Due to the availability of contactless payment options and wide acceptance of credit cards, most people don’t carry cash and rely on their credit cards, particularly when traveling abroad.

Most cards come with fraud protection, which helps people ensure they don’t fall victim to a scam or theft. If you’re taking a trip abroad and planning to travel with your credit card, here are three important tips you should know:

Inform the card provider about your travel schedule

The misuse of credit cards is prevalent around the world. In fact, during the first half of 2019, 23 million credit cards were stolen worldwide. Hence, most card issuers have become very prudent when it comes to the security of their cardholders.

Hence, if your credit card is used overseas, it raises a red flag and the transaction might get declined. You should always inform your bank about your traveling schedule, so your transactions don’t raise suspicion.

Some card providers even require cardholders to activate their credit card for international payments, otherwise their card doesn’t work overseas. So, it’s always better to keep your card issuer in the loop.

Always keep an extra credit card

When going overseas, you should have multiple credit cards on you; that way, if one of your cards is declined for any reason, you will have another card to make the payment. You should prioritize MasterCard or Visa because they are widely accepted around the globe.

Moreover, you should bring a credit card that provides benefits and rewards, such as cashback, for making international purchases or access to a luxury airport lounge. This will help make your trip more comfortable and might potentially save you a lot of money during your trip.

Use local currency for the transactions

Avoid using US dollars when performing a transaction outside the country. While it may make the budgeting process more convenient, you’ll end up paying more money as the exchange rate of the dynamic currency conversion is usually much higher.

Always go for the local currency as your card issuer will use a lower conversion rate to convert your transaction into US dollars. You can always use an app with currency converter functionality to keep tabs of your expenses—or simply Google the exchange rates.

Final words

Following these three tips will help you prevent the trouble that comes with making cashless payments and possibly save you some money. Just remember that you’re still liable to pay for transactions that you perform via your credit card.

Hence, you should budget properly and make sure that you don’t end up overspending. If you’ve already spent more money than you can pay or have fallen victim to a credit card fraud, you might see a decline in your credit ratings.

This will make it difficult for you to apply for mortgage, get a personal loan, rent an apartment, and more. Hence, it’s important to work with a professional credit company to restore your credit ratings—or better, increase your score.

Do you live in Spartanburg County and are looking to repair your credit score? Get in touch with us today! At Masters Credit Consultants, we offer reliable credit repair  services to our clients.

To learn more, call us at 1-844-620-8796 or drop us an email at info@masterscredit.com.