Know-Before-You-Go Money Tips

If you’re heading overseas, few things are as annoying as finding out you’ve been locked out of your debit or credit card. Follow our tips to make sure your financial situation is hassle-free no matter where you are.

Share your travel plans

If your bank notices unusual activity on your account, it might freeze or even cancel your card. Don’t spend precious vacation time on hold with customer service; call your bank and credit card issuers before heading out. Tell them where and how long you’ll be traveling.

Get your chips straight

As an American, visiting a country like Brazil or Colombia that’s made the switch to chip technology can make withdrawing cash from an ATM difficult, as some machines won’t accept non-chip cards. Save yourself the hassle of testing out different machines: ask your bank if there are specific banks abroad that will readily accept your card. For purchases, you might want to consider using a chip-enabled credit card instead.

Skip fees

Will you be charged a foreign transaction fee for purchases? Is there an extra charge for withdrawing cash abroad? Get the answers to these questions from your bank or credit card issuer before traveling to save yourself from fees at the end of the month. You might even want to open up a new bank account that refunds ATM fees, like Charles Schwab, or get a credit card with zero foreign transaction rates.

Be prepared

Stuff happens. Make sure you have the customer service numbers for all your cards and banks stashed somewhere safe. If possible, having a spare credit card away from your main wallet is a good idea — if the rest of your things get stolen, you’ll have a spare source of money while sorting things out.