Prepaid Debit Cards or Gift Cards in Canada

[Craneman 2]

You can buy these at Walmarts, reload them at Walmarts.

I'm at the end of my rope here. Seriously. I feel like I'm about ready to do some major damage, but because that'd probably end badly, with the police (and possibly the national guard) getting called out, I've decided to come here and ask for assistance.

Here's my problem: I'd like to get my fiancee either a prepaid debit card or a gift card. Seems easy enough, right? Oh, how I wish that were true. I've been going absolutely crazy trying to figure out someplace in Canada where I could make this happen. Neither seem to exist. Google is worthless! All I'm able to find are prepaid debit/gift cards that are useful in the United States.

I realize that, theoretically, any prepaid debit card from the U.S. should work in Canada. I've used one before and it worked just fine. However, my father gave my fiancee and me two prepaid American debit cards and while mine works just fine for me, my fiancee's card will only function properly for on-line purchases. She cannot buy anything in stores with it (funds are loaded onto it) and she has tried it numerous times in different places. So I'd rather not get her a prepaid debit card from the U.S., since none of the websites offering them seem to mention whether or not their card will work correctly outside of the country.

As far as gift cards go, it only makes sense to get one for a store that's available to her. I'm sure you're all well aware that there are plenty of stores that only exist in one country or the other. Unfortunately, it seems that 99.9% of gift cards are made available solely for American stores , and the stores in Canada that do have gift cards want the purchaser to pick the card up in-person from the store. That doesn't really work for me.

For the record, I am looking at brick-and-mortar stores; not Internet vendors, such as Amazon.ca or whatever. I realize I could get a gift certificate from there sent to her e-mail address, but Amazon.ca is fairly limited. Besides, according to her, what she really needs is more clothing, so Amazon.ca probably isn't the best choice (neither is Future Shop or Chapters, since she's not in the market for anything either of those stores are offering) because she'd need to try the clothing on before buying it.

I really don't think I'm asking that much. I'd just like to be able to get a prepaid debit card (I'd prefer this option, since it'd allow for greater purchasing flexibility) or gift card for my fiancee by ordering it on-line and having it sent to her apartment. This should be a simple and painless procedure! Instead, it's rapidly turning into a nightmare!

As I wrote earlier in this thread, I am really stuck. I'd appreciate any and all help. Thanks ahead of time.

YES! and its the best thing I ever done!

Dont need a bank account

You can get money direct deposited to your card

Safer than cash

FREE customer service

https://www.greendotprepaidcards.com/card-benefits.aspx

~Keri

[Cassie 8]

Walmart gift cards bought in Canada will not work in US Walmarts, and vice versa. That's part of the OP's problem.

[misa 2]

I hope it didn't come across as harsh - someone told me something I had said today 'wasn't true' (it was an absolute fact - but I digress )

Which got me thinking about the post I made here saying - Not True. Didn't mean to sound harsh anyway, hope it didn't sound that way to you.

Ditto about the sounding harsh bit!

Hey DeadPool, are you trying to surprise her with the gift of cash or are you just sending her money? If it's money and it's going to be on a regular basis, you might want to look into electronic money transfers from your account to hers using Custom House.

Carla (cartoboy) had a good idea though about getting her an ATM card from your bank. If you don't want to give her access to the entire account you could always set up another account, send her the card and keep shoving money in there when you need to. This might be the easiest way to go about things. If it's a chequing account "check card" she could use it either as a debit card or wherever they take credit cards.

[Sameh and Keri 0]

I'm at the end of my rope here. Seriously. I feel like I'm about ready to do some major damage, but because that'd probably end badly, with the police (and possibly the national guard) getting called out, I've decided to come here and ask for assistance.

Here's my problem: I'd like to get my fiancee either a prepaid debit card or a gift card. Seems easy enough, right? Oh, how I wish that were true. I've been going absolutely crazy trying to figure out someplace in Canada where I could make this happen. Neither seem to exist. Google is worthless! All I'm able to find are prepaid debit/gift cards that are useful in the United States.

I realize that, theoretically, any prepaid debit card from the U.S. should work in Canada. I've used one before and it worked just fine. However, my father gave my fiancee and me two prepaid American debit cards and while mine works just fine for me, my fiancee's card will only function properly for on-line purchases. She cannot buy anything in stores with it (funds are loaded onto it) and she has tried it numerous times in different places. So I'd rather not get her a prepaid debit card from the U.S., since none of the websites offering them seem to mention whether or not their card will work correctly outside of the country.

As far as gift cards go, it only makes sense to get one for a store that's available to her. I'm sure you're all well aware that there are plenty of stores that only exist in one country or the other. Unfortunately, it seems that 99.9% of gift cards are made available solely for American stores , and the stores in Canada that do have gift cards want the purchaser to pick the card up in-person from the store. That doesn't really work for me.

For the record, I am looking at brick-and-mortar stores; not Internet vendors, such as Amazon.ca or whatever. I realize I could get a gift certificate from there sent to her e-mail address, but Amazon.ca is fairly limited. Besides, according to her, what she really needs is more clothing, so Amazon.ca probably isn't the best choice (neither is Future Shop or Chapters, since she's not in the market for anything either of those stores are offering) because she'd need to try the clothing on before buying it.

I really don't think I'm asking that much. I'd just like to be able to get a prepaid debit card (I'd prefer this option, since it'd allow for greater purchasing flexibility) or gift card for my fiancee by ordering it on-line and having it sent to her apartment. This should be a simple and painless procedure! Instead, it's rapidly turning into a nightmare!

As I wrote earlier in this thread, I am really stuck. I'd appreciate any and all help. Thanks ahead of time.

I tried editing my note and it would not let me... but this is what I wanted to emphisise and I encourage you to go get one...

YES! and its the best thing I ever done!

♥Dont need a bank account

♥NO CREDIT CHECK!

♥You can get money direct deposited to your card

♥Safer than cash

♥FREE customer service

♥It's safer than carrying cash

♥No overdraft fees

♥No more check cashing fees

♥Buy gas, shopping online, pay bills without waiting in line

♥Reload at CVS, RiteAid, Walgreens and more

♥Use it everywhere debit MasterCard and Visa debit cards are accepted

♥Get cash at ATMs

LOCATIONS TO GET ONE...

http://www.getmygreen.com/Pages/ReloadCard.aspx

INFO on Green Dot pre-paid cards...

https://www.greendotprepaidcards.com/card-benefits.aspx

~Keri

I did look everywhere on their sites and I dont see anywhere outside of USA to purchase these. That is most unfortunate. I use this card online. I was also searching to put in a request to suggest location flexability and availabilty. This card is a GREAT system. I still dont know what is available in Canada for something like this. Very sorry. ~Keri

[DeadPoolX 9]

Just a thought...but what about a debit card from YOUR bank in the US? Would that not work in Canada? I mean...if you were visiting Canada you would use it wouldn't you? Could you get one for her?

Carla

Holy #######!

I'm a moron! I don't usually say things like that lightly (especially about myself; I tend to like myself!), but that is a terrific idea! My Gold Debit Card from Washington Mutual not only works in Canada and the United States (obviously), but supposedly in any other country without charging additional fees if you withdraw cash from a non-Washington Mutual ATM machine. I've used it within the U.S. and Canada and I've never been charged an extra cent for withdrawing cash out of ATM's that didn't belong to WAMU.

I bet I could get one for her too. That is a great idea.

Ditto about the sounding harsh bit!

Hey DeadPool, are you trying to surprise her with the gift of cash or are you just sending her money? If it's money and it's going to be on a regular basis, you might want to look into electronic money transfers from your account to hers using Custom House.

Carla (cartoboy) had a good idea though about getting her an ATM card from your bank. If you don't want to give her access to the entire account you could always set up another account, send her the card and keep shoving money in there when you need to. This might be the easiest way to go about things. If it's a chequing account "check card" she could use it either as a debit card or wherever they take credit cards.

Neither you nor Trailmix sounded "harsh" to me, Misa. I know I can't speak for all Americans, but in general, I think can easily say that we tend to use a little less "tact" here in the U.S. when speaking to each other. In other words, I'm used to it.

Now then... to the subject at hand: I was looking to surprise her with a gift card or a debit card because this way I wouldn't need to know her checking account number. If I had to ask for that, not only would she know what I'd be doing, but she'd more than likely refuse. It's not that she wouldn't trust me, it's merely that she wouldn't want me sending her money. However, the Custom House idea is still a good one. One of us might need to use that at some point in the future, so it might be smart to set something up ahead of time.

As I wrote before, Carla's idea is great. I'm sure I could do that (just by opening up a new checking account at WAMU, I'd automatically get a new debit card, so I could theoretically take care of both actions together at once!) and solve my entire problem. I can't believe I didn't think of this one myself.

Oh well. As a saying I once saw scribbled inside a fortune cookie goes, "Sometimes the easiest solution is right in front of you. Now tip the waiter."

So... thanks!