I'm not sure how it works in the U.S. I know most kids, including my 3 nieces are likely to have savings accounts but not checking accounts. Since 18 is the legal adult age here, banking and financial products tend to kick in at that age. Again, no real first hand knowledge, but I think someone under 18 could get a stored value card, and probably a debit card with a checking account, but not a credit card (maybe with a co-signer?).

I think, in any case, most people would agree it's not all that common.

Anyway, that's all I was saying with my original post before I was questioned on it. :)

Pretty easily done. My kids are all over 21 and grandkids are under 5.

I send them all checks for their birthdays. They gripe about it and we will sometimes see checks outstanding for months.

I send my teenaged grandniece and grandnephew prepaid cards for Christmas, but the $5.95 fee for a new one every year rankles.

I should add that there are also place that take credit cards but charge slightly less if you pay with a cash or check.

How often and where have you seen that at restaurants? It's practically a rule at gas stations, and I see it often enough at non-name brand electronics stores and building supply stores, but I have never seen a restaurant with a cash discount. The closest I've seen is a policy of a $.50 surcharge for credit card usage on a small balance such as $5 or less.

>Cash-only restaurant
>claim to be avoiding credit card transaction fees
>in reality, tax evasion and underreporting income

Is it really that hard to see what's happening?

Absent evidence of tax evasion and/or underrreporting income for a given business, it’s safe to assume a business may have good reason for doing cash-only retail transactions because of banking/card-processing issues if it is willing to risk losing business due to a cash-only policy/practice.

The US was way more of a cash society not too long ago precisely because a lot of businesses didn't think accepting cards was worth the hassle (since fewer customers were demanding it). Now, of course, more customers demand it, so many of the holdouts now take cards.

Of course, some of those charge extra if you use a card, but that's another issue.

I encountered a McDonalds that refused even exact cash/change for purchases after a certain time in the evening. Never before had I run into a McD not accepting cash/coins, but Sweden is almost ridiculously hostile to cash.