Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast
Results 1 to 25 of 84
  1. #1

    Exclamation PayPal's refusal to issue PayPal Debit Card to non-US customers

    Anyone outside the US tried to obtain a PayPal Debit Card, which is distributed FREE to US PayPal customers? For many non-US users this would be a convenient way to withdraw money from their PayPal account, either through ATM's or POS*. For many PayPal users that would eliminate the hassle and expense of opening a US bank account.

    But my various requests by email and phone were declined, because I'm an international customer, and not a US user, which makes me "unfit" to qualify for the card.

    Maybe it's now time to start "bombarding" PayPal with applications for their Debit Card by non-US PayPal customers. That will make them aware of the problem, and may speed up internal discussions within PayPal. Demands for PP DC's should also be addressed to PP executive management, to be found here: http://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr...n/team-outside

    PayPal discriminates against its international clientele. It's time to unite, stand up and fight back. We, PayPal customers, are the raison d'etre of PayPal's very existence!

    E PLURIBUS UNUM !


    *POS = Point Of Sale = any place where you use your card for
    purchases: stores, internet, etc.
    Last edited by paulcoin; 06-26-2004 at 03:32 AM.
      0 Not allowed!

  2. #2
    I second your view
      0 Not allowed!

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Posts
    84
    I agree it would be nice. However, Paypal is fundamentally a US company, and the same reason that US banks do not normally open account for foreign residents apply to them as well.
      0 Not allowed!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Al Qaaba, Makka Al-Mukarrama
    Posts
    28

    Unhappy Nothing to compare PayPal with US banks

    First of all, paulcoin, a good idea.

    Then, Lyoung, no comparison can be made with US banks which, at best, are hesitant to open non-US accounts. And the very few that do, impose multiple obstacles and/or restrictions.

    PayPal's policy is exactly the opposite: international personal, business and merchant accounts received with open arms, no questions asked. Just sign up, activate your account, and you're up and running. Receive payments, make payments, add funds, withdraw funds (to a bank - if you CAN...), etc.

    Don't forget that PayPal is 'de facto' both a virtual credit card clearing house, and a virtual bank. And if you can withdraw money (to a US or non-US bank), then they actually operate outside the scope of all those US laws that make opening an account with a 'real' US bank such a difficult task.

    So, forget about any legal comparisons, because there are none, except the fact that both (PayPal and US banks) have accounts where they keep your money, and from which you can withdraw money (if you CAN...).

    If PayPal can issue debit cards to US customers, they can do so for non-US clients too. If that is the purpose of this forum, then we should support it.
      0 Not allowed!

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Location
    DC
    Posts
    3,643
    PayPal's debit cards are issued through a third party bank that chooses not to work with international credit & debit card accounts, if I am correct. I believe that they have started testing the debit cards with Canadian customers though. PayPal can't start partnering with banking institutions in every country in order to let you have a debit card - it's not discrimination. Bombarding them with foriegn applications is not going to do anything.

    - Matt
      0 Not allowed!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
    Location
    Under the sea
    Posts
    4,208
    I'm in Canada and had no problem obtaining a card.
      0 Not allowed!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Chesapeake, VA
    Posts
    3,381
    It is very important to realize that the reason that merchant processors, 3rd party processors and even various issuers do not service the international market has nothing to do with things like "lack of willingness", "lack of desire" or "discrimination" - and everything to do with legislation and regulation.

    For instance, Visa and MasterCard have various territories that they regulate. They have different programs and structures for different markets... and they specifically prohibit a U.S. merchant processor from setting up foreign merchants.

    Along a similiar line, the Patriot Act legislature here in the U.S. enacted post 9/11, makes it nearly impossible for a bank to setup a bank account for a non-U.S. individual or business these days.

    Credit card issuers, just like their acquiring counterparts, also face similiar restrictions and obstacles. Often times, these obstacles are not easily overcome and sometimes the foreign banks that have domicile over that "territory" don't want to share and thus are disinclined to let anyone else "step on their turf."

    This is the reason why you don't see a proliferation of merchant accounts and credit / debit cards being issued to international entities.

    Believe me - if we COULD - we'd love to offer merchant accounts to Canada, Europe, Australia, Asia and other areas of the world... but that just isn't feasible at this time due to the above reasons.

    I'm sure that PayPal is in a similiar boat but over time, they may overcome some of these obstacles to the benefit of their international clientele.
    CDGcommerce.com - Trusted Merchant Account Solutions since 1998
    Many thousands of successful, growing businesses benefit from our expertise every day. You can, too!
    We help merchants to eliminate gateway costs, reduce & mitigate fraud and achieve streamlined PCI compliance.
    Learn more today at http://www.cdgcommerce.com - we look forward to helping your business grow!
      0 Not allowed!

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
    Location
    Under the sea
    Posts
    4,208
    Believe me - if we COULD - we'd love to offer merchant accounts to Canada, Europe, Australia, Asia and other areas of the world... but that just isn't feasible at this time due to the above reasons.
    PayPal does offer them to Canada.
      0 Not allowed!

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Location
    DC
    Posts
    3,643
    Originally posted by HBN
    PayPal does offer them to Canada.
    I believe they deal with a different company to offer debit cards in Canada. As I said earlier, they can't start partnering with & integrating their services with banks in each country to offer debit cards to every customer.

    - Matt
      0 Not allowed!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Chesapeake, VA
    Posts
    3,381
    My comment on "we'd love to offer merchant accounts" was actually referring to CDG, not to PayPal.

    I was just making the point that it isn't usually a matter of willingness, but a result of legal and regulatory restrictions - that stops most financial businesses from offering their services abroad.

    But... I'm glad to hear that PayPal offers their debit card to Canada!
    CDGcommerce.com - Trusted Merchant Account Solutions since 1998
    Many thousands of successful, growing businesses benefit from our expertise every day. You can, too!
    We help merchants to eliminate gateway costs, reduce & mitigate fraud and achieve streamlined PCI compliance.
    Learn more today at http://www.cdgcommerce.com - we look forward to helping your business grow!
      0 Not allowed!

  11. #11

    World Marketplace

    Ebay-Paypay claims to be the world marketplace! How can it be????? They can not even offer a overseas payment system .
      0 Not allowed!

  12. #12
    Alright i have a question.
    My Paypal is canadian, my card is on its way to Canada. I live in costa Rica. My partner is in Canada. The card is on my name. He will send it to me (costa rica, central america) will i be able to use it?
    hehe..
    Sonnex Hosting
    Where the users are happy
    msn: josue [at] sonnexh.com
      0 Not allowed!

  13. #13

    Mail fowarding

    I dont know! Maybe the master Paulcoin nows it.

    But if yes, it is possible to use a mail fowarding service in USA to receive your card and send it to your country.

    It is not expensive.
      0 Not allowed!

  14. #14
    You can use that card in Costa Rica since it's a CC,but you may get flagged for fraud.

    Also, Canada is the United States closest neighbours. We share a lot of the same things. It's probably very easy to get things going in Canada once they are in place in the States.

    BTW if you want a CAD merchant account go for PSIgate
    Hockey is Life
      0 Not allowed!

  15. #15
    Indeed thats what im worried about (the froud flag).

    I've asked paypal anywyas, dont want my account to be frozen :p

    Thanks.
    Sonnex Hosting
    Where the users are happy
    msn: josue [at] sonnexh.com
      0 Not allowed!

  16. #16
    I can go for both sides on this issue. I am a US customer for PayPal and I can understand wants to keep the more complex stuff for in-country clients but maybe you should get a e-mail collection going and keep sending e-mails to PayPal telling them that you want them to issue debit cards to international customers. By the way, I am a US customer and I don't have a debit card from PayPal. That's my word on the issue.
      0 Not allowed!

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Nov 2001
    Location
    The South
    Posts
    5,408
    Originally posted by josue
    Alright i have a question.
    My Paypal is canadian, my card is on its way to Canada. I live in costa Rica. My partner is in Canada. The card is on my name. He will send it to me (costa rica, central america) will i be able to use it?
    hehe..
    Yes you should, however paypal is liable to call and verify purchases OFTEN.

    They pop me with a "fraud prevention" phone call just about anytime my card starts getting used outside north Alabama. If you don't answer the 2nd call (meaning they try twice0 then they suspend the card until you call them (has happened to me 3 times in the last 2 years). No big deal you call verify your info then verify "yes I bought blah on blah at blah" for a few transactions then they turn it back on, I even did it waiting at the checkout once It worked as soon as I hung up the phone.
    Gary Harris - the artist formerly known as Dixiesys
    resident grumpy redneck
      0 Not allowed!

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    San Francisco Bay Area
    Posts
    22
    hey folks... PayPal debit cards for various geographies aren't available for lack of desire, just that we're still building out all the necessary plumbing and infrastructure.

    since PayPal started in US/north america and we're located here, some services mey get rolled out here first and gradually introduced to other locations. note: we just added more countries and bank withdrawal support here:
    http://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr...ntries-outside

    recently we've been able to clear some local regulatory approval issues in the EU and several other locations, some PayPal features will likely start becoming easier for us to rollout there.

    that said, as someone else pointed out above there may be unique bank/card/currency/regulatory issues for various countries that may take time to figure out. but we *DO* hope to expand debit card usage to other geographies as soon as we possibly can.

    and paulcoin, i'll fwd this thread to the international folks so they can use this as leverage with the product team to get stuff out faster!


    (btw: it's somewhat amazing to think that just 5 years ago, PayPal didn't even *exist*... now we're in 45 countries worldwide...)
    - Dave McClure
    PayPal Developer Network
    http://www.paypal.com/pdn/
      0 Not allowed!

  19. #19
    Venezuela is Allowed????

    Wohoooo! Now I can tell my cousin about it
    ^_^
      0 Not allowed!

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Posts
    1,016
    I agree. It'd have been much convenient and I dont think its too difficult for PayPal. Its just that they want to rip off too much from the Non-US users. Most times users who dont find a US Bank account leave/close their funded accounts and there PayPal profits..
      0 Not allowed!

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Posts
    1,016
    PayPal Geek,
    Thanks for your response, feels good to get a reply. I emailed so many times, but most times they just paste a few lines from the FAQ, its irritating

    Singapore and Taiwan allowed, Why Not INDIA?
      0 Not allowed!

  22. #22
    it happened to a friend of mine, and he cant set up paypal now, it really sucks
      0 Not allowed!

  23. #23
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    San Francisco Bay Area
    Posts
    22
    Originally posted by openXS

    Singapore and Taiwan allowed, Why Not INDIA?
    i'm assuming you mean for local bank withdrawal... i believe we're working on it for India, but again it's a "local plumbing" issue. sorry, don't have a date on that one yet however i'd agree that's probably one of our next few targets.

    and now that we (eBay) just acquired Bazee.com in India, i'd imagine it will become a higher priority. a lot of the paypal country support strategy tends to follow the overall eBay geographic coverage.

    if i get any updates on India i'll forward the info...
    - Dave McClure
    PayPal Developer Network
    http://www.paypal.com/pdn/
      0 Not allowed!

  24. #24
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Location
    New Zealand
    Posts
    532
    Originally posted by PayPalGeek

    (btw: it's somewhat amazing to think that just 5 years ago, PayPal didn't even *exist*... now we're in 45 countries worldwide...)
    And still only such limited currencies available for accepting payments. If PayPal would add some of the more major currencies (NZD for one) that would be so useful, I mean, it an't be tooo hard.

    There is a market for a trusted (while some would disagree for 99% of us you do the job well) 3rd party payment processor such as PayPal in New Zealand, I imagine in Australia as well, not just from businesses wanting a cheap and effective payment processor without needing a merchant account, as much as from the burgeoning auction communities (for example trademe.co.nz).

    Currently PayPal kicks a** as long as you are dealing in the "Big-5" currencies (USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, JYP) but outside of those currencies it's just a pain in the butt which makes it useless for local dealings in countries with different local currencies.

    PayPal should give consideration to adding a few more currencies in which payments can be accepted.
      0 Not allowed!

  25. #25

    Some info for PayPalGeek

    Good to see that someone from the "inside" of PayPal is taking notice. It would be even better if some folks "high-up" in the eBay / PayPal hierachy get into the act, and get this moving, so that international PayPal customers can start using the PayPal debit card (or even a downgraded version which would functions as an ATM card).

    Simply mentioning to international clients that "money must be withdrawn to a US bank account", proves that PayPal officials are completely out of touch with US reality. Courtesy of the Patriot Act, opening a US bank account has become very difficult and expensive. I finally managed to open a US bank account two years ago through an intermediary company that sets up US bank accounts, only to have it arbitrarily closed down in April 2004. That was The Bancorp Bank of Wilmington, DE. So, I both lost my bank account and the money I paid to the middleman.

    Now, one can still open a US bank account through the same intermediary (and other), but his commission has gone up, and the terms for maintaining a US bank account are terribly inferior to those terms given by other banks to their US clientele.

    Few US banks still allow international customers to open a personal bank account directly with them "by mail" (no need to come to the US, and no need for a middleman), such as Wells Fargo and HSBC.
    But WF will only accept incoming PayPal transfers as long as the amounts are non-commercial in size. What amounts are deemed non-commercial and what are regarded as commercial? That's up to their discretion, meaning that they can close down the account at any time, or require me to upgrade to a "small business account", for which I must really be a US resident with an SSN, ITN, EIN, CIA, FBI, ATF, GOP, LAPD (NYPD mugshot not accepted 'cause WF is not a NY bank...) number.
    HSBC categorically refuses to accept opening personal accounts to receive PayPal funds.

    PayPal MUST address the problems of its international customers very soon, because another service provider, IKOBO, is offering a similar service, and DOES issue a so-called i-Kard - a low-cost ATM card for use worldwide. If more and more international PayPal customers get exasperated and move to iKobo, then PayPal will suddenly realize it's in a hell of a lot of trouble, but then it's too late...!

    I suggest that you get this issue rolling, and move it up the ladder, to the highest possible person you can get. Not "some department", not "someone in charge", but to a senior VP in charge of international business at PayPal / eBay.
    And they should not forget to periodically update their international customers on all stages of progress made; either on the PayPal website, or by email to their international account holders.

    PayPalGeek, the ball is in your (PayPal's) court now. It's YOUR (PayPal's) move!

    DON'T LET IT BE IKOBO'S MOVE !!!
      0 Not allowed!

Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •