U.S. credit card questions

[OntarioBound]

Can I keep my US credit cards when I move to Canada or the credit card companies will take them away from me when I report the address change?

I love my CapitalOne Venture card since I earn 2 points (2 miles) for $1 spent... Are there great reward cards like that in Canada?

 

[scylla]

You'll have to speak with your credit card company to see what their rules are. However I would strongly recommend against using a US credit card for Canadian purchases long term. You won't be receiving the best exchange rate and in the long run this will end up costing you money.

There are tons of Canadian credit cards with miles and other benefits. If you visit the big bank web sites, you'll find this information easily. Each one of the banks has a miles based credit card - although the rules for each to differ somewhat.

 

[gatorengineer]

Can I keep my US credit cards when I move to Canada or the credit card companies will take them away from me when I report the address change?

I love my CapitalOne Venture card since I earn 2 points (2 miles) for $1 spent... Are there great reward cards like that in Canada?

I was in US from 2011 to 2014 as student. I have AMEX and Chase credit cards with Indian Addresses on it. All I ever got was a letter from AMEX that since my address on file is out of US. I wont be receiving the car rental insurance benefit. Even my credit reports show my Indian address since last year (AMEX gave me a credit limit increase too last month) Apart from that they had no issues with me keeping and occasionally using their cards in India and Online.

As long as your credit rating is good they wont mind.

 

[Rob_TO]

If you use your US Capital One card in Canada, they will charge you a fee (around 2 - 2.5%) on every purchase you do in Canadian that needs to be converted to USD. So it would basically eliminate your 2% rewards rate, plus maybe even cost you extra.

There are several Canadian credit cards that you can get 2% rewards also. Do a search for various World Elite cards. Most come with an annual fee in the $120-$150 range. You can try BMO World Elite, Capital One Aspire Travel, etc.

 

[OntarioBound]

If you use your US Capital One card in Canada, they will charge you a fee (around 2 - 2.5%) on every purchase you do in Canadian that needs to be converted to USD. So it would basically eliminate your 2% rewards rate, plus maybe even cost you extra.

There are several Canadian credit cards that you can get 2% rewards also. Do a search for various World Elite cards. Most come with an annual fee in the $120-$150 range. You can try BMO World Elite, Capital One Aspire Travel, etc.

Thank you very much! I will look into the cards you mention.

 

[TheNightmanCometh]

If you use your US Capital One card in Canada, they will charge you a fee (around 2 - 2.5%) on every purchase you do in Canadian that needs to be converted to USD. So it would basically eliminate your 2% rewards rate, plus maybe even cost you extra.

There are several Canadian credit cards that you can get 2% rewards also. Do a search for various World Elite cards. Most come with an annual fee in the $120-$150 range. You can try BMO World Elite, Capital One Aspire Travel, etc.

Not all credit cards charge a foreign transaction fee (the Capital One Quicksilver does not). However, I"m not sure you'll get the most favorable exchange rates.

 

[deweysmith]

Not all credit cards charge a foreign transaction fee (the Capital One Quicksilver does not). However, I"m not sure you'll get the most favorable exchange rates.

Not necessarily. I have a Delta SkyMiles American Express that I use for just about everything up here. It carries no foreign transaction fee, and has a better exchange rate than RBC. Generally it beats them by about 3% and it's usually fractions of a penny lower than market.

If you're looking to do any cross-border banking, the RBC Royal Bank/RBC Bank combo is pretty excellent. Instant cross-border transfers, though the rate is sometimes not the best.

 

[RocketCity]

Not necessarily. I have a Delta SkyMiles American Express that I use for just about everything up here. It carries no foreign transaction fee, and has a better exchange rate than RBC. Generally it beats them by about 3% and it's usually fractions of a penny lower than market.

If you're looking to do any cross-border banking, the RBC Royal Bank/RBC Bank combo is pretty excellent. Instant cross-border transfers, though the rate is sometimes not the best.

This is correct. I recently landed in Montreal, and I exclusively used my Chase card which doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee while I was there. The exchange rate I got was only 1/2 of a penny worse than the market price.

 

[OntarioBound]

This is correct. I recently landed in Montreal, and I exclusively used my Chase card which doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee while I was there. The exchange rate I got was only 1/2 of a penny worse than the market price.

Can you keep the card living in Canada or you will have to give it up?

 

[deweysmith]

If you maintain a residential address at all in the USA then you can update the address to that and they're none the wiser. I know several people here that use their parents' address as the billing address on the account, and use a PO Box in Champlain or Plattsburgh (upstate New York, 45 min drive from Mtl) for the mailing address for new cards and statements, and Chase/American Express is none the wiser.

I'm not saying that's exactly what I do… but I'm not saying it's not.

 

[deweysmith]

Also, I just noticed the rewards you were mentioning… CapitalOne just launched a killer rewards MasterCard with Costco up here, if you're into that kind of thing.

 

[OntarioBound]

If you maintain a residential address at all in the USA then you can update the address to that and they're none the wiser. I know several people here that use their parents' address as the billing address on the account, and use a PO Box in Champlain or Plattsburgh (upstate New York, 45 min drive from Mtl) for the mailing address for new cards and statements, and Chase/American Express is none the wiser.

I'm not saying that's exactly what I do... but I'm not saying it's not.

Well said. ;D Thanks!

 

[keesio]

I moved to Canada 15 years ago but I still have my US Citibank MasterCard that I've had before I moved here. I kept it around for when I travel to the US. I do have my mailing address set to my in-laws place in the US.

 

[vasask]

I'm about to land in a few weeks, and I'm keeping my US cards that have no foreign transaction fee. From my experience, it's absolutely correct that you will get a better exchange rate than going to a bank. I also find I'm better off getting CA cash from an ATM and paying a nominal fee than exchanging money at a Canadian bank. (This doesn't apply if you're only taking out 20-40 bucks at a time obviously) So I usually carry a few $20s back and forth and that's it.

(I'm also curious why someone would mention getting a better exchange rate with a Canadian card, why would there be an exchange rate at all?)

The bonuses offered by most Canadian cards pale in comparison to the US. I will seriously miss the air miles/points I've been able to accrue over the years.

And yeah, just use a relatives mailing address and sign up for paperless billing.

What I'm curious about for those who have US cards is how do you pay your bill? Is it easy to set up online bill pay through your bank for a US bank based card?

 

[OntarioBound]

I moved to Canada 15 years ago but I still have my US Citibank MasterCard that I've had before I moved here. I kept it around for when I travel to the US. I do have my mailing address set to my in-laws place in the US.

Someone told me she had to keep an American address just so she could use a credit card at gas stations when she is traveling in her car in the US (since most gas stations nowadays ask for your zip code to verify the validity of the card and Canadian cards, I guess, won't work.)

The bonuses offered by most Canadian cards pale in comparison to the US. I will seriously miss the air miles/points I've been able to accrue over the years.

Sorry to hear this. The American card I have gives me 2 points for every dollar I spend (not just when I spend money on selected things like gas and groceries) - I love it because points accumulate so quickly.