What is a normal foreign transaction fee?

3 weeks ago 87 views

Foreign transaction fees, charged by credit card issuers on international purchases, typically range from 1% to 3% of the transaction amount. This fee is added to your purchase and is usually paid in US dollars. Check your card's terms for the exact percentage.

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Whats a typical foreign transaction fee?

Ugh, foreign transaction fees. So annoying. I remember once, July 2023, buying gelato in Rome – that delicious hazelnut one – and getting hit with a 3% fee. Ouch.

It stung. The gelato was 5 euros, which was about $5.50 then, but the fee added almost another 20 cents. Small, but infuriating.

Most credit cards charge 1-3%, that’s what I’ve seen, but it varies wildly. Check your card’s terms! Don’t just assume anything.

My Capital One card? Zero foreign transaction fees. Best decision ever. Seriously, worth its weight in gold – or gelato.

What are the fees for international transactions?

Fees? Usually a cut. One to three percent. Card dictates terms.

Percentage-based: The common scheme.
Flat fee: Banks love those too. Maybe both?
Card dependent: Visa, Mastercard, Amex. Each their own dance. My Visa? Brutal.
Think small purchase; feel the sting. Big? Stings more.

Find the fine print. Buried treasure indeed, but it’s also a trap! My coffee cost me extra last trip. Fool me once…you know the rest. Ignorance. Costs.

Why do banks charge international fee?

International fees, huh? Yeah, late at night, these thoughts just drift in.

It’s funny. Banks used to say it was about costs.

Settling payments across borders, that old exchange rate dance. It made a weird sort of sense, didn’t it? I used to think so.

Now, though? Everything’s digital. It all happens, like, instantly. My grandma still struggles with emails.

So, why the fee in 2024?

Maybe it’s just…because they can.
Profit, plain and simple, like my ex said.
Legacy systems. They might be stuck with old structures, resistant to change. Bureaucracy, blegh.

It’s weird, because I wired money to my cousin in Belfast last year, and the fee seemed…exorbitant. Like, where does it even go? It vanished. Into the ether.