Again, I'm 99% sure that all the fees mentioned above are levied by the card-issuing bank, and not the ATM-owning bank. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but...

I have used my Umbrellabank.com Visa ATM card at dozens of ATMs in China, Hong Kong, Holland, Spain, the UK, Israel, and Canada in the last few years, and with the sole exception of the YUL airport ATM (which explicitly stated it was charging a CAD1.75 fee), I have never been charged any fee other than the 1% conversion fee levied by Visa.

Any experience with foreign currency debit transaction fees with the Suntrust VISA Debit Card? Is it 1%, 3% or...

I just got one, and I can't find any info on it on suntrust.com FWIW their telephone customer service rep says they don't charge a fee.

Update on MBNA Goldpoints and Hilton Amex charges last week: MBNA went through at interbank rate both pre and post 5/25. Amex appeared to add around 2%, down a bit from prior year's fees of around 2 1/2%.

Just spoke with MBNA and they say 1% on their Platinum Amex.

On May 28 I charged in Canadian Dollars. There is a separate line item on the statement (online) for foreign charges in the amount of 3% of the value after converted to US dollars. Same date as charge.

BAD news. I just got the new T&C from the old Fleet bank, now part of BofA,
they are changing to the 3% surchage too in 45 days.

Of all my 6 credit cards, nincluding NBMA, they all charge 3% + local bank conversion charges. The Fleet card is the last one to change.

I've used my Suntrust bank card for ATM withdrawals, no fees for this service, exchange rates seemed to be accurate. This is the regular card with the VISA logo, never used it as a credit card though.

Quote from earlier post:

"The question still stands: has anyone received WRITTEN change in T&C on Fidelity MBNA card affecting foreign transactions?"

I have a direct MBNA Visa card (not via Fidelity or other) and about two months ago received written notice that a 3% foreign surcharge would be instituted in late May. Too bad, as this used to be the only card I used outside the U.S.

In view of the new wave of credit card greed. the best solution is to use one or both of these:

1) ATM debit cards if your bank's terms are good -- ask them for precise details. Bad terms are a good reason to switch banks if you do much travel abroad.

2) This sounds like heresy, but the best solution can sometimes be good old-fashioned CASH. Of course all the ripoff "cambio" outlets on the streets everywhere must be avoided. But shop around at the name-brand national banks -- all it takes is to see how wide is the spread between "buying" and "selling" (the more narrow the better) and factor in the transaction fee if there is one. Tip when you're in London: By far the best money-saving exchange is to go to any of several branches of American Express, where the buy/sell spread is smallest on dollars, euros etc with no transaction fee and no minimum! Also, in some number of the developing countries outside the Eurozone with unstable currencies, the local shops, restaurants etc. might allow more for your bucks than the international banking system will.

The only sure rule for getting good value is caveat emptor, and know before you go.

Do whatever you feel comfortable with, but I am not at all so ready to give up on credit cards outside the US. Despite this "wave" there are still cards that do not charge an extra fee: some MBNA, USAA, some credit unions, etc. There are many ATM cards that do not charge a fee -- and as others have pointed out, most ATMs outside the US do not charge a fee. (The fee is usually charged by the issuing bank, not the bank running the ATM.)

Even if one had to pay an extra fee, I think the convenience and safety of a cc far outweigh the risks and costs associated with cash. Carrying sizeable amounts of cash overseas would not be a very good idea, IMO.

I don't understand why so many people are ready to throw up their hands and give up on cc's simply because some banks have tacked on new fees.

I use credit cards FAR too much overseas to give them up. Probably over $250K in business expenses this year alone. 3% of that is $7500. I would like to try to find a way to reduce that $7500 as much a possible. All of my existing cards charge 2% or 3%.

What specific cards can I apply for that reduce the fee ot 1% or 0%, and then of these, which offer the best mileage benefits (if any)?

What I would like to understand is WHY is there a fee? Isn't this a global world? We send jobs to india to handle our customer service in USD... no fee...

If it is just a ploy to make more money then state that.

Problem is that its not just 3% its also the scam rate of conversion.

I don't know of any US$ cards that offer actual airline miles without charging a fee beyond the Visa/MC 1%.

But I use the Target Visa while overseas, which is still 1% and earns points toward discount coupons for Target stores (as well as donations to the public school of your choice). Others in this thread have said Capital One is still 1%, and they offer a couple of rewards cards. I don't think anybody is truly 0%, since the 1% is levied by Visa and MC (not the bank).

It USED to be a number of banks ate the 1% Visa/MasterCard surcharge, and were truly 0%. Don't know if any are still out there...

They will now be adding a 2% forex fee besides the $3.50 for foreign ATM's. I think this is ex post facto because in April they added 2% in Japan and claimed it was the foreign bank fee. Luckily, I have already switched my primary banking to my Schwab money market account. They claim it is 1% for foreign withdrawals plus $1.

I use my USAA Debit Mastercard extensively here in France and the rates always come out slightly better than Oanda's "Interbank + 1%" rates. They also give a rebate on purchases.

I'm not sure whether the same applies to their credit cards, but I think so (at least as far as the exchange rate is concerned).