Best US Debit Card (Not credit Card) to use in Buenos Aires?

[amcarey]

I asked the same debit card question on here a few months ago, and was encouraged by members to open an account with Charles Schwab. I did, and I've never been happier with a bank. They reimburse all withdrawal fees charged by Argentine banks, and they don't charge any of their own. Also, I was able to sign up, transfer funds, and activate my account once I was already down here. Definitely go with Schwab!

 

[Guille Amejka]

TD Bank

Amazing customer service, no ATM frees, no foreign transations free, refunds other banks ATM fees, online banking, and in the USA open 7 days a week (yes, Sundays too ).


Take care,
Bill

http://www.MidlifeHappiness.com

 

[Illinoisjoe]

There is a limit to how many withdrawals they will reimburse for each month. I forget what the limit is, but I've never bumped up against it.

USAA refunds up to $15.00 of other banks ATM fees each month, charges none of their own for the first 10 withdrawals, and assesses a 1% foreign transaction fee. How does that compare to Schwab?

I've been quite happy with them from for everything. They've never screwed me with overdraft fees (and I have been overdrawn). They're website is quite good and their customer support (phone) is amazing. Since they're designed to serve US military personnel, they are pretty helpful for international travelers on a shoestring budget like myself. On the downside, you need some kind of US military affiliation (mine's via veteran parents) to become a member.

 

[starlucia]

USAA refunds up to $15.00 of other banks ATM fees each month, charges none of their own for the first 10 withdrawals, and assesses a 1% foreign transaction fee. How does that compare to Schwab?

Schwab: no foreign transaction fees, no ATM fees ever, and they re-imburse all ATM surcharges from other banks (certainly beyond $15 -- I only withdrew cash 3 times in BA and my Banelco surcharges were already over $12!) Also, their customer service rocks: they've been really helpful in the past, once even sending me a package via international FedEx, at no charge, because my flight left before my new card could arrive to my U.S. address. I've had absolutely no complaints about them.

 

[Sleuth]

USAA refunds up to $15.00 of other banks ATM fees each month, charges none of their own for the first 10 withdrawals, and assesses a 1% foreign transaction fee. How does that compare to Schwab?

Schwab refunded me U$S 217.46 last month for ATM fees in Buenos Aires.

 

[hepdoll]

What the rest are saying - Charles Schwab! No fees, good customer service, and I can transfer money onlines from other bank accounts.

 

[BaltRochGirl]

There is a limit to how many withdrawals they will reimburse for each month. I forget what the limit is, but I've never bumped up against it.

it's 10 a month but you have to have some family military affiliation to become a member so it's not available to everyone.

 

[steveinbsas]

Will I be able to fun my new Schwab account from my Citibank account? Or do i have to have some in the states deposit money for me?

If your Citibank account is in Argentina I don't think you can link it directly to a Schwab account in the US. You will have to have the money deposited to your Schwab account or any other US bank that you can link to your Schwab account.

 

[ndcj]

Another option is PNC Bank Performance Checking:

https://www.pnc.com/webapp/unsec/So...c/home/personal/checking/performance+checking

Also reimburses all foreign ATM fees (unlimited) and charges no fees of their own on ATM transactions. Need $2,500 average balance to avoid $15/month account fee.

 

[nehalecky]

I also opened a Charles Schwab account, online from Buenos Aires, and everything seemed to be going great (I had a friend visiting me bring me all of my documents and debit card). However, today, the German company that I am working for tried to deposit into the account and was unable to do so.

I called, to find out the problem, and was very surprised to find out that my account had been closed! After a long conversation with a helpful, yet somewhat defensive brokerage customer service agent (with a slight southern twang), I was told that the bank closed the account because they do to failure of verification. He was unsure of how the bank had tried to contact me to let me know that a verification was necessary, and not knowing this, is where he was a bit defensive.

Asking more, I found out that my account had been flagged because they detected the foreign IP address (I applied while in Buenos Aires) from where I applied. This causes a flag and from here they require to verification that you are actually residing in the United States, which is not really the case for me at the moment.

To resolve this, I now have two options:
1) Reactivate the account by visiting a Schwab customer service center in person with valid ID and proof of residency in the area of the address associated with my account.
2) Re-apply online from within the United States.

I won't be in the States again until the summer, unfortunately, but will need this account very soon. I think I will wait a few days, hop on a proxy server and reapply online (with the idea that I don't set off a flag again) and have my family ship the materials to me after they arrive at my home in the States. But I write all this to give other people considering this option a heads up (I will let you know how my application with at , and also to ask if anyone else experienced something like this? If so, how did you resolve it?