Canada - Best Canadian ATM card for travel?

I went backpacking for the last 2 summers and honestly I need to say that I paid a lot in different fees and crappy exchange rates. My girlfriend use her Desjardins debit card, which only cost 2.50$ per withdrawal, vs 5$ on my RBC Visa. I have no idea about Desjardins' exchange rates.

I read that some cards companies dont make any money on the exchange rate! Is that true?
It's obvious that when you spend 5000$ abroad, all withdrawn from an ATM it's kind of a big deal!

Do some research and see if you bank has any partner banks around the world. If you use the partner bank ATM they usually do not charge a foreign transaction fee or a currency conversion fee.
Also check to see if you are eligible for a credit union account. Most credit union also wave the foreign surcharges. I have ans account specifically for those countries my primary bank does not have a partner

BNS has affliations with some international banks allowing you free withdrawls on their network.

Barring that, check out the service charge packages of the various banks, as some cover the service charge. I'm not sure you'd see too much variation between banks for exchange rates, but I stand to be corrected.

Scotiabank has a global ATM alliance. Very comprehensive for popular destinations:

http://scotiabank.com/cda/content/0,1608,CID8040_LIDen,00.html

You pay no transaction fee at the alliance ATMs.

The other option is the TD Select Service account which waives all ATM fees both in Canada and internationally. However, it costs you $25 a month in service charges unless you keep a $5k minimum balance. Depending on your circumstances it can be a reasonable option. I got really tired of paying the $5 fee everytime so now I just pull out small amounts when I'm abroad and don't have to pay any fees, other than the margin they make when they convert the currency which is about the same at all the Canadian banks.

Do very careful research. Many banks have recently introduced what amount to hidden surcharges on foreign ATM transactions. They now charge a % similar to what a credit card charges (around 2-2.5%), but it's hidden to you because it is included in the conversion rate when the funds are withdrawn from your account. That raises another possibility - credit cards. If you're spending $5k, you can probably put some of those charges on a credit card and at least partially offset the F/X conversion with some sort of rewards program.

As far as which bank though, I use HSBC for my day-to-day banking and find them to be perfect for my needs. HSBC is a truly global institution and I have never been charged for using their ATMs overseas. Also, as an unpublished benefit to my banking package, I get 4 or 5 withdrawals per month where HSBC will waive their fee (this goes for both Canadian and international ATMs).

Scotiabank is proud to be a founding member of the Global ATM Alliance, along with Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Barclays, Deutsche Bank 24 and Westpac.

http://scotiabank.com/cda/content/0,1608,CID8040_LIDen,00.html

Don't forget China Construction Bank is part of the Global ATM Alliance, for anyone going to see the Olympics, or for other China travellers. This was definitely helpful to me as a Bank of America customer when I was there a couple of years ago.

Here is the definitive list. It is US-oriented, but at least gives you an idea of all of the fees and surcharges you might encounter.

FlyerGuide Wiki - Credit/Debit/ATM Cards and Foreign Exchange (http://www.flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange)

Scotiabank is likely your best bet for the majour destinations that the Global Network covers. The best plus imo is BofA is also a partner so it covers almost the entire US too.

If you need something more global but less dense within the country HSBC might be your best bet.

I understand that many banks offer plans that waive the foreign ATM fees.

Are there any institutions / plans that do not charge the 2.5% FX fee for withdrawals from our personal accounts?

Avoid BMO. As of Aug 1 the new non-US international ATM use fee is 5$!
Up from current 3$

I understand that many banks offer plans that waive the foreign ATM fees.

Are there any institutions / plans that do not charge the 2.5% FX fee for withdrawals from our personal accounts?

ATM cards charge that too? I thought it was a VISA/MC thing.

ATM cards charge that too? I thought it was a VISA/MC thing.

As I stated in my post, yes, some (most?) banks have started doing this on foreign currency ATM transactions.

I was charged the 2.x% earlier this month for withdrawing USD from my TD account (which is a normal CAD account) while using an ATM in the TD Centre in Toronto. Super convenient being able to withdraw US funds from an ATM across the street from my office, but the surcharge takes away the biggest benefit of using cash outside of Canada.

ATM cards charge that too? I thought it was a VISA/MC thing.

Yes TD has been charging this for approx 18 months. While I can accept that VISA can make charges for FX conversion, I am strongly against the bank charging this extra FX charge when directly accessing my own accounts. This is on top of the retail FX rate that you would pay at the counter when purchasing foreign exchange.

Calling around this evening it appears that HSBC does not charge an FX fee like TD does - can anyone confirm this?

Avoid BMO. As of Aug 1 the new non-US international ATM use fee is 5$!
Up from current 3$


RBC is 'servicing' me in the same manner here in Europe.

HSBC Canada.

I had previously taken a TD card to Brazil and had it eaten, TD said get a new one when I get back (how useful!).

Switched to HSBC and asked them what happens if a card gets eaten/lost/stolen abroad. If they have a branch in that country, they can issue a new one on the spot with your passport and other information.

The card has worked in every country I've tried.

Brazil
US
Japan
Singapore
Malaysia
Maldive Islands (!)
Sri Lanka
Thailand
UAE
Kuwait
Germany
Italy

The HSBC ATM Card:

It does not have per-transaction fees on foreign HSBC bank machines?

Is there a FX surchase/fee?

How are their FX rates?

The HSBC ATM Card:

It does not have per-transaction fees on foreign HSBC bank machines?

Is there a FX surchase/fee?

How are their FX rates?

1. I have never paid a fee when using HSBC Group machines in the US, Hong Kong (incl. Hang Seng ATMs), Macau, China, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia or the UAE. I don't believe staff are well educated on this, and it isn't a clearly marketed benefit except as relates to HSBC Premier.

2. Someone else might be able to comment on this. I don't think so, but I can't find my statements to verify.

3. Very competitive. Their retail spreads are tighter than most other institutions, IME.

I have a TD account with a minimum balance that waives those fees. I checked that when I bought Euros in Germany from a Sparkasse ATM I was charged the exchange with the usual bank rate spread and nothing else. Using a credit card for cash would entail service charges and interest.

Is it true that withdrawing with a Visa card only incurs service charges, as the currency exchange rate is the actual real-time one ?

Is it true that withdrawing with a Visa card only incurs service charges, as the currency exchange rate is the actual real-time one ?

Not true at all. Your credit card is the absolute worst option to access foreign cash. With a credit card, you'll pay the following:


spread on the posted F/X rate at the bank (the buy/sell should conceptually be equal - the difference is how the bank makes money)
2.5% surcharge on top of the posted F/X rate at the bank
interest. A withdrawal of cash against your credit card is a cash advance and incurs interest immediately. There is no grace (i.e. interest free) period on cash advances.
any applicable service fee for cash advances

Not true at all. Your credit card is the absolute worst option to access foreign cash. With a credit card, you'll pay the following:


spread on the posted F/X rate at the bank (the buy/sell should conceptually be equal - the difference is how the bank makes money)
2.5% surcharge on top of the posted F/X rate at the bank
interest. A withdrawal of cash against your credit card is a cash advance and incurs interest immediately. There is no grace (i.e. interest free) period on cash advances.
any applicable service fee for cash advances


Plus if you have any current purchases that are not being charged interest they too will be charged interest.

The HSBC ATM Card:
Is there a FX surchase/fee?

Based on my experience this weekend, I can unfortunately confirm that HSBC has joined other banks in charging an additional surcharge of around 2.5% when withdrawing foreign currency from an ATM :td:

Based on my experience this weekend, I can unfortunately confirm that HSBC has joined other banks in charging an additional surcharge of around 2.5% when withdrawing foreign currency from an ATM :td:

Ok, I don't know how this works anymore. I used my HSBC debit card at HSBC or Hang Seng ATMs in Australia, HK and Macau recently. It seems there was no surcharge. My previous post was using my card at an American bank owned by RBS, so maybe a surcharge applies only when using non-HSBC Group ATMs :confused: I'm going to try to find out if I remember.