We’ve been fortunate to travel abroad quite a bit and our banks have hit us with foreign transaction fees on every trip. On shorter vacations we chalked these 2 -3% transactional charges (+ ATM fees) up to the expense of going abroad. On a trip of this length, however, we realized our bank fees were really going to add up to a substantial amount. Determined to find a bank that didn’t charge foreign transaction fees we eventually came across the High Yield Investor Checking account through Charles Schwab.
We cannot say enough good things about this amazing checking account! There are ZERO foreign transaction fees associated with the Schwab debit card – meaning that when we use our Schwab Visa/MasterCard in Europe, or Asia, or wherever we might land, we won’t be charged a thing! Yup, ZILCH! The exchange rate offered is very competitive and, also, Schwab provides unlimited ATM fee rebates so we can grab cash from any ATM, anywhere, without paying fees!
In addition to our fabulous Schwab accounts, we have backup debit cards from three large institutional banks that we’ll use if money in our Schwab accounts is ever inaccessible for whatever reason. For added protection, we intend to leave letters on file with each of our banks that details our predicted itinerary so that our accounts are (hopefully) not frozen for suspected fraud. We’ll also store all card and account numbers, along with bank contact info, in an email and with trusted state-side loved ones in case of theft.
We cannot say enough good things about this amazing checking account! There are ZERO foreign transaction fees associated with the Schwab debit card – meaning that when we use our Schwab Visa/MasterCard in Europe, or Asia, or wherever we might land, we won’t be charged a thing! Yup, ZILCH! The exchange rate offered is very competitive and, also, Schwab provides unlimited ATM fee rebates so we can grab cash from any ATM, anywhere, without paying fees!
In addition to our fabulous Schwab accounts, we have backup debit cards from three large institutional banks that we’ll use if money in our Schwab accounts is ever inaccessible for whatever reason. For added protection, we intend to leave letters on file with each of our banks that details our predicted itinerary so that our accounts are (hopefully) not frozen for suspected fraud. We’ll also store all card and account numbers, along with bank contact info, in an email and with trusted state-side loved ones in case of theft.
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