Which currency to pay with when selecting on CC reader?
 

Hello All,

I had a question I wanted to ask what FT'ers are doing in terms of paying with a CC internationally.

For example, when I'm in Hong Kong they ask me , "Sir do you want to complete this transaction in USD or HKD". Since I'm using my MileagePlus ClubCard, there isn't a foreign transaction. Should I be selecting USD or HKD to my best benefit?

Maybe it would be better to compare USD to CAD where the dollar conversion is never the same everyday.

Which currency to pay with when selecting on CC reader?
 

Read the thread about DCC (Dynamic Currency Exchange) and you will see that you always should select the local currency....

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Thanks!

+1

+1 and usually the local currency is undervalued by CC issuers so sometimes I beat the exchange rate!

Which currency to pay with when selecting on CC reader?
 

Always local currency

Any examples? :)

I've never heard of it being (meaningfully) undervalued by the networks (issuers don't set rates), but it will be cheaper than any other exchange method, by far.

BOAtravel rewards. I noticed i charged 30,000 won and was only charged 28.07USD. I did the math for the exchange rate that day and came out 8 cents ahead......thats almost .3%!

due to the high volatility of international currencies, I wouldnt advise playing this. and if you do.....do it for real after your due diligence in the FOREX market....those guys are some of the few real sharks left

Local currency always!

I'm really glad I started this thread. This scam is full of baloney.

Actually, I found a dramatic difference when the Swiss Franc shot up in value the other day. It didn't last long.

At least they're asking you (which I believe they're supposed to do), rather than sneaking it through and trying to claim it's "for your convenience".

Note that most cards with a foreign transaction fee charge it based on where the purchase is made, not the currency, so you'd get hit with it even if the charge was in USD. I pretty much reflexively say "charge it in <local currency> please" as I hand over the card now, though I get strange looks when I say that in the USA by accident :-)

Let's continue the conversation here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/credi...er-thread.html

The wiki in that thread explains the DCC "scam" in great detail.