? Card confusion: You might use your plastic without incident in well-traveled areas. but a problem can arise if a cashier isn’t used to processing US cards.
Equipment that reads chip-embedded cards also has a slot where cashiers can swipe cards with magnetic strips.
“But if you’re outside the major hubs, they may not be familiar with how to process it,’’ said Randy Vanderhoof, executive director of Smart Card Alliance, a trade group.
But even if a cashier knows what to do, the transaction may be declined. this can happen if your bank suspects the transaction is fraudulent, which may be the case if you don’t travel often and are suddenly ringing up purchases around the world.
Try paying with another card. You may also want to call your bank before your trip to give them a heads up.
In some cases, using your card won’t be an option. Kiosks for train tickets, for example, may have a slot that takes only chip-embedded cards.
? Options: The newest option comes from Chase. Tomorrow, the bank plans to unveil its new J.P. Morgan Select card, for those who travel overseas regularly.
The card has a $95 annual fee. in addition to travel perks such as roadside assistance and emergency medical coverage, cardholders earn 2 points for every $1 spent on travel and 1 point for every $1 on all other spending.
The card doesn’t charge a fee for every transaction abroad, which is common for most credit cards.
It’s worth keeping an eye out for other chip-embedded cards. Wells Fargo plans to start testing the chip technology this summer with 15,000 customers. The company wouldn’t say if and when its cards would become widely available. The new cards also have magnetic strips.
Another option is the Cash Passport from MasterCard. this is a prepaid card available in British pounds or euros and can be purchased online or at Travelex stores (to find a location, go to us.travelex.com ). The card can come at a considerable cost; the exchange rate is based on how much you put on the card and is less favorable for lower amounts.
? Foreign transaction fees: keep in mind that the vast majority of credit and debit cards charge a foreign transaction fee, usually 3 percent of the purchase amount, according to CardHub.com. That doesn’t sound like much, but over a week, the fees add up.
Candice Choi can be reached at twitter.com/candicechoi.
