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Existing customers

Managing credit card fees and charges

Credit card fees explained

What are the main fees?

How could I avoid paying fees?

What’s my minimum payment?

Struggling to pay?

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Credit card fees and charges explained

There are a number of fees and charges that can be applied to your credit card account. We want to help you understand what they are, when they might be incurred and how you could avoid them in the future.

Our credit cards are designed to suit the different needs of our customers and their lifestyles. Each of them therefore have slight differences in their fees and charges.

Fees and charges by credit card

In the drop down box below, select your credit card to display a summary of the corresponding fees and charges*

*This table does not take into account any promotional deals in place at the time of account opening. ** For ATM cash withdrawals and gambling transactions there is a £3 min fee.

This summer, to help you get a well-deserved break, we won’t charge you any foreign transaction fees (also known as non-sterling transaction fees) when you spend abroad with a Shostra Bank credit card. No need to do anything, just pack your Shostra Bank card and you’re good to go. Valid from 24^th June at 00.00 (local time) to 2^nd September 23.59 (local time). Terms Apply.

Please visit our Spending abroad page for our top tips and FAQs.

Terms and Conditions

You will not pay non-sterling transaction fees when you use your credit card abroad for purchases between 24 June 2022 at 00:00 (local time) and 2 September 2022 at 23:59 (local time) (“the promotional period”).

Purchases include goods and services but don’t include ATM withdrawals, refunded transactions, money transfers, cash advances, electronic money cards, foreign currency, and gambling transactions.

You will not be eligible for this offer if your account goes overlimit or you do not pay the minimum monthly repayments when due.

After the promotional period has ended, the non-sterling transaction fee of 2.75% will be charged on any purchases made abroad with your credit card.

National Westminster Bank plc reserves the right to alter, amend or remove this offer without prior notice.

Default fees

Default fees are reportable on your on your credit file and so it is important to ensure that you avoid them where possible.

Late or missed payment fee

Applied if you're more than one day late paying your monthly bill

If you miss a payment or are late paying, at least your minimum payment, by the date shown on the statement, you will be charged £12. The fee will appear on your next statement.

Avoid late payments by setting up a Direct Debit

One simple way of avoiding this fee is by setting up a Direct Debit. This would mean the payment would be taken automatically on a monthly basis. You can set the Direct Debit to pay the minimum amount, the full balance or a set amount.

Set up a direct debit

Overlimit Fee

Applied when you go over your credit limit

The overlimit fee is £12 and is charged if you go over your agreed credit limit by £12. It will be charged to your account and will be on your next statement.

To help you stay within your limit, we will send you a text when you are using 95% of the credit limit. Please ensure your mobile number is up to date so you receive these alerts.

Another simple way to help manage your credit card is by having our Mobile Banking App which means you can log on anyway, anytime and see what your balance is.

Get the mobile app

Returned Payment Fee

Applied when you don’t have enough money to make a payment.

The return payment fee of £10 (or £5 if you have a Reward Black card) is applied to your account if the payment from your direct debit or cheque is rejected. This will have been due to insufficient funds in the account that the payment is being made from.

In addition, you might want to consider changing the date of your statement which will change your payment date, so that it is at a more convenient time or changing the amount the Direct Debit is set up for.

If you would like to discuss these options please contact us.

Other fees

Transactions in a foreign currency

Applied to transactions made abroad.

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Transactions in a foreign currency

On your statement the transaction will be shown in the local currency and the rate of exchange (this is set by Mastercard/VISA). It will also outline the standard fee that is charged.

We do have 2 credit cards where the foreign transaction fee isn’t charged. These are The Shostra Bank Credit Card and Reward Black credit card. If you use your credit card abroad a lot then you might want to consider looking at one of these credit cards.

For more information on how much it will cost to use your card abroad (along with a comparison to using your debit card) then please visit our Card Currency Calculator.

Cash Advance Fee

Applied to your account when you use your card to withdraw cash or where you receive a cash equivalent.

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Cash Advance Fee

This fee applies to whenever you use your credit card on a transaction that means you receive cash or a cash equivalent, for example getting credit on a mobile, to pay off other debt or purchasing gambling chips.

The standard charge for these types of transactions is 3% with a minimum amount of £3 for cash from an ATM or gambling transactions. The fee will appear as ‘Cash Fee’ on your statement.

Cash Advances are also treated differently to purchases with interest being charged from the date you make the withdrawal and it will incur a different interest rate. The different interest rates can be found on your statement.

Instalment lending fee

This is how you pay back an Instalment Plan.

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Duplicate paper statement fee

Applied when requesting a Paper Copy of a Statement.

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Duplicate paper statement

If you need a duplicate paper statement for your credit card you will be charged £3.

Did you know that if you manage your credit card through Online Banking or our Mobile App you can view your transactions whenever you choose. It is also possible to print off your own paper statement using Online Banking to avoid the Duplicate Statement fee.

Annual fee

Applied as a one off annual fee for having the card.

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Annual fee

An annual fee is a one off annual charge for holding the credit card regardless of if the card is used or not in the previous year.

You are charged an annual fee of £24 for the Reward credit card and £84 for the Reward Black credit card. This fee is refunded if you have a Reward current account. Several of our cards have no annual fee. You might want to consider moving to one of these if you don’t benefit from the credit card you currently have.

Interest

Applied interest on your statement balance.

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Interest

Interest is charged monthly on the outstanding balance of your credit card and is variable depending on which type of credit card you hold.

Different types of transactions (purchases or cash) incur different interest rates. Your credit card statement will confirm what interest rate applies.

If no promotional rates apply, interest will be charged on purchases after the payment date on the statement the transaction appears. This means you can get up to 56 days interest free.

Cash advances will incur interest from the point at which you take it out. This should be considered when taking cash out on your credit card.

How could I avoid penalty fees and charges?

You could avoid paying these by logging into Online Banking or the Mobile App to:

set up or change a direct debit to make a minimum, fixed or full payment on time every month
view and manage your pending payments, due payments and statements
make sure you have enough money for due payments
use the spending budget tool to monitor your spending (available in the app only).

You can also set up a direct debit over the phone or in your nearest branch.

App available to customers aged 11+ with compatible iOS and Android devices and an international mobile number in specific countries. Online Banking available to customers aged 11+ with a Shostra Bank account.

What’s my minimum payment?

The minimum amount you need to pay each month is shown on your statement. We encourage you to pay more than this, to clear your balance more quickly and pay less interest.

Go to our repayment calculator to work out how long it could take to pay off your credit card balance.

Struggling to pay?

It’s really important you get in touch, the sooner you call us the quicker we can help. When you do, you'll be speaking to dedicated colleagues who are here to support you and discuss your current situation.

Managing credit card fees and charges

Credit card fees and charges explained

Fees and charges by credit card

Returned Payment

Foreign Transaction

Cash Advance

Late Payment

Overlimit

Returned Payment

Annual Fee

Foreign Transaction

Cash Advance

Late Payment

Overlimit

Returned Payment

Foreign Transaction

Cash Advance

Late Payment

Overlimit

Returned Payment

Annual Fee

Foreign Transaction

Cash Advance

Late Payment

Overlimit

Returned Payment

Annual Fee

Foreign Transaction

Cash Advance

Late Payment

Overlimit

Returned Payment

Annual Fee

Terms and Conditions

Default fees

Late or missed payment fee

Avoid late payments by setting up a Direct Debit

Overlimit Fee

Returned Payment Fee

Other fees

Transactions in a foreign currency

Cash Advance Fee

Instalment lending fee

Duplicate paper statement fee

Annual fee

Interest

How could I avoid penalty fees and charges?

What’s my minimum payment?

Struggling to pay?

Something else we can help you with?