As a Canadian wintering in Texas, converting $CAN to $US is an ongoing issue. It is just very difficult to escape the markup premium all financial institutions put on currency exchanges. We have tried many approaches but now use what I think is the best available. All purchases that can be put on a credit card go on the Amazon.ca VISA. This card offers conversions at no markup so you end up paying based on the actual exchange rate (or very close to it) in $CAN. We have used this for a couple of years and it works very well. For cash, we use a direct deposit of a CPP (Canada Pension Plan) into our US bank. The Canadian government does this at what appears to be very close to the current exchange rate and at no charge at either end. I believe this is available for any government program such as the OAS. Always interested in other approaches...

I have a US account at my bank the TD bank. I convert and deposit money into that account whenever. All I am paying is current conversion rate plus a small discount as I am doing it in the bank.I have a US Visa card from the TD bank, and use my Texas Mobile Home address for the card. That way no problems at gas pumps for zip code entry. I use that card for virtually everything. So no conversion or extra fees. If for some reason I don't have enough US dollars to cover the monthly bill they will immediately draw money out of my regular Cdn savings account, so I don't have to worry about interest charges on the Visa. I realize I am then subject to conversion and roughly 2 percent markup, but that rarely if ever happens.Works for me.

We do the credit card thing also with the Sears-Chase mastercard which doesn't charge the 2.5% conversion fee. The only downside is they will only send a replacement card to our Canadian address and it has been compromised 2 years in a row (Bashas grocery first year and Target last year).I'm very interested in the CPP direct deposit to a US bank. Is this a US account in a Canadian bank or a US bank account? How did you set this up as I have both types of account?Brian

The Amazon card is also offered through Chase - a great deal. We have a CPP payment deposited directly into our Bank of America account. I think it is an all or nothing thing but not really sure. You just fill out a form in Service Canada - try http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/dd/etranger-abroad-eng.html. It works just fine although it takes some time to get started.I would urge everyone to know exactly what you are paying for conversion of your $CAN especially if it is at a bank. Banks do not do this for nothing even if they say you are getting a discounted rate. I know of no way to beat these Chase credit cards.

ramsaymike wrote:The Amazon card is also offered through Chase - a great deal. We have a CPP payment deposited directly into our Bank of America account. I think it is an all or nothing thing but not really sure. You just fill out a form in Service Canada - try http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/dd/etranger-abroad-eng.html. It works just fine although it takes some time to get started.I would urge everyone to know exactly what you are paying for conversion of your $CAN especially if it is at a bank. Banks do not do this for nothing even if they say you are getting a discounted rate. I know of no way to beat these Chase credit cards.I realize that banks do not do this for nothing, but I do save a small amount on the exchange. They...including the credit card companies always make their money one way or another.Some people might want to read some of the negative posts here http://goo.gl/J5LMDgso they are well informed before trying to save on the markup. In fairness there are also lots of positive posts.

Interesting reading on the merits of the Chase cards. I can only comment based on my experience over 2+ years of constant use. Never had a billing issue or been declined - I take that back. It was declined a couple of times but it was fixed with a quick call and I did have the card canceled once - that's why we have 2. But unlike the bank, you are in control of the credit card. On balance, I'll take the 3.5% discount on everything I buy with the card any day....never mind the convenience of all charges in $CAN.

Currency exchange for Canadian Snowbirds | Good Sam Community

ramsaymike
Explorer
Jul 29, 2014
Interesting reading on the merits of the Chase cards. I can only comment based on my experience over 2+ years of constant use. Never had a billing issue or been declined - I take that back. It was declined a couple of times but it was fixed with a quick call and I did have the card canceled once - that's why we have 2. But unlike the bank, you are in control of the credit card. On balance, I'll take the 3.5% discount on everything I buy with the card any day....never mind the convenience of all charges in $CAN.
quartzster
Explorer
Jul 29, 2014
ramsaymike wrote:
The Amazon card is also offered through Chase - a great deal. We have a CPP payment deposited directly into our Bank of America account. I think it is an all or nothing thing but not really sure. You just fill out a form in Service Canada - try http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/dd/etranger-abroad-eng.html. It works just fine although it takes some time to get started.

I would urge everyone to know exactly what you are paying for conversion of your $CAN especially if it is at a bank. Banks do not do this for nothing even if they say you are getting a discounted rate. I know of no way to beat these Chase credit cards.

I realize that banks do not do this for nothing, but I do save a small amount on the exchange. They...including the credit card companies always make their money one way or another.

Some people might want to read some of the negative posts here http://goo.gl/J5LMDgso they are well informed before trying to save on the markup. In fairness there are also lots of positive posts.
ramsaymike
Explorer
Jul 29, 2014
The Amazon card is also offered through Chase - a great deal. We have a CPP payment deposited directly into our Bank of America account. I think it is an all or nothing thing but not really sure. You just fill out a form in Service Canada - try http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/dd/etranger-abroad-eng.html. It works just fine although it takes some time to get started.

I would urge everyone to know exactly what you are paying for conversion of your $CAN especially if it is at a bank. Banks do not do this for nothing even if they say you are getting a discounted rate. I know of no way to beat these Chase credit cards.
samandtheduck
Explorer
Jul 29, 2014
We do the credit card thing also with the Sears-Chase mastercard which doesn't charge the 2.5% conversion fee. The only downside is they will only send a replacement card to our Canadian address and it has been compromised 2 years in a row (Bashas grocery first year and Target last year).
I'm very interested in the CPP direct deposit to a US bank. Is this a US account in a Canadian bank or a US bank account? How did you set this up as I have both types of account?
Brian
quartzster
Explorer
Jul 29, 2014
I have a US account at my bank the TD bank. I convert and deposit money into that account whenever. All I am paying is current conversion rate plus a small discount as I am doing it in the bank.

I have a US Visa card from the TD bank, and use my Texas Mobile Home address for the card. That way no problems at gas pumps for zip code entry. I use that card for virtually everything. So no conversion or extra fees.

If for some reason I don't have enough US dollars to cover the monthly bill they will immediately draw money out of my regular Cdn savings account, so I don't have to worry about interest charges on the Visa. I realize I am then subject to conversion and roughly 2 percent markup, but that rarely if ever happens.

Works for me.

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