
Credit Card With No Foreign Transaction Fee And Cash Back – As we all know, traveling is expensive. Between spending on flights, hotels and destinations, travel purchases can add up and earn points to reduce travel costs. Many of us will turn to credit cards to finance these expenses, but relatively hidden fees, known as foreign transaction fees or foreign exchange fees, will be added to these purchases.
In this article, I plan to highlight a credit card feature that not all Canadian consumers know about: cards that offer no foreign exchange fees! Canadian consumers have three main options for waiving the 2.5% foreign transaction fee when choosing a card with no foreign transaction fee, which I’ll cover in more detail below.
Credit Card With No Foreign Transaction Fee And Cash Back
Exchange fees, or foreign exchange fees, are incurred when we use a Canadian dollar credit card (or god forbid, debit card) to pay for something in a foreign currency. These fees come in at almost only 2.5% in cash and quickly wipe out any value you get from spending on most cards, so they’re easy to avoid.
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At first glance, charging 2.5% per transaction might not seem like a big deal. However, if we do the math compared to these 2.5% no-fee cards, it can be impressive. The first step is to understand how much the user is being charged in terms that are easy to understand. For every $1,000 spent, $25 will be paid in excess of the goods or services purchased.
Let’s say a traveler uses the ever-popular RBC Avion Visa Infinite card to pay for $1,000 CAD in free spending while abroad. Depending on how you redeem them, they’ll earn you 1,000 Avion Points, worth about $20. Including a 2.5% foreign exchange fee on $25, this traveler is $5 late. This is not the kind of profitable spending we talk about in the world of points and miles!
For comparison, if a traveler spends $1,000 on an HSBC World Elite Mastercard on travel, they’ll earn 2,000 HSBC Rewards points for $10. Assuming this traveler saves $25 in foreign exchange fees, using this card is a net positive of $15!
The HSBC Card earns 6 points per dollar spent on eligible travel purchases, even in foreign currencies, with an effective 3% return. The RBC Avion card earns 1.25 points per $1 spent on travel and has a 2.5% return, while net zero returns include a 2.5% foreign exchange fee.
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Hotel rooms are paid for in the hotel’s local currency and constitute the most important travel expense besides flights. If we have a hotel bill of 1000 CAD paid in foreign currency with the HSBC World Elite card, we end up with $30 and $30 in advance with the RBC Avion Visa card.
Each traveler has to answer this question individually, as it depends on where you are traveling and what your spending habits are. For most points enthusiasts, we enjoy increasing our points with First Class and Business Class travel around the world. This often means paying for hotels, food and activities in foreign currency.
For example, if you put $5,000 in foreign transaction fees into your HSBC World Elite MasterCard, you’ll save $125 out-of-pocket when you use a credit card that charges foreign transaction fees. The money you spend on foreign transaction fees can quickly add up to dinner in most destinations!
If you’re primarily focused on domestic Canadian travel, these cards may still be the place to go, as they offer benefits in addition to foreign exchange fees that can offset the annual fee. Not to mention, these cards save on foreign transaction fees when making any foreign currency purchases online.
No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards For Australians
When it comes to Canadian credit cards with no foreign transaction fees, there are three main ones: the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card, the HSBC World Elite Mastercard and the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card.
However, these cards offer much more than no foreign transaction fees, as shown in the table below.
Let’s take a look at each of these cards to see the value they offer beyond the currency fees they charge.
The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card has recently received a number of enhancements and has been switched to the Sobeys Scene+ program. It offers 5x value on food and drink, the highest multiplier on groceries of any card in Canada, and 6x at Safeway, Sobeys and other Empire authorized grocers.
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The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card earns Scene+ Rewards points, allowing cardholders to earn up to 5x Scene+ points on grocery, restaurant and entertainment purchases. This card does not charge foreign exchange fees.
Scene+ bonus points are a valuable currency because they don’t require a lot of planning to generate value. With a maximum of one cent per cash back on travel purchases, and the fact that it has no foreign transaction fees, most people should use it. No transfer partners or booking portals, just charge your card for hotels, flights and other eligible travel expenses, access online banking and choose to pay with Scene+ points.
One of the features of this card is that it is eligible for Amex Offers. These help offset the annual fee, and sometimes only take one offer to do so. Last year, we saw some pretty decent offers like “Spend $500 United and Get $250 Back” and “Get $150 Back on $500 Amex Travel Spend.” With one of these, you’ll be covered even if you take an unscheduled trip out of the country, as the annual fee will be reimbursed!

The last thing I want to say is that this card offers 5x on entertainment and ticketing sites. If you’re a big concert fan (like my wife, hello Taylor Swift tix!), this is just a multiplier for this card. I bought a *very expensive* Swift ticket with my TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege card and got 1.25 Aeroplan points or 2.5% back per dollar. If I had bought them with Scottish gold at 5% yield, I would have doubled my cost.
Best Travel Credit Cards With No Foreign Transaction Fee
It is important to note that if you make a payment in foreign currency with this card, the bonus category will not apply and the bonus will be paid at 1x.
The HSBC World Elite Mastercard won our Best Foreign Transaction Credit Card award for good reason. $100 travel credit, excellent insurance, and no foreign transaction fees for minimal annual expenses.
The HSBC World Elite Mastercard earns HSBC Rewards points and offers cardholders benefits such as a $100 annual travel discount credit* and free Boingo Wifi membership.
Cardholders may find that getting a $100 credit back is easier than it might seem at first, so keep an open mind if this holds you back. With that in mind, this card has an annual fee of $149 minus the $100 travel surcharge, making it an effective annual cost of just $49.
Credit Cards In Canada With No Foreign Transaction Fees
The HSBC World Elite Mastercard is ideal for paying taxes and fees on British Airways Avios and other currency bookings, as this card’s insurance is valid if you pay for part of your trip with the card.
As we’ve seen before, it’s easy to recoup the $49 fee if HSBC Rewards points are valued at 6x or 3% of travel reward points in foreign currency, with zero value on insurance. Even if you spend $1 in foreign currency on hotels or flights, you’ve broken CAD 650. In addition, with the World Elite card, you get free access to Boingo Hotspots. It’s WestJet’s inflight Wi-Fi provider and credit card icing on the cake.
Our final card to avoid foreign transaction fees, the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite card, can be the perfect travel companion for those looking for a one- or two-card wallet. The earning percentage of this card is low, but it is full of benefits thanks to the Visa Infinite product.
The Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite card earns Scene+ Rewards points and gives cardholders six free airport lounge access passes each year, with no foreign transaction fees.
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This card earns Scene+ Rewards points and earns the same as Scotia Gold, but 3x on Empire stores and 2x on entertainment purchases. What you give up here is made up for by six complimentary visits to the DragonPass Lounge through the Visa Airport Partner Program. It also gives you access to the Visa Infinite hotel collection, allowing you to enjoy the benefits of elite status without the elite status.
In addition to these Visa benefits, you may be eligible for the Visa Wine Country Program, which allows you to enjoy discounted or even free tastings at certain wineries. When we lived in Toronto
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