Moving abroad - Clarity card and chances of acceptance?

stellar2011

Hello,

I'm moving to Brussels for six months for work - being seconded out there, so my salary will continue to be paid in pounds to my UK account. I went to see my bank today to ask about arranging a monthly transfer to my new Belgian account, and was surprised to hear that (a) they don't set up regular international transfers, and (b) I'd be charged £25 each time I make one. In one sense this doesn't matter as work would pay the fee, but on principle I'd rather avoid it! Plus it's very inconvenient to have to call my bank each time I want to make a transfer and then wait three days for the money.

So, I've been having a look at the credit card options, and like many here find the Halifax Clarity card looks like a sensible idea. What do you think? If I want to withdraw cash in euros on it - say to the value of £200 each month - how much will that cost me?

To add some context, I'm currently working on reducing my student overdraft (hopefully down to less than £1000 by the end of this month!), and had been planning to apply for a Tesco credit card when I've done so, so I can use it for clubcard points and airmiles from regular spending.

However, if I apply now for a Clarity card, that presumably reduces my chances of getting a Tesco one too in a couple of months' time?

I currently have a Barclaycard with a silly limit (£5k), which I rarely use. I would want to cancel it if I get either the Clarity or Tesco cards, or both - it doesn't give me any extra benefits and has an average interest rate. Would the fact that I currently technically have access to this £5k credit plus my student overdraft limit of £3k jeopardise my chances of getting the Clarity card? I could ask for both the current limits to be significantly reduced?

Many thanks for your help, and sorry for the convoluted questions!

Degenerate

Can't see the point of you getting a Tesco card until after your return - the forex loading would massively outweigh the benefits if you spent on it abroad.

stellar2011

Thanks Degenerate, you're right.

So suppose I apply for the Clarity card now, on a current debt-to-credit ratio of around 1 in 8 and a gross salary of £27,800. Do you think I'd be accepted? Or should I make some reductions in my existing OD and CC limits to be sure?

Then I could decide whether or not I still think a Tesco card is a good idea when I get back.

Degenerate

stellar2011 wrote: »

So suppose I apply for the Clarity card now, on a current debt-to-credit ratio of around 1 in 8 and a gross salary of £27,800. Do you think I'd be accepted?

Probably.

Or should I make some reductions in my existing OD and CC limits to be sure?

Available credit of £5K on a CC and £3K on an overdraft with nearly £28K salary does not sound excessive to me.

For comparison, I applied for a Clarity Rewards card in December, thinking I was chancing it a bit with my existing available credit standing at £44,250 and income at £51,500. They gave me a credit limit of £10,200 taking me over 100% of income in available credit. Of course there are other factors to consider - I have a spotless credit history, bags of equity in my house, and wasn't actually using any of that available credit (CCs always paid in full every month), but still I would fancy your chances unless you have some nasties on your credit files.

stellar2011

Really helpful, thanks. I'm just nervous because I've never actually applied for a card before - Barclaycard sent me one shortly after I turned 18, which I suppose is borderline illegal! Happily, I've never abused the privilege...

Will give it a try.

Fiddlestick

stellar2011 wrote: »

Really helpful, thanks. I'm just nervous because I've never actually applied for a card before - Barclaycard sent me one shortly after I turned 18, which I suppose is borderline illegal!

It's not illegal at all - you were 18 at the time.

Anyway, what I would do would be to open a Citibank Euro current account. It's operated from the UK but denominated in EUR, and supports SEPA and comes with a EUR debit card.

You may need to pay a conversion fee when you transfer money from your GBP account into the Citibank account, but once there you can then use the debit card in Belgium without any further fees.