Best online payment cards?

I guess for most bills, if you manage to get that automatic payment request in by the 20th of the month, it probably won't even hit your account until the next billing cycle starts up the following month.

It wasn't even an online request; I handled everything right there at the bank branch. They didn't mention anything about it only becoming active next month or needing me to call them back because it wouldn't work initially.

But a whole month has passed since then, and it really should be working by now.

How is the money supposed to accumulate in my checking account? I have $0.00 in there.
My paycheck goes straight into my checking.
The teller was supposed to set up a recurring transfer—or something similar—so that whenever I
pay for something via PayPal online, the funds are automatically pulled from my checking account. That way, I never actually need to keep cash sitting in my savings.

When I
visited the RAND Corporation branch again, I asked if everything was activated. The clerk checked three different times and insisted it was all set, but as soon as I got home, it still wasn't working. :/

coastalharbor6 said:It wasn't even an online request; I handled everything right there at the bank branch. They didn't mention anything about it only becoming active next month or needing me to call them back because it wouldn't work initially.

But a whole month has passed since then, and it really should be working by now.

How is the money supposed to accumulate in my checking account? I have $0.00 in there.
My paycheck goes straight into my checking.
The teller was supposed to set up a recurring transfer—or something similar—so that whenever I
pay for something via PayPal online, the funds are automatically pulled from my checking account. That way, I never actually need to keep cash sitting in my savings.

When I
visited the RAND Corporation branch again, I asked if everything was activated. The clerk checked three different times and insisted it was all set, but as soon as I got home, it still wasn't working. :/

I've never heard of a setup like that.🤷 I honestly doubt it would even work because you first need the funds in the account for the card transaction to clear.

edit: In my experience, you'd always need some cushion in your checking account so the card doesn't bounce, then you could use an automatic transfer to move money over later.

coastalharbor6 said:It wasn't even an online request; I handled everything right there at the bank branch. They didn't mention anything about it only becoming active next month or needing me to call them back because it wouldn't work initially.

But a whole month has passed since then, and it really should be working by now.

How is the money supposed to accumulate in my checking account? I have $0.00 in there.
My paycheck goes straight into my checking.
The teller was supposed to set up a recurring transfer—or something similar—so that whenever I
pay for something via PayPal online, the funds are automatically pulled from my checking account. That way, I never actually need to keep cash sitting in my savings.

When I
visited the RAND Corporation branch again, I asked if everything was activated. The clerk checked three different times and insisted it was all set, but as soon as I got home, it still wasn't working. :/

Automatic transfers don't work like that. You have to set it up so, say, a specific amount moves from checking to savings on the 10th of every month, then you'll actually have money in there for PayPal.

edit: Honestly, the easiest thing is just use online banking and move the money yourself whenever you feel like it.

Patrick Collins4 said:Once your card arrives, you’ll need to activate it. Every bank does things differently; with JPMorgan Chase, for instance, I either have to head into a branch to get it sorted at the counter or just call their customer service line to do it over the phone.

Regarding the transfer order—if the funds land in the checking account, shouldn't the transfer then move from checking to savings?

Exactly. You can't exactly pay for things with a debit card if there's no money in the account, right? So, you really need to make sure the funds are sitting in the savings account before you even attempt an online transaction. It’s fundamentally the same logic as trying to buy something from a checking account when you don't have a single cent to your name. As for the standing order, it's set up specifically so that everything deposited into the savings account gets moved over to the checking account automatically. It seems she's convinced herself that she can just go about her business making transactions and then rely on a standing order to fix the balance later, but isn't the whole point of a standing order strictly tied to moving deposits from the savings side?

I finally figured out what went wrong after calling them a hundred times. An older lady picked up and she actually understood the core issue 🙂
. It turns out I was totally wrong about my girlfriend being at fault—it wasn't even an issue with the card!
Thanks for all the help anyway 🙂

Alright, here’s the situation: I’ve got a Chase Student Account, which came with two Visa Electron cards—one for my checking and one for my foreign currency account—plus a Mastercard linked to my checking account. Now, I’m trying to pick up some things online, but every time I try to use that Mastercard, the transaction gets rejected on PayPal. I’ve heard from plenty of people that you should be able to shop normally with this kind of card. Am I missing something here, or am I forced to use the foreign currency Visa Electron instead?

Thanks.

I don't think I've ever actually had any luck using a Mastercard on PayPal, if I'm being honest.
Maybe you could give the Visa Electron from your checking account a shot?

If I have a checking account at Citibank using a Visa Electron, and let's say I win some money at a sportsbook and withdraw my winnings directly to my account via PayPal, is everything above board regarding taxes and all that?

How long does it usually take to get my Z%B Visa Maestro card delivered once I've ordered one with a PIN included?

Also, can I just head over to my Citibank branch to ask for the PIN for my Mastercard?
To be clear, I don't mean the code for hitting up an ATM—I’m talking about the PIN needed for making online purchases.

Quick question regarding my Mastercard and the exchange rate—I've got it linked to my PayPal account. I'm looking to order something from the United Kingdom, so I'm wondering what kind of rate they'll actually hit me with? It's in Pounds, which is currently sitting at roughly $3.00 (rounded).

If anyone has the inside scoop, I'd appreciate the help.😉

"We've fallen so deep we have to lift our heads just to see the bottom."

Well, through a purchase, obviously.

Charles Ramos7 said:Well, through a purchase, obviously.

Ordered that thing today. They hit me with a 9.58 exchange rate. Just my luck.

So, I just bought a Paysafecard, and the cashier accidentally charged my Citibank Mastercard instead of using the cash I handed her.

Now I’m wondering... back in the day, when I asked The New York Times if you could buy Paysafecard vouchers with a Mastercard, they said a hard NO. Every clerk I encounter insists on cash because these things aren't exactly easy to reverse.
Anyway, the transaction went through. I called Citibank to verify the amount and the merchant info, and it says The New York Times Company. $33.

The receipt shows this:

For account_
Prepaid Services Company Ltd
Tax ID:
London, 25 Canary Wharf, then paysafe card voucher 1 for $33...

Seriously? What gives? If they supposedly block credit card purchases for Paysafecards, how did this clear? And why did the cashier tell me everything was fine and that using a Mastercard wouldn't be an issue?

Does anyone actually know why this happened when credit cards are usually rejected for these vouchers?

Let's be real—Paysafecard is essentially online money that should only be bought with cash, not on "credit."

Is there a banker in the house? Honestly, this isn't my headache. If there's a settlement issue later, it's on The New York Times Company for approving a deferred payment. They can settle it with Paysafe. But still... I'm an accountant, so seeing this messes with my head.

silvergardener6 said:If I have a checking account at Citibank using a Visa Electron, and let's say I win some money at a sportsbook and withdraw my winnings directly to my account via PayPal, is everything above board regarding taxes and all that?

🤔 I'm no genius, but I'm pretty sure the sportsbooks—the actual legal entities here in the US—are the ones paying taxes on payouts, not us individuals. Having to report winnings from online sites feels absurd since you're legally allowed to bet; I mean, PokerStars doesn't ban Americans from playing... I can just get a PayPal Mastercard and withdraw whatever I want. It's all legal, so why should we be the ones handling the tax paperwork?

I'm not an expert, but I think companies like DraftKings pay the taxes as businesses, not us as private citizens. They handle the obligation for payouts over a certain amount, not ME. Get it? Besides, when I cash out a ticket at DraftKings, does it even record that I won? No one asks for my Social Security number or my full name; they just see my ticket and the codes. So how are we supposed to pay individual income tax on it? Businesses pay it on the payouts. Hopefully...

goldenmaker21 said:So, I just bought a Paysafecard, and the cashier accidentally charged my Citibank Mastercard instead of using the cash I handed her.

Now I’m wondering... back in the day, when I asked The New York Times if you could buy Paysafecard vouchers with a Mastercard, they said a hard NO. Every clerk I encounter insists on cash because these things aren't exactly easy to reverse.
Anyway, the transaction went through. I called Citibank to verify the amount and the merchant info, and it says The New York Times Company. $33.

The receipt shows this:

For account_
Prepaid Services Company Ltd
Tax ID:
London, 25 Canary Wharf, then paysafe card voucher 1 for $33...

Seriously? What gives? If they supposedly block credit card purchases for Paysafecards, how did this clear? And why did the cashier tell me everything was fine and that using a Mastercard wouldn't be an issue?

Does anyone actually know why this happened when credit cards are usually rejected for these vouchers?

Let's be real—Paysafecard is essentially online money that should only be bought with cash, not on "credit."

Is there a banker in the house? Honestly, this isn't my headache. If there's a settlement issue later, it's on The New York Times Company for approving a deferred payment. They can settle it with Paysafe. But still... I'm an accountant, so seeing this messes with my head.

It's the exact same thing that happened a few years ago with prepaid phone cards when they could only be bought with cash. Merchants claim they pay a service fee, then another fee on top of that, and then the bank takes a processing fee for the card swipe, leaving them with basically nothing. If your card cleared, you're fine.

Just like the tax on cigarettes!

I honestly thought it was illegal since we're talking about e-money, but I guess it's all about the transaction fees because they're losing money.

Thanks

Hey, I have a question regarding my Visa Electron web card from Chase. Basically, I tried to book a flight yesterday using the card, but it keeps getting rejected. I have no clue what the issue is—I don't even know how to fix it... I've never actually bought plane tickets before; I’ve mostly just used this card for eBay purchases through PayPal. If anyone has dealt with something like this, I could really use some help. 🙂

Hey there
I’ve heard it’s best to just use a checking account for all my online shopping—basically keeping just enough cash in there to cover whatever I’m planning to buy.
But then I heard a rumor that if you start depositing money into your account, the IRS might flag it as extra income or something, which could lead to some annoying tax headaches.
?

Keith Sanchez10 said:Hey there
I’ve heard it’s best to just use a checking account for all my online shopping—basically keeping just enough cash in there to cover whatever I’m planning to buy.
But then I heard a rumor that if you start depositing money into your account, the IRS might flag it as extra income or something, which could lead to some annoying tax headaches.
?

That whole thing about the checking account is nonsense. Just grab a prepaid card instead; you can load it with whatever amount you want to spend.