Longtime Ozbargainer, but new to NZ
Is there a website I can purchase specific amount virtual instant prepaid credit cards that don't charge a lot of fees?
Basically I want to load $556 on a prepaid card, but have it emailed to me instantly so I can purchase now
Cheers bigcheese, will definitely keep this in mind for future purchases.
Hoping to get something sorted this weekend, but looks like I may not have a choice!
I have a Wise account too - pretty sure it was all setup almost instantly (although that might have changed).
You have to order a physical card, but the instant you do that, your virtual cards are available and can be used, so you don't have to wait for the physical card to arrive.
Alan.
How long does it take to transfer money?
@RickyBaker: Like @Alan6984 said it does get set up pretty much straight way but you still need to add funds to the account.
This won't be processed on weekends (just like a normal bank transfer) but once you are set up the transfer should only take a couple of hours to come through.
Alan, do I need to setup an account to hold NZ currency or do I just order the card?
@RickyBaker: You can just order the card but won't be able to use it until you have funds loaded on it.
It's a debit card (not credit) so you need to have your own money to purchase.
@RickyBaker: The other advantage is it has really good rates for foreign currency transfer, so if you are wanting to send/receive money to/from Oz then this could be another bonus.
You can even leave your foreign currency sitting in the account until you want to use it without fee.
As you may have guessed, I'm a firm advocate of this card!
@bigcheese: I've used Wise quite a bit to send money to my Canadian bank account, but never looked into the card aspect
For Australia I have my fee free ING card which I use over here to pay for pretty much everything. No foreign transaction fees, so makes it easy
@RickyBaker: What I like about it is that I can order something using the virtual card.
Then when the order is processed I freeze the card so it can't be compromised.
I don't delete it until I've actually got my goods so that if it ends up being refunded then the card can be unblocked.
Once I have received what I ordered I delete the card.
@bigcheese: I do really like the aspect of that
I'm trying to do something dodgy and order a GoPro off their official site. To get a discounted promo price you need to sign up for a yearly subscription, except they don't charge the subscription right away and only process the payment for the GoPro
Lots of people on OzBargain doing this and receiving their GoPro without paying for the subscription. Saves about $70-80
@RickyBaker: Do you need to order it this weekend?
You could go through the account setup process and get the card underway today but just wouldn't be able to get your money on the card until after the weekend.
@bigcheese: I don't really need too, I'm just impatient. When I decide I want something, I want to get it ordered and done with haha
@RickyBaker: I would just order it.
It's a one off cost of $14 and that's it.
Well worth it - but you'll just have to be patient until after the weekend!
@RickyBaker: I suggest you do it now in advance - that way, when you find yourself in the same situation again, you will be ready to go.
Wanting to do it instantly will often lead to frustration :-)
@RickyBaker: I think I had to deposit NZ$30 to set it up (not a fee - you can spend it later).
I am with ASB, and I'm fairly sure that they will transfer on the weekend, but not 100% on that. If they do, it will be there within a couple of hours normally. If not, then I guess mid-morning on Monday which won't work for you I guess.
@Alan6984: Yes $30 as the initial funding first time to the account.
You can send money on the weekend, it just won’t be processed by the receiving bank until the next weekday.
The exception is intra-bank transfer.
If you transfer ASB to ASB or Westpac to Westpac etc then it is instant whenever you do it.
@bigcheese: Yes - I think ASB will send every day, and some banks will process it the same day, but others won't. If your bank is one of those, you would have to wait until Monday.
I don't recall who Wise use - I think it is '04', but I can't remember who that is, and I can't be bothered to look it up :-)
Alan.
@bigcheese: I ended up signing up for Revolut in Australia and it's pretty awesome! Get free virtual cards right away, can fund your account instantly via debit credit card. It will automatically convert funds fee free at purchase. It's coming to NZ at some point, so stay on the lookout!
@RickyBaker: Sounds good.
I think my Wise card covers everything I need at the moment but nice to know there are other options coming soon.
Not many options in NZ, the other suggestion would be if you have a spare debit card (Free from a bunch of banks), you could use that, but that also wouldn't help you today or tomorrow if you don't already have it.
Not sure of an email virtual card.
I have a Wise Virtual Card which will allow you to have up to three virtual card numbers at a time. When you are finished, delete it and get another.
Costs $14 for a physical card (which you have to order first) but I never use this and it is a one off cost.
You don’t have to wait for the physical card to arrive so doesn’t take long to setup but still requires a couple of business days to process and add your funds to the card.