What is a Temporary credit card from the bank?

How do you get a temporary credit card? Then read this article to know its process. You can also learn about the process, uses, payments, and other details. All the important information is provided in this article.

Temporary Credit card:

For safe and secure online shopping, banks provide temporary credit cards called Virtual cards. This card has a security code and a certain expiration date. It is an alternative to the original card to prevent fraud while shopping. You can use this virtual card while shopping; it is not a physical card.

Not all merchants accept virtual cards for payments; only certain merchants accept this. Even though this has many benefits, it has many limitations. Banks like Capital one and Citibank offer this virtual card option currently. They don’t give a guarantee about zero fraud but prevent fraud.

How does a virtual credit card works?

To use a virtual credit card, you must check whether the bank offers a virtual one. If they offer this service, give them your credit card details and request this. The card will have a temporary security number and expiration date to protect the original account data. Follow these steps to use the card,

  • Enter the virtual security number while making payments.
  • Enter the validity date.
  • You will get an OTP number to the registered number; enter OTP for confirmation.
  • Finally, confirm the payments.

Even though you use a virtual card, it works under the original card. The amount will deduct from the linked bank account only.

Benefits:

There are many benefits of using a temporary credit card. They are,

  • It protects the original credit card details.
  • You can also get this from the bank even without an original card.
  • It is easy to make payments using this one.
  • The users can block the card immediately if they suspect any fraud.
  • The unutilized amount will be transferred to an original bank account after the expiration.
  • Bank provides this card without any charges.
  • It is useful for both national and international transactions.
  • We only need the phone numbers to make payments.

Is it safe to use a Temporary credit card?

Yes, it is safe to use a virtual credit card provided by the bank because these are one-time-use cards only. These are given high-security measures. You can immediately cancel the card even if there is a slight fraud suspect.

How to get a temporary credit card?

As only certain banks provide these services, you can follow the following steps to get a temporary credit card.

  • If you are a credit card holder, log in to your account online.
  • After opening, search for the Virtual card number or Virtual account number.
  • Next, confirm it, and you will also get the expiry date and temporary security number.
  • Use this number while making payments.

There are two types of cards.

Singel-use cards: These cards can be used only once, and it expires after using them. You can use it while doing online shopping with any merchant.

Multi-use cards: We can use this card while making payments with frequent purchases from merchants.

Where can you get a Virtual credit card?

In current times only two banks provide temporary credit cards for online shopping. They are,

Citibank: Along with all the financial services, this bank also gives virtual credit card services. They provide this to make it easy for the customers to make payments.

CapitalOne Eno: You can use CapitalOne Eno to get a virtual credit card. For this, you should download the extension from any browser. Now click on the extension button to generate the card. After generating, you can use it to make payments. This is a digital card used mainly for online shopping.

Drawbacks:

Even though there are many advantages and benefits of the temporary credit card, there are some drawbacks. Here is a list of some cons of this,

  • Only certain merchants accept this card for payments.
  • You must provide the original card details if you want a refund after the expiry. The main purpose of it is to hide the original bank account details.
  • Due to the original card and temporary security numbers being different, it may need help during payments.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs):

Can we get instant approval for a virtual credit card?

Yes, we can get an instant approval for a temporary credit card.

Can we get a temporary card anonymously?

No, we need to provide bank details to get a temporary credit card.

How long does a temporary credit card last?

A temporary credit card lasts up to 14 days after opening an account.

Can we take a temporary credit card from any bank?

To get a temporary credit card, the bank should offer the services.

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