Using Fidelity debit card in Greece

[Scuba]

DH and I will be in Greece for about 6 weeks. I called Fidelity to confirm ability to use debit card in foreign ATM's for withdrawal of Euros and got two different answers. One person said there is a 1% fee, whether using the card in a restaurant/store or at an ATM. The other person said there is no fee for an ATM, but there is a 1% fee using the card at a merchant.

Does anyone have recent experience doing this and can you verify whether there was any fee involved with using the Fido debit card at foreign ATM's, particularly in Greece? Also did you feel the exchange rate provided was competitive? Fido told me the rate we will get should be the published exchange rate for the date of withdrawal with no additional fees or commissions added.

Our friend in Greece recommended bringing a prepaid debit card because of high fees charged by Greek ATM's. Fido doesn't offer prepaid debit cards. Our friend, who also has a home in the UK and travels to the US regularly, also said he uses an online currency converter called HIFX to move money around in different currencies. We don't travel to Europe often so would prefer to avoid setting this up unless it will be really expensive to use the Fido debit card while in Greece.

Comments please?

 

[Luck_Club]

Consider opening up a charles schwabb account for ATM access-- NO ATM FEES or foreign transaction fees.

A cost-conscious travel companion
A Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Checking® account comes with a Schwab Bank Visa Platinum debit card that provides a wealth of benefits, even when you’re traveling abroad:

It’s accepted at millions of merchant outlets and ATMs in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide.*
You incur no foreign-exchange transaction fees for purchases made with your debit card.†
Any ATM fees you pay are rebated on a monthly basis.‡
It offers additional travel benefits, including Fraud Protection for Unauthorized Transfers or Purchases, Travel Accident Insurance, and Travel and Emergency Assistance Services.
It's linked to a Schwab One brokerage account with no minimum balance requirement and free online transfers between accounts.

 

[nwsteve]

DH and I will be in Greece for about 6 weeks. I called Fidelity to confirm ability to use debit card in foreign ATM's for withdrawal of Euros and got two different answers. One person said there is a 1% fee, whether using the card in a restaurant/store or at an ATM. The other person said there is no fee for an ATM, but there is a 1% fee using the card at a merchant.

Does anyone have recent experience doing this and can you verify whether there was any fee involved with using the Fido debit card at foreign ATM's, particularly in Greece? Also did you feel the exchange rate provided was competitive? Fido told me the rate we will get should be the published exchange rate for the date of withdrawal with no additional fees or commissions added.

Our friend in Greece recommended bringing a prepaid debit card because of high fees charged by Greek ATM's. Fido doesn't offer prepaid debit cards. Our friend, who also has a home in the UK and travels to the US regularly, also said he uses an online currency converter called HIFX to move money around in different currencies. We don't travel to Europe often so would prefer to avoid setting this up unless it will be really expensive to use the Fido debit card while in Greece.

Comments please?

We were in Greece in May this year and used our Fido ATM card a couple times to purchase Euros. The rate shown on the account matched very closely to printed exchange rates for the day. Unlike US withdrawals, (I test card before leaving for Intl trips) you will not see any details on the transaction--just amount of local currency and the conversion to US $. On the same trip, we also used in Venice to get our initial Euro spending stash and our exchange rate was as posted in my XE app.
Just be sure to advise Fido before leaving of countries you will be traveling.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I'm sorry I can't comment on Fidelity's fees, but I can tell you that Capital One has a zero transaction fee credit card AND doesn't charge fees for foreign withdrawals. I'd be tempted to open an account with them just for traveling if USAA didn't already offer very low (1%) foreign transaction fees, and since my credit card rewards with them are higher, I consider it a wash.

Nerdwallet has some good reviews/summaries:

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/banking/debit-card-foreign-transaction-international-atm-fees/

https://www.nerdwallet.com/best/credit-cards/no-foreign-transaction-fee

 

[OldShooter]

I'm sorry I can't comment on Fidelity's fees, but I can tell you that Capital One has a zero transaction fee credit card AND doesn't charge fees for foreign withdrawals. ...

OP was asking about a debit card, not a credit card. AFIK most credit cards consider an ATM withdrawal to be a cash advance and start charging interest immediately. Is that the case with Capital One?

Re debit card I have used the Schwab card in many countries including third world like Ethiopia and Vietnam. No problems. We're off to Greece in 4 weeks and it never occurred to me to even worry about problems using it. Eurozone should be rock solid.

Edit: To be clear, I am not pushing the Schwab card. In fact given competitive pressures I'd expect the Fido card to be about the same. I am just saying that in many years I have never had an issue with a major issuer debit card and certainly do not expect problems in the Eurozone. 5-10 years ago the ATMs were more scarce and fussier about what cards they would take. Now that does not seem to be the case.

 

[Mmm Rrr]

Another vote for the Schwab ATM card. I've used it all over the world for about 10 years, they charge you the fee and then reimburse you a few days later, and no fees for the currency conversion.

I also have a Capitol One credit card because of the "no foreign transaction fee" feature. Even 1% irritates me, so I keep that card just for traveling and as a backup and use my better-than-average rewards card for everything else.

 

[Scuba]

We were in Greece in May this year and used our Fido ATM card a couple times to purchase Euros. The rate shown on the account matched very closely to printed exchange rates for the day. Unlike US withdrawals, (I test card before leaving for Intl trips) you will not see any details on the transaction--just amount of local currency and the conversion to US $. On the same trip, we also used in Venice to get our initial Euro spending stash and our exchange rate was as posted in my XE app.
Just be sure to advise Fido before leaving of countries you will be traveling.

Thanks, good to know. We've used the Fido card in other places with no issues but just wanted to confirm no problems in Greece given that our Greek friend was very concerned about fees. Guess he doesn't have a Fido card!

I also have a Capital One card that I will use for credit transactions because of the no foreign transaction fee, and also because points for that card can be redeemed towards travel costs.

Appreciate others' comments re the Schwab card but it sounds like the Fido card works just like it does so no reason to transfer assets from Fido to Schwab.

 

[audreyh1]

DH and I will be in Greece for about 6 weeks. I called Fidelity to confirm ability to use debit card in foreign ATM's for withdrawal of Euros and got two different answers. One person said there is a 1% fee, whether using the card in a restaurant/store or at an ATM. The other person said there is no fee for an ATM, but there is a 1% fee using the card at a merchant.

Does anyone have recent experience doing this and can you verify whether there was any fee involved with using the Fido debit card at foreign ATM's, particularly in Greece? Also did you feel the exchange rate provided was competitive? Fido told me the rate we will get should be the published exchange rate for the date of withdrawal with no additional fees or commissions added.

Our friend in Greece recommended bringing a prepaid debit card because of high fees charged by Greek ATM's. Fido doesn't offer prepaid debit cards. Our friend, who also has a home in the UK and travels to the US regularly, also said he uses an online currency converter called HIFX to move money around in different currencies. We don't travel to Europe often so would prefer to avoid setting this up unless it will be really expensive to use the Fido debit card while in Greece.

Comments please?

Yes, I have used the Fidelity ATM extensively in Europe. There is NO FEE when using ATMs overseas, and, in addition, any ATM charges are reimbursed.

There is a 1% foreign exchange fee only if you use it as a debit card at a point of sale terminal - such as buying tickets from a machine, for example.

The point of sale charge is the one difference between the Fidelity and Schwab debit cards.

If you are using the debit card only for ATM withdrawals - then there is no difference between the cards.

FWIW - I have both. I tend to use one as a backup. Fidelity has a very nice feature you can set up to immediately text you for any transaction - something I really like when I'm traveling overseas. No such option with Schwab Bank - you have to check online to review transactions.

 

[Scuba]

Yes, I have used the Fidelity ATM extensively in Europe. There is NO FEE when using ATMs overseas, and, in addition, any ATM charges are reimbursed.

There is a 1% foreign exchange fee only if you use it as a debit card at a point of sale terminal - such as buying tickets from a machine, for example.

The point of sale charge is the one difference between the Fidelity and Schwab debit cards.

If you are using the debit card only for ATM withdrawals - then there is no difference between the cards.

FWIW - I have both. I tend to use one as a backup. Fidelity has a very nice feature you can set up to immediately text you for any transaction - something I really like when I'm traveling overseas. No such option with Schwab Bank - you have to check online to review transactions.

Audrey, was there a significant spread on the exchange rate? My friend in Greece is telling me they must be making money somehow and if there is no fee, the exchange rate must include a bigger than normal spread. But Fido told me there is no “markup.”

 

[audreyh1]

Audrey, was there a significant spread on the exchange rate? My friend in Greece is telling me they must be making money somehow and if there is no fee, the exchange rate must include a bigger than normal spread. But Fido told me there is no “markup.”

Fido is correct.

All VISA cards (debit or credit) use the same exchange rate. It is fixed for a given day, and based on the prior business day FX rates. You can look it up here for a given date, enter 0% for a no foreign exchange fee card in “bank fee”: https://usa.visa.com/support/consumer/travel-support/exchange-rate-calculator.html/

Debit cards use the VISA rate on the date of ATM withdrawal - so you could even look it up before using the ATM. Credit cards use the rate for the day the transaction posts which is usually a day or two later. This could be higher or lower than the actual date of the transaction.

I have occasionally checked my transactions against the published VISA rate and they are dead on within the penny rounding error. So no, the no foreign transaction fee card issuer is not making money off of FX.

The “spread” would be the range of the prior day FX trades. VISA itself makes money this way. The size of the spread would depend on the range of trades on a given day - usually small. VISA also charges the card issuer 1% for performing the currency exchange. So the no foreign transaction fee card issuer is actually eating this 1% as a favor to the customer!

So from a customer perspective, all that matters is getting a card with minimal fees. If a no foreign transaction fee card reimburses ATM fees, that’s outstanding. That’s the best you can do.

P.S There are discussions on Flyertalk comparing MasterCard, VISA and American Express exchange rates as they each use different methods, but to me nothing was obvious or conclusive. Mostly anecdotal.

 

[nwsteve]

Fido is correct.

All VISA cards (debit or credit) use the same exchange rate. It is fixed for a given day, and based on the prior business day FX rates. You can look it up here for a given date, enter 0% for a no foreign exchange fee card in “bank fee”: https://usa.visa.com/support/consumer/travel-support/exchange-rate-calculator.html/

Debit cards use the VISA rate on the date of ATM withdrawal - so you could even look it up before using the ATM. Credit cards use the rate for the day the transaction posts which is usually a day or two later. This could be higher or lower than the actual date of the transaction.

I have occasionally checked my transactions against the published VISA rate and they are dead on within the penny rounding error. So no, the no foreign transaction fee card issuer is not making money off of FX.

The “spread” would be the range of the prior day FX trades. VISA itself makes money this way. The size of the spread would depend on the range of trades on a given day - usually small. VISA also charges the card issuer 1% for performing the currency exchange. So the no foreign transaction fee card issuer is actually eating this 1% as a favor to the customer!

So from a customer perspective, all that matters is getting a card with minimal fees. If a no foreign transaction fee card reimburses ATM fees, that’s outstanding. That’s the best you can do.

P.S There are discussions on Flyertalk comparing MasterCard, VISA and American Express exchange rates as they each use different methods, but to me nothing was obvious or conclusive. Mostly anecdotal.

I have also checked my Fido exchange rate on occasion and have gotten the same results as Audrey1.
While your Greek friend's skepticism is understandable, there is so much going on with FX funds flows it is really hard to know more than what you personally are paying. For example, we know Fido pays ATM fees and it not impossible there is a separate transaction occurring where Fido makes this payment to the ATM owner. I know many of my FX ATM withdrawal slips do not show the ATM fee but there is a sign saying there is one.

 

[OldShooter]

Actually, the one really effective way to get cheated on the exchange rate is to accept the friendly merchant's offer to run your charge in US dollars instead of in the local currency.

 

[audreyh1]

For example, we know Fido pays ATM fees and it not impossible there is a separate transaction occurring where Fido makes this payment to the ATM owner. I know many of my FX ATM withdrawal slips do not show the ATM fee but there is a sign saying there is one.

Actually - the ATM fee reimbursement doesn't work that way. If you are charged some kind of use fee by any ATM, it shows up on your receipt. In fact, you are asked at the ATM if you accept the fee before the money is dispersed - in the US and Europe anyway.

What Fidelity does is credit your cash management account with any ATM fees paid [-]at the end of each month[/-] when the transaction posts*. It's all very transparent.

*It's Schwab that waits until the end of each month to reimburse ATM fees.

 

[nwsteve]

Actually - the ATM fee reimbursement doesn't work that way. If you are charged some kind of use fee by any ATM, it shows up on your receipt. In fact, you are asked at the ATM if you accept the fee before the money is dispersed - in the US and Europe anyway.

What Fidelity does is credit your cash management account with any ATM fees paid at the end of each month. It's all very transparent.

Rarely disagree with you Audrey but in this case, my experience with Intl ATM machines is clearly different. I always get a receipt when making a withdrawal internationally but it is a rare occasion when the ATM fee is disclosed. Usually the machine will have a sign or there were be a screen popup advising of the fee but I rarely get this on my receipt. Furthermore I would suggest you go back to your Fido records and see if you see any charges for ATM fee for International withdrawals. Domestic absolutely but not international. At least based on our March 18 trip around the Adriatic, finishing in Greece.

 

[COcheesehead]

Rarely disagree with you Audrey but in this case, my experience with Intl ATM machines is clearly different. I always get a receipt when making a withdrawal internationally but it is a rare occasion when the ATM fee is disclosed. Usually the machine will have a sign or there were be a screen popup advising of the fee but I rarely get this on my receipt. Furthermore I would suggest you go back to your Fido records and see if you see any charges for ATM fee for International withdrawals. Domestic absolutely but not international. At least based on our March 18 trip around the Adriatic, finishing in Greece.

Direct from Fido:


1. All Fidelity ATM withdrawal fees will be waived for your Fidelity® Cash Management Account. In addition, your account will automatically be reimbursed for all ATM fees charged by other institutions while using a Fidelity® Visa® Gold Check Card linked to your account at any ATM displaying the Visa®, Plus®, or Star® logos. ATM reimbursements will be credited to the account when the transaction posts. Please note, there is a foreign transaction fee of one percent that is not waived, which will be included in the amount charged to your account.

 

[bingybear]

Rarely disagree with you Audrey but in this case, my experience with Intl ATM machines is clearly different. I always get a receipt when making a withdrawal internationally but it is a rare occasion when the ATM fee is disclosed. Usually the machine will have a sign or there were be a screen popup advising of the fee but I rarely get this on my receipt. Furthermore I would suggest you go back to your Fido records and see if you see any charges for ATM fee for International withdrawals. Domestic absolutely but not international. At least based on our March 18 trip around the Adriatic, finishing in Greece.

For me I rarely see the ATM fee on the receipts also. One thing with the Schwab ATM card, Schwab pays back the fixed ATM fees. However, if you have a ATM fee that is based on amount withdrawn, this will not be rebated.

OP, sorry I do not have a Fido ATM card. I do have assets with them, but limit the number of cards I deal with.

 

[audreyh1]

Rarely disagree with you Audrey but in this case, my experience with Intl ATM machines is clearly different. I always get a receipt when making a withdrawal internationally but it is a rare occasion when the ATM fee is disclosed. Usually the machine will have a sign or there were be a screen popup advising of the fee but I rarely get this on my receipt. Furthermore I would suggest you go back to your Fido records and see if you see any charges for ATM fee for International withdrawals. Domestic absolutely but not international. At least based on our March 18 trip around the Adriatic, finishing in Greece.

In my recent trip to Spain my ATM fee was listed on all my ATM receipts. I used both Schwab and Fido cards at ATMs on that trip. That's the only country I've been in Europe so far that has charged me ATM fees. Right afterwards Fidelity reimbursed me the fees I paid.

No - Fidelity does not list the ATM fee I paid on its statement - I didn't claim otherwise above. That fee appeared on my receipt from the ATM. But Fido does reimburse me that fee as a separate transaction that they show on their statement, and they match per the FX conversion.

So yes, the ATM reimbursement is clearly there on my Fido statement.

For example, we know Fido pays ATM fees and it not impossible there is a separate transaction occurring where Fido makes this payment to the ATM owner.

Sorry for the confusion. My point was simply that Fido doesn't pay the ATM owner the ATM fee but reimburses our accounts for any fees we pay to the ATM owner.

 

[audreyh1]

Direct from Fido:


1. All Fidelity ATM withdrawal fees will be waived for your Fidelity® Cash Management Account. In addition, your account will automatically be reimbursed for all ATM fees charged by other institutions while using a Fidelity® Visa® Gold Check Card linked to your account at any ATM displaying the Visa®, Plus®, or Star® logos. ATM reimbursements will be credited to the account when the transaction posts. Please note, there is a foreign transaction fee of one percent that is not waived, which will be included in the amount charged to your account.

Just to be clear - that 1% foreign transaction fee does not apply to ATM withdrawals. Therein lies a lot of confusion. Their wording is poor - well in fact not correct - and causes confusion among many of their customers. The 1% foreign transaction fee only applies to purchases at point of sale terminals such as a ticket machine. I've used the Fido card for the past several years in Europe, and done both types of transactions. So I know it does not apply to ATM withdrawals. If you get a knowledgeable customer service person from the debit card issuer on the phone they will explain this to you, but I know other people who have been given the wrong information.

 

[Scuba]

Fido is correct.

All VISA cards (debit or credit) use the same exchange rate. It is fixed for a given day, and based on the prior business day FX rates. You can look it up here for a given date, enter 0% for a no foreign exchange fee card in “bank fee”: https://usa.visa.com/support/consumer/travel-support/exchange-rate-calculator.html/

Debit cards use the VISA rate on the date of ATM withdrawal - so you could even look it up before using the ATM. Credit cards use the rate for the day the transaction posts which is usually a day or two later. This could be higher or lower than the actual date of the transaction.

I have occasionally checked my transactions against the published VISA rate and they are dead on within the penny rounding error. So no, the no foreign transaction fee card issuer is not making money off of FX.

The “spread” would be the range of the prior day FX trades. VISA itself makes money this way. The size of the spread would depend on the range of trades on a given day - usually small. VISA also charges the card issuer 1% for performing the currency exchange. So the no foreign transaction fee card issuer is actually eating this 1% as a favor to the customer!

So from a customer perspective, all that matters is getting a card with minimal fees. If a no foreign transaction fee card reimburses ATM fees, that’s outstanding. That’s the best you can do.

P.S There are discussions on Flyertalk comparing MasterCard, VISA and American Express exchange rates as they each use different methods, but to me nothing was obvious or conclusive. Mostly anecdotal.

Thanks Audrey, this is comforting. One question I wonder about - usually businesses don’t eat costs for their customers. Why do you think Fido does this? I’m happy they do, just wondering if it’s to gain loyalty, or some other reason?

 

[audreyh1]

Thanks Audrey, this is comforting. One question I wonder about - usually businesses don’t eat costs for their customers. Why do you think Fido does this? I’m happy they do, just wondering if it’s to gain loyalty, or some other reason?

Fido is not the only one eating costs. So is Schwab. They are competitors. In both cases I doubt that they make money off the banking side of their business. It’s there for their brokerage customers where they make their money. The brokerage business is way larger. I guess these brokerages try to keep customer money from going to other banks many of which have their own brokerage service.

Banks offering no foreign transaction fee credit cards are also eating costs, as are all the rewards cards. They are competing for credit card customers. They also make some money on the credit transactions.

Fidelity and Schwab also offer commission-free US treasury purchases and new CD issue purchases. In the case of new issue CDs they are getting some compensation from the issuing bank. But for the US treasuries - nada, it’s a loss leader. But if they didn’t provide it, folk might move funds to bank to buy via treasury direct, or some other way.

 

[Scuba]

This makes sense. Another example of competition benefiting the consumer!

 

[OldShooter]

Fido is not the only one eating costs. So is Schwab. They are competitors. In both cases I doubt that they make money off the banking side of their business. It’s there for their brokerage customers where they make their money. The brokerage business is way larger. I guess these brokerages try to keep customer money from going to other banks many of which have their own brokerage service. ...

Mostly agree, though I think the banks are probably profitable. Recently Schwab re-jiggered their money market options and now the default IIRC is very low interest from the bank. No surprise, really, as they are all slitting each other's throats on index mutual fund fees. They have to make money somewhere.

To the point of FTFs, I researched that a few years ago. Unless it has changed, Visa and MC charge the card issuers about 1% for foreign transactions and, back then, most issuers were marking that up to about 3%. Now, to our benefit, many seem to be eating it. Yes, competition is great!

 

[audreyh1]

That’s true, both Fidelity and Schwab pay very low rates on their banking accounts. Fidelity, however, does not force customers to use a bank sweep account for their brokerage core account.

 

[OldShooter]

That’s true, both Fidelity and Schwab pay very low rates on their banking accounts. Fidelity, however, does not force customers to use a bank sweep account for their brokerage core account.

IIRC that is the case at Schwab but I am too lazy to verify it here. It is definitely the case that the default money market doesn't pay much but they offer a couple of better options for customers who care enough to invest a few mouse clicks.

In general I don't think we have yet seen the final consequences of all this index fund price cutting and $5 trades competition. I think these firms can't live on five bps and we will either see prices start to rise or we will see them trying to develop other sources of revenue, like the banks' low interest rate accounts. I'm happy to have the price cuts but TANSTAAFL applies.

 

[oldphd]

We just returned from Europe and used Fido debit card to get cash at ATMs from our cash management account in both Paris for euros and London for pounds. All good as stated by others before, but one wrinkle/question I'll add.

In Paris where we were first, there was an in network ATM a couple of doors down from our hotel that I saw the first day when walking. Great! Used it. But then in London I didn't see one, and when trying to use the online locator I kept getting different answers. It said there was one in a nearby train station but I couldn't find it, though the ATMs said no fees I was not sure about trying, figured I was missing something else that might add cost (maybe credit card only, etc.). Anyone ever try one of those?

As luck would have it, I asked at the hotel desk about their exchange rate, which was not in my favor, amounted to close to 10% fee, and the person behind the desk asked if I'd check the ATM in the concierge room. Located in the back almost in a closet, who would ever find that thing! Turns out it was in network, though I never found it on my online search attempts.

Since I converted some cash at much less favorable rates in order to have money on arrival for a taxi, I decided even paying a fee was probably better than converting at the crappy rate offered by the cash exchange.