When you use an American credit card overseas, most companies assess an international transaction fee, no matter how much your purchase adds up to, says Bill Hardekopf, CEO of LowCards.com and author of The Credit Card Guidebook. The charges add up fast -- the company that processes the transaction, like Visa or MasterCard, generally charges your card issuer 1% to convert the currency, and in turn, the card issuer charges you a fee of 2% or even 3%.
Here are some tips for avoiding -- or at the very least, minimizing -- these costs:
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As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
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