is 7 days, which isn't enough for most "1 week" packages of 7 nights/8 days).

I've found a few others that have 15 days for 65+ (Choice Rewards, National Bank World Elite, Desjardins Visa Odyssey Gold, & Meridian Visa Infinite Travel Rewards), but the small print and/or trip cancellation/interrupt limits make them not as good.

The no FX and lounge passes are nice extras, but not critical like the 2 features above.


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## m3s (Apr 3, 2010)

The no FX and lounge passes go well with the insurance coverage, as any trip outside of Canada you will want to charge FX to the card to meet the 75% criteria (hotels are cheaper in local currency and I find buying flights direct in local currency can also be cheaper than using third parties)

The amazon card was good for FX expenses on gas and food but if you used it for hotels or flights etc you lost the travel insurance, warranty extension and other perks from a premium travel card. Although I've never managed to use any of those insurance/warranty perks before..


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