Cash Passport is an Electronic Travellers Cheque. You “load” your holiday spending money onto it in advance (at a participating branch of the bank you bought it from) in Euros, US Dollars or British Pounds, then use it in millions of ATMs and retailers across the world (outside China) that display the MasterCard® Acceptance Mark to access your money quickly and safely.
MasterCard and the MasterCard Brand Mark are registered trademarks of MasterCard International Incorporated.
Cash Passport is PIN and signature protected. To reduce the threat of fraud it doesn’t reveal any personal information and it’s completely separate from your bank account.
For more information about the security features please click here.
Cash Passport offers all the peace of mind and security of traditional travellers cheques, with more convenience worldwide. It also makes it much easier to stay in control of your holiday budget than a standard debit or credit card: you can only spend the pre-loaded balance and with fixed ATM fees it’s easier to manage your overseas spending.
Please click here for full details of the fees and limits.
The prepaid Euro Cash Passport is the obvious choice for European countries, likewise the US Dollar option will be best for the United States and the British Pound option for the United Kingdom. In other countries or areas the US Dollar option may be best.
No matter which currency you choose you can still use Cash Passport worldwide (outside China). The system will automatically convert your stored currency to the local one, for instance from US Dollars to Indian Rupees.
Use your Cash Passport to pay for goods and services globally at any retailer, restaurant or merchant displaying the MasterCard® Acceptance Mark (outside China).
Mail order, telephone and online purchases are not allowed on your Cash Passport.
Withdraw local currency at any ATM in the world displaying the MasterCard® Acceptance Mark (outside China): there are more than a million to choose from and you can check their locations using the MasterCard ATM locator.
Please note: There are a number of countries where the use of Cash Passport is not allowed as they are subject to US economic sanctions. If you attempt to use your Cash Passport in any of these countries, your request will be declined and the reason give as 'Declined, prohibited country'.
The countries currently affected by sanctions are:
Cuba, Iran, Myanmar (Burma), Sudan and Syria
The Cash Passport is designed for use overseas and is therefore restricted for use within China, Cash Passport cannot be used at ATMs or merchants within China.
MasterCard and the MasterCard Brand Mark are registered trademarks of MasterCard International Incorporated.
Your Cash Passport is automatically activated within minutes of purchase.
Take your Cash Passport and valid photo ID to any participating branch of the bank where you bought it (for instance Bank of China), and they will reload the Cash Passport for you.
Go to My Cash Passport and click the ‘Sign up’ button. You’ll be prompted to enter the primary Cash Passport number. If you have more than one Cash Passport ignore the last digit on each one and pick out the Cash Passport with the lowest number: that’s your primary Cash Passport.
Once you’ve signed in you can view your transaction history, change your PIN and manage your account.
You can manage these everyday aspects of your account online as soon as you’ve registered online at My Cash Passport, or you can call one of the Customer Services numbers (they’re on the back of your Cash Passport).
You’ll need to download and complete our transaction query form. Click here for further details.
Full details of how to contact Customer Services are available
here.
Your Cash Passport should work in any machine carrying the MasterCard® Acceptance Mark (outside China). If it doesn’t your Cash Passport may be faulty and you can get 24/7 help from Travelex via the Global Emergency Assistance numbers.
Cash Passport uses a standard four digit PIN that all MasterCard ATMs should accept. In some European locations where you may be asked for a six digit PIN you can also add two zeros to the end of your PIN.
Note that if you make three invalid PIN entry attempts your Cash Passport will be blocked for 24 hours, though you can always get it released by calling the Global Emergency Assistance helpline.
Please note that you cannot change your PIN at an ATM.
24/7 Global Emergency Assistance will get you back in control of your money. Instructions are available here.
You can use your Cash Passport to make a partial payment, and cover the balance with another payment method. Just make sure you tell the cashier before you start the transaction and confirm the amount you want deducted from your Cash Passport. The cashier should process your Cash Passport payment first, and then accept the remainder of the balance in whichever way you want to pay.
This should only happen when you don’t have enough money on your Cash Passport to cover the purchase (though you can always use what money you do have on your Cash Passport to make a partial payment – see above).
Be aware that some retailers, such as restaurants, may require your Cash Passport to have an available balance greater than the purchase amount before they will authorise the payment.
We want to keep things simple and convenient. Cash Passport is designed to be used abroad where the use of Chip varies widely. The PIN and signature requirements will give full protection to your Cash Passport's balance.
In some places (usually hotels or for car hire) you may be asked for your Cash Passport as “pre-authorisation” of your final payment. We don’t recommend you agree to this, because some of these companies may estimate your final bill and deduct money against that estimate for up to seven days, leaving you without access to the money held for other things. You can of course use your Cash Passport to settle the final bill when it becomes due.
Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) is an optional service that is sometimes offered by foreign retailers and ATM operators giving you the choice of paying in either the currency of the country they are visiting or their domestic currency.
If you make a purchase or ATM withdrawal in the country of your Cash Passport currency e.g. using a Euro Cash Passport in the Eurozone and are offered DCC please DO NOT take it.
If you have a foreign currency Cash Passport, please opt to pay in the local currency NOT CHINESE RENMINBI to avoid paying an additional exchange rate.
No, cashback is not available on Cash Passport.
You can either transfer your funds to a new Cash Passport or cashout the balance and close your Cash Passport.
If you would prefer not to keep your Cash Passport for another trip, you can cashout the balance to your bank account at the retailer you bought the Cash Passport from or by calling
Customer Services. An administrative fee may apply. (See the Fees and Limits section of the User Guide)
For full details of cashouts or closing Cash Passport accounts click here.
We don’t provide paper statements but you can always view your transactions and statements in your secure account areas online and print those details at your convenience.