Personal Finance

List of Canadian bank accounts for foreign ATM withdrawals

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  • Nov 27th, 2022 7:07 am
Deal Addict
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Sep 19, 2013
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Winnipeg
This is a very good thread. I came here while researching options for my upcoming Hong Kong/ Malaysia trip. Looks like using CIRRUS ATM with my Tangerine card seems to be the best choice for me. If I cant find CIRRUS, then I'll use Simplii card (dont know its fee though but guessing its $5).

I am there for a few days only and most of the things will be booked (hotels, activities). I am looking to withdraw $200-400 CAD in each country. I do have Home Trust, but their fee is 1.5% (min $5.50) plus there is that need to payback asap.

Is there any credit card where I can go into -ve balance before my trip and withdraw in the foreign country AND avoid their withdrawal fee. Based on @seriesofcontradictions post # 4 above, there arent. Also, since my withdrawals are not large, any more struggle may not be worth the time. Any other thoughts?
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Sr. Member
Feb 1, 2018
975 posts
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Montréal
Update: With TD's move to force 2-step verification via SMS for all customers to access their online banking, it looks like TD is no longer a reliable option for frequent overseas travellers.

The ATM fees and plans remain unchanged. But if you need to be able to log into your banking while overseas, and you don't have access to your Canadian mobile phone number while travelling, then you should probably look elsewhere.
Jr. Member
Jun 6, 2018
142 posts
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Spain
seriesofcontradictions wrote: Update: With TD's move to force 2-step verification via SMS for all customers to access their online banking, it looks like TD is no longer a reliable option for frequent overseas travellers.

The ATM fees and plans remain unchanged. But if you need to be able to log into your banking while overseas, and you don't have access to your Canadian mobile phone number while travelling, then you should probably look elsewhere.
Using Fongo to receive the 2-step code has worked well for me while I'm abroad as long as I have Internet access. Fongo or any other VOIP service which accepts SMS text or phone calls should be able to work as a secondary number for your TD security settings.

Otherwise, you should still be able to receive text messages while abroad with your regular phone. I don't think most carriers charge for receiving text messages while roaming (with data turned off of course).

Note: Fongo and VOIP based services cannot receive SMS messages from short code numbers, only from regular phone numbers. TD Canada sends the code out from a regular number, while TD Bank (USA) and a few other services send it out from a short code number, so a phone call or non-VOIP number is necessary to receive the code.
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Jan 7, 2002
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seriesofcontradictions wrote: Update: With TD's move to force 2-step verification via SMS for all customers to access their online banking, it looks like TD is no longer a reliable option for frequent overseas travellers.
It's not nearly as bad as it seems. To add to @louisvz's comments:
1. You can add several numbers to send the code. I have three (home POTS, Fongo and Google Voice.) You get to select which of those numbers TD should use each time it does the 2FA dance.
2. You also get to specify whether to send the code by SMS or phone call. If texts don't work for you then your fallback is a voice call, again your choice to which number. Again you get to select the phone number and text/call each time so if one isn't working you can try a different combo. That should greatly help travellers even if they have to swap SIM cards, etc. to get the 2FA code.
3. You can specify if TD should send the code every time you login (max. once per day) or only at TD's discretion (usually when they detect a new device and/or new location.)

That said, even though I've specified only to send 2FA when I login from an unfamiliar device or location, I keep getting prompted every day. Other than clearing cookies, which didn't resolve this, I haven't yet explored this in detail with TD. However by being forced to do the 2FA dance daily I can confirm that Google Voice (Hangouts) is very reliable at sending out texts. BTW the texts also arrive on my smart watch (Amazfit Bip) so it's really not as inconvenient as it may seem, even on a daily basis.
veni, vidi, Visa
Sr. Member
Feb 1, 2018
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See the other thread re: TD for why this doesn't work for people who travel a lot to new destinations. And FYI, Google Voice numbers can no longer be obtained by Canadians.

TD dropped the ball here.
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Jan 7, 2002
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seriesofcontradictions wrote: See the other thread re: TD for why this doesn't work for people who travel a lot to new destinations.
What other thread?
And FYI, Google Voice numbers can no longer be obtained by Canadians.
Many RFDers have a GV/Hangouts number from days past. It still works. For those who don't there's Fongo, TextNow and several other VoIP solutions.

Also on most cell plans incoming texts are free. I don't know if that includes when roaming internationally. If it does then presumably that's an option.

While 2FA is a bit of a hassle, it's for our own good. I don't object to it in principle. TD seems to have bent over backwards to make their implementation meet the needs of their customers. If you think they can improve it for travellers then perhaps contact them with suggestions, e.g. support for apps like Google Authenticator or Authy which work internationally on both cell/data and WiFi.
veni, vidi, Visa
Newbie
Sep 21, 2016
96 posts
43 upvotes
Also, this is a less conventional choice, but ICBK's chequing account charges only a fixed $5 fee to withdraw cash abroad with no FX markup, $1000 minimum to keep it free. The catch is, it's UnionPay, which is a bit less common to find if you're somewhere not frequented by Chinese tourists, and if you're in China, they'll charge you a higher fee if you don't use one of their ATMs. It also depends on how comfortable you feel banking with a Chinese bank (their online banking is really... something).
Deal Addict
Nov 13, 2013
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Ottawa
seriesofcontradictions wrote: Credit card cash advances are rarely the best option, because in addition to fees and FX, they also tend to charge interest from the day of the withdrawal (i.e. no grace period).

If you have a credit card that lets you overpay and then withdraw for free, great. Most don't, though. Better to use your bank card if you need to withdraw cash.
Most don't let you overpay? I think all credit cards allow this. How would they stop it actually? Do you mean they still charge you interest even if technically they owe you money? This also seems strange. The best rates are the no FX credit cards. A cash advance still has a fee but still beats even any no fee ATM cards for any substantial sum.
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Jan 7, 2002
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fogetmylogin wrote: Most don't let you overpay? I think all credit cards allow this.
So do I, especially if you do online bill payment from a bank account. What are they going to do, reject the payment?

Do you mean they still charge you interest even if technically they owe you money? This also seems strange.
I'd like to see their accounting for that. If you never owe them money then the calculation should be $x advanced times y% interest times 0 days. The 0 days ensures that the interest owed is $0. [If not 0 days, then how many days if your account always had a positive (for you) balance?]

What many people don't realize is that they have to prepay their CC account so that they're owed money after (a) all unpaid charges plus (b) cash withdrawals during the billing period. They forget to include (a), at least until the CC issuer or someone on RFD points them to the fine print.
veni, vidi, Visa
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Nov 13, 2013
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bylo wrote: So do I, especially if you do online bill payment from a bank account. What are they going to do, reject the payment?



I'd like to see their accounting for that. If you never owe them money then the calculation should be $x advanced times y% interest times 0 days. The 0 days ensures that the interest owed is $0. [If not 0 days, then how many days if your account always had a positive (for you) balance?]

What many people don't realize is that they have to prepay their CC account so that they're owed money after (a) all unpaid charges plus (b) cash withdrawals during the billing period. They forget to include (a), at least until the CC issuer or someone on RFD points them to the fine print.
Yes for sure you can't just pay the exact amount of your cash advance. I usually pay my balance and the advance plus a healthy extra margin just in case. Even 1 month's interest at their rates can be an expensive mistake. Exchange rates can change by a few percentage points in an hour etc.
Member
Apr 13, 2015
385 posts
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Alberta
Hey everyone, Any idea what Simplii charges for the fee? I know they have the 2.5% FX fee.
Customer Service told me there is no charge, but also said there is $3 depending on the ATM. So not sure what exactly this means. Is it free as long as on the PLUS network?
Member
Aug 27, 2018
247 posts
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fredder wrote: Ignoring FX surcharges of 2.5% , is the actual fx conversion rate generally better with credit card compared to bank card?
this is the key question. may offer "commission free" because it's built into the spread
Member
Aug 27, 2018
247 posts
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I'd have thought if you are in a major city and willing to carry cash, then changing CAD to USD via an FX broker would get you the best rates.

Montreal:
http://universalforex.com/en/location.php

Other Canadian cities have similar brokers. You could take say 5 days of cash then once over there hook up with another broker, pay VISA CAD for local cash. I believe the second half of that plan would give you a better rate than 2.5% as that is harsh.
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Aug 18, 2005
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bylo wrote: Also on most cell plans incoming texts are free. I don't know if that includes when roaming internationally. If it does then presumably that's an option.
While receiving SMS may be free internationally, this also assumes your phone supports the frequencies of the foreign network!
I was in China and did receive Canadian SMS for free. But most phones sold in Canada do not support the frequencies used in China. I had purchased a separate Asian model phone.

If they really wanted to do it properly, they should have implemented:
1. 2FA access using TOTP token only. This requires NO network access after it's set up.
2. If you lost your TOTP token setup, then you have to go into a branch with ID to get it unlocked, or use that voiceprint recognition on the phone, which is more common in the USA.
3. If going into a branch is not possible, or you didn't set up the voiceprint recognition, then that's too bad. You should have been more careful to not lose your TOTP token.
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Deal Expert
Jan 7, 2002
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Jucius Maximus wrote: If they really wanted to do it properly, they should have implemented:...
Note that these issues are covered in considerable detail in a more relevant thread (re TD's new implementation of 2FA), linked-to beneath the post you quoted.
veni, vidi, Visa
Sr. Member
Dec 12, 2016
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ozzie16 wrote: My experience with Premier is that you are charged the 2.5% foreign exchange markup if you don't use a HSBC branded ATM abroad. From my experience, I got the spot rate using HSBC ATMs in the US, UK, Hong Kong, China, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, and both South Korea and Japan when they were still there. However, not all HSBCs are dialed into the global HSBC network, such as France, Greece and Brazil - I was charged 2.5% built into the rate when using HSBC branded ATMs. Over the last 10 years, I have consistently seen a 2.5% markup (or more) on ATM withdrawals abroad outside of the HSBC network.
I used my HSBC and National Bank debit card to withdraw funds while I was in Italy. I got a better rate with NBC than I did with HSBC, possibly due to NBC using the Maestro network for the withdrawal whereas HSBC used Cirrus.

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