Prepaid "Credit" Cards

A prepaid credit card is not a credit card, while no credit is presented by the card issuer: the card-holder spends money which has been "stored" by means of a previous deposit by the card- holder or somebody else, such as a employer or parent . though, it carries a credit-card brand (Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover) and can be used in related behavior just as although it were a usual credit card

After purchase the card, the cardholder loads the account by means of any amount of money, up to the prearranged card limit and after that uses the card to make purchases the similar way as a usual credit card. Prepaid cards can be issued to minors (above 13) since there is no credit line involved. The main advantage over secured credit cards (see above section) is that you are not necessary to come up with $500 or more to open an account. With prepaid credit cards you are not charged any interest but you are often charged a purchasing fee plus monthly fees after a random time period. Several other fees as well typically apply to a prepaid card.

Prepaid credit cards are occasionally marketed to teenagers for shopping online with no having their parents complete the transaction.

Because of the a lot of fees that be relevant to obtaining and using credit-card-branded prepaid cards, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada describes them as "an expensive way to spend your own money". The agency publishes a booklet, "Pre-paid cards", which give details the compensation and drawback of this kind of prepaid card.