This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Visa Electron is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:
Related Sponsors
Visa Electron is a debit or credit card available across most of the world, with the exception of Canada, Australia, and the United States. The card was introduced by VISA in the 1980s and is a sister card to the Visa Debit card. The difference between Visa Electron and Visa Debit is that payments with Visa Electron require that all the funds be available at the time of the transfer, i.e. Visa Electron card accounts cannot be overdrawn. As a comparison, Visa Debit cards allow transfers of unavailable funds below a certain limit. As a result, some online stores and all offline terminals (e.g. onboard trains or planes) do not support Visa Electron because their systems cannot check for the availability of funds.
In different regions, the card is issued with different specifications. For example, one bank may issue it as a debit card, while another may issue it as a credit card. It is most commonly issued as a debit card. In this case applying for a credit card requires the applicant to present some proof of regular income (such as an employment certificate) or financial assets invested elsewhere.
In addition to debit facilities, the card also allows the holder to withdraw cash from ATMs even outside the holder's country of residence unlike normal ATM cards issued in some countries. This is because Visa Electron cards are also linked to the PLUS interbank network.
In the United Kingdom, the card is not as widely accepted as the brother Visa Debit card, but is often issued by banks as a debit card for children's accounts. In some countries, like Australia, retailers are required to accept the card as part of VISA's Accept All Cards Policy, which also applies to the normal Visa Debit card, although the card is not available locally.citation needed
In countries that have stricter criteria for issuing credit cards, Visa Electron has become popular with younger people and students alike. As each transaction requires funds to be checked, there is no chance of accounts going overdrawn. Therefore banks will issue a Visa Electron card to customers who may not qualify for another type of card.
As Visa Electron cards lack embossed details, they cannot be used with older card "imprinters" that transfer payment information to a paper slip.
As the card carries a low interchange fee, airlines and other businesses which apply a surcharge for credit and debit card payments generally do not apply one for Visa Electron payments.
Current design
Special Visa Electron logo (normally on the bottom right) and the words "DEBIT CARD" (for debit cards - normally on the top right) VISA Electron cards should not normally have the dove hologram shown on VISA and VISA Debit cards; however one or two banks do include this feature. The numbers on the card are embedded rather than raised meaning the card can be used only electronically. The card cannot be imprinted and for card-present transactions can only be accepted through a magnetic stripe reader or a PIN entry device.
New design
As of mid 2006, VISA are now removing their trademark "flag" logo from all their cards, websites and retailer's windows. It will be the first time that VISA have removed this logo since the company was founded.
For all Electron cards, the new logo will be a simple white background with the name VISA in blue with an orange flick on the 'V'. This will be immediately followed by the word "Electron". Electron will continue to be flat (numbers not raised), but more recently, retailers allow for the card number to be keyed in - even though an imprint cannot be taken and it leaves them at risk.
For the new VISA and Visa Debit logo, see the relevant pages.
External links
- Directory of shops that accept Visa Electron card
- BBC article on Halifax switch to Electron
- Visa Electron Fact Sheet
|
|||||||||||||||||
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 7 January 2009, at 14:07.
Wikipedia Authorship and Review
Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.
Wikipedia Usage Guidelines
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Visa Electron".
The URL for this specific entry is:
All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.