Seeking US Credit Card with European Compatible Chip

Robert,

Based on comments I've seen here from numerous posters, I don't believe "chip & PIN" credit cards are available from any U.S. Banks. If you have any relatives in Canada, perhaps they could add you as a supplementary card holder, as the "chip" cards are being issued here now.

You should have no problem using older magnetic stripe credit cards in Europe, except for automated ticket machines, etc. in some countries. I've just returned from Europe and found that the rail ticket machines at CDG require "chip & PIN" cards, while the machines in Italy seem to work just fine with older credit card technology (however this will probably change in future).

Cheers!

I spoke to a few credit card people about this here in the U.S. as well and they just don't exist here. There are chips in those "pass over" cards but it's a completely different technology. Sorry.

The only US card that that has the chip is American Express (the "blue" card I believe). The catch-22 is that AE isn't widely accepted outside of the US/Canada.

Our old-fashioned magnetic strip cards will work at 90% of any merchants you encounter overseas. Although there is a new trend, that requires you to enter your CCs pin number to finalize a transaction instead of a signature. If you don't know what your pin is, call your bank to get a new one.

No U.S. bank issues "chip" cards, but I've never encountered an establishment in Europe that accepted Visa & Mastercard that didn't happily accept my American non-chip Visa & Mastercard too.

I haven't personally tried this yet (next trip) but there is a prepaid chip card in Germany called the Geldkarte. It's loadable at terminals all over Germany (there is one in Marienplatz), with cash or, presumably, with a non-chip credit or debit card. It is also loadable online, but probably only from a bank account in Germany. The maximum amount you can load at one time is €200. I don't think there are any toll roads in Germany, and I don't see gas stations listed, but you can use it on the Bahn and many Verkehrsberbünden, also at parking lot automats. MVV even gives you a discount for paying with a Geldkarte.

Personally, I found out years ago that Germany is a cash oriented society. I try to always pay with cash, which I get from an ATM, which, so far, still do not require chip card.

What a business opportunity just waiting for some financial institution to seize on. I just learned that my two credit unions have put blocks on their ATM/Debit and VISA cards for transactions out of the country in order to decrease the amount of fraudulent transactions they have. In one case I have been told that the block cannot be removed (VISA lets you set it up either way apparently). Fortunately I found this out before we took a trip.

Now I have the issue of which bank do I open an account at so I can get a working ATM card. If there was a financial institution catering to international travelers it would get my business. I already have a Schwab CC because it is one of the few that doesn't tack on additional fees. Schwab has a bank so I may go with them for the ATM, too, but if they offered a chip and pin card, that would make it a trifecta.

Steve: Thanks for the info. I will probably go ahead and get a Schwab bank account (I have a retirement and credit card from them). Unfortunately the U.N. credit union's membership is limited so that isn't an option. Reading the article at the link you posted explains why it makes sense for that financial institution to be the first to bring out such a card. I only wish other U.S. banks, etc. would do so.

On another note, U.S. financial institutions have tremendous losses from fraudulent charges. VISA and MasterCard make the issuer bear the cost even if it is really a result of defects in the card companies' systems. We all pay for that in one way or the other.

Bob,

Agree with the first post. Just returned from three weeks in France and Italy - several cities - and had only two problems with our card from Capital One and they were both with automated ticket machines: once in the Naples train station and once in the Paris RER station trying to get to Versailles. Carry some cash for those occasions and I'll bet you'll be fine.

Fletch

I should have added in my post that when I went to the UK a couple years ago, I had no trouble with my non-chip card either. I just had to tell the store clerk to swipe it.

When I talked to some credit card people they told me Europe has that system because credit card fraud is more rampant in Europe compared to America. I have to admit that I was surprised when I read some of Rick's Travel Tips here that you have to watch the "Chatty Sales Clerk" who is acting like she's talking on her cell phone when you had her credit card but then you hear that "click" and she's just taken a picture of the card with her camera phone. Now I see why credit card fraud is so bad there.