The Best Cards for a Student on a School Trip

School Trip – Which Credit Card to Give to Your Child?

With the return to school, school trips and competitions away from home are also resuming for many young people. When your child participates alone, the question of payment can be a challenge. Whether it’s for buying souvenirs, meals, or for an unforeseen expense, we want to provide them with a secure payment method.

It is important to note that lending your personal credit card to your child violates the terms of use of financial institutions. This practice carries significant risks: in the event of theft or fraudulent use, the bank will refuse any reimbursement since you have knowingly violated your credit card agreement.

Here are the options available to you to make your child a bit more independent while travelling.

School Trip – How to Choose the Best Card for Your Child?

When choosing your credit or prepaid card, consider the following:

School Trip – The Option of an Additional Credit Card

Your teenager can have a copy of your credit card as an authorized user. It’s one of the best options!

Depending on their age and the financial institution, you can request an additional card. Read our article to find out at what age your teenager might be able to have one.

This way, any purchases he makes will end up in your credit card account and you will pay your account afterwards, as usual.

Do you have a card in your wallet with no foreign currency conversion fees? If so, it might be a good idea to get an extra one for your child, too, to avoid the 2.5% fee for all out-of-country transactions.

The Wealthsimple Prepaid Mastercard is an excellent option for a young person: no minimum income required, no annual fees, no foreign currency conversion fees, and a welcome offer of $25 cash back when opening the account.

If you already hold a travel card with no conversion fees, such as the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite +* Card, the first supplementary card is usually free. However, this card requires a personal income of $60,000 (or household income of $100,000), so it’s only suitable if you already hold it or are eligible for it.

Other advantageous cards with no high minimum income also exist: check out our guide to credit cards with no minimum income required to compare more options.

School Trip – Prepaid Cards

Mydoh

Mydoh offers a rechargeable prepaid Visa card for a child, without being linked to a bank account. And if you want, you can even personalize the card for $6.99 with any image you choose.

There are no hidden fees, and the parent only deposits the necessary amount on the Mydoh card, accessible instantly. Additionally, there is no card number visible on the physical card. So, if it is lost, this minimizes the risk of fraudulent use.

Mydoh offers both a digital and physical card. Abroad, the foreign currency conversion fee is 2.5%. Its only drawback is that there is no option to withdraw cash from an ATM.

KOHO and Wise Prepaid Cards

KOHO and Wise banks offer prepaid cards, but only to people who have reached the age of majority in their province of residence.

Remember, you can’t open an account and get a prepaid card in your name, then give it to your minor child to travel with.

Vanilla Prepaid Card

Vanilla Visa or Mastercard prepaid cards may be another option. However, it is forbidden to purchase such a prepaid card with an American Express credit card, as mentioned in the conditions.

There is an activation fee on purchase, and foreign currency conversion charges are 2.5%. Also, beware of fraud with this type of card. Before making your purchase, make sure that the packaging has not been opened, as tampering occasionally occurs.

Beware: Canada Post’s Cash Passport Prepaid Card

Many schools suggest the Canada Post Cash Passport card, but we don’t recommend it.

It costs $15 to buy, you have to pay a $3 fee every time you load money into it, the foreign currency conversion fee is high (3.25%), you pay an additional 1.5% if you use it in Canada and on top of that, there’s a $20 fee if you want to withdraw the money left in it.

Let’s just say that it seems to exist mainly to remind us how much better other options are. It’s better to explore other solutions that offer more benefits and less costs.

Which card is most beneficial for a young person on a school trip?

It all depends on your child’s age and your own eligibility for credit cards.

Conclusion

Before departure, take the time to educate your child about responsible practices that will allow them to fully enjoy the benefits of their card while avoiding excesses. We particularly recommend using an additional card, as this will help you accumulate points to use for a future trip with your child!

Have a good trip!