# What is the best way to use my Revolut card?



## Brendan Burgess (15 Nov 2019)

There are other discussions on the security and wisdom of it. But now that I have it, I am interested in working out how best to use it.  Are there useful features I might be missing?

*The main use is for foreign currency payments *

Set the Revolut card as my default card for eBay and ABE books which tend to charge in dollars.
Use it on visiting countries outside the euro area
Make payments outside the euro area
Forex payments are free up to €6,000 a month and 0.5% over €6,000.
Forex payments are at the mid market rate
Revolut will mark up the exchange rate on weekends, adding between 0.5 and 1.5 percent to the Friday rate on Saturday and Sunday (when usage is higher). Obviously, you can avoid this by taking out cash or making more significant purchases during the week.

*The other uses seem relatively minor *

2) For paying people who have a Revolut card

When I told a friend of mine that I had a Revolut card, she transferred €1 to me immediately to show how quick it was
3) Paying for a group dinner.

Apparently it's very easy to split a bill with a Revolut card. I don't know how that works.
4) Security
LOCATION-BASED SECURITY
Turn on location-based security and, if your card is used in a different location from where you are, we’ll automatically block any payments and let you know.


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## tallpaul (15 Nov 2019)

Keep an eye on exchange rates and when you think they are at a rate you are satisfied with, buy a decent amount to lock in the rate. For example, back in January 2018, I bought $1000 when the rate was €1=$1.20. This has kept me going for the various dollar transactions I have had since and the decline in the rate since has been an irrelevance to me. Similarly I have frequently exchanged for Sterling when it was around the 90p mark. 

I never use my Irish Visa credit card (or indeed debit card) for foreign transactions. Interestingly, I see Ulster Bank now have a Black Mastercard that doesn't charge a percentage exchange fee which is an obvious response to the rise of the fintech companies.


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## Blackrock1 (15 Nov 2019)

Not sure if its still the case but i have my own UK bank account linked to the card (provided by them) so if someone wants to bank xfer me sterling it can go straight to the card.

also i used it for lunch coffee money during the month, transfer 200 on and use it for this kind of discretionary exp, keeps a real time track and also allows you put any 'change' i.e. rounds up your purchase into a savings account.

you can buy crytpo with it should you wish.


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## elcato (15 Nov 2019)

Brendan Burgess said:


> Revolut will mark up the exchange rate on weekends, adding between 0.5 and 1.5 percent to the Friday rate on Saturday and Sunday (when usage is higher). Obviously, you can avoid this by taking out cash or making more significant purchases during the week.


OR during the week use the exchange feature to 'buy' sterling or whatever currency you intend to go to. When you use the card in that country it will automatically use the local currency account and still have your euro account untouched.


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## Brendan Burgess (15 Nov 2019)

tallpaul said:


> Keep an eye on exchange rates and when you think they are at a rate you are satisfied with, buy a decent amount to lock in the rate.



I see two big problems with this. 

1) I can't foresee currency movements - the rates are as likely to improve as to disimprove
2) I would not leave a balance of €1,000 on Revolut for a year. I would only fill it before I was going to spend it. 






						How safe is Revolut?
					

A friend has been using Revolut for a while and has suggested that my wife and I should get the app and open accounts. I've been reading up on it and I find myself wondering, what's the catch?  I've generally found that if something sounds too good to be true....



					www.askaboutmoney.com


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## tallpaul (15 Nov 2019)

Hence why I said to lock at an exchange rate you are satisfied with. Personally once the dollar rate hit 1.20 I was happy to buy. Similarly when Sterling hit 90p. I guess I was right on both counts!! I think it is one of the major advantages of the card being able to hedge against exchange rate shifts. If you are only going to fill when spending, the only real saving is a marginally better exchange rate and no transaction fee against 'traditional' cards. And as I have said, the new UB Black Mastercard doesn't have a FX fee.

As for leaving money on it, each to their own...


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## Andrew365 (15 Nov 2019)

Budgeting, you can quickly see how you are spending your cash. For example if you buy a coffee everyday at starbucks it will show you your monthly spend and total spend over time at starbucks. It also categorizes each spend into categories so you can see at a high level where your money is going. 

There is a savings round up tool in the 'vault' you create a vault 'Save for Holiday' target $500 and everytime you use the card it rounds up the spend to the nearest euro and deposits it into your savings goal. I personally saved over 600 euros in the space of 9 months using this function.


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## NiallSparky (15 Nov 2019)

You've mentioned the main benefits.

1. Paying in non-Euro currencies.
2. Splitting bills with other Revolut users
3. Instantly sending money to other Revolut users

The other use I have is similar to what others mentioned; using it as a sort of petty cash account. I never really use physical cash, but I'll load money on the Revolut card to pay for small stuff like coffees/beers. Doesn't make a financial difference, but means you don't end up with bank statements multiple pages long with €3 transactions.

An interesting other use is to get essentially free short term credit. Most banks don't charge you for topping up your Revolut card with a credit card (they treat it as a purchase). Hence, if for example you owe €1000 on your credit card bill next week, you can top up you Revolut card by €1000 using your credit card and then do a transfer from your Revolut card to your Credit Card Account. End result is the same balance on your credit card, but you now have a month longer to repay...


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## Gordon Gekko (15 Nov 2019)

Hi Brendan,

I find it very good for the reasons outlined above. My bank statement is now really clean and easier to follow because smaller purchases like coffees etc aren’t there anymore. Transacting at the spot rate when outside the Eurozone is great. It’s easier to keep track of one’s spending as it gets grouped (e.g. restaurants). It can “round up” all your purchases and save the proceeds into a separate “vault”. It makes transferring money between friends and family a breeze. Splitting bills when you’re out is very easy; one person pays and the others can instantly Revolut it to him/her (assuming they all have Revolut which my friends do). I actually have the metal card which gives 1% cashback on purchases when I’m outside the EU, and 0.1% otherwise. It also gives the usual €600 of free ATM withdrawal, the ability to trade, a concierge service, and limited lounge access. The cashback pays for it for me though; it’s €13.99 a month.

I think it’s a great product I have to say.


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## SparkRite (15 Nov 2019)

Besides the 'advanced' security controls available to the user, I like the fact of using a virtual card for online purchases and just unfreezing it for the sale to go through and then re-freezing it afterwards.


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## Gordon Gekko (15 Nov 2019)

The ability to freeze and unfreeze the card at will is a great feature. Say you lose it, you can just freeze it, but if you find it you can simply unfreeze it.

I think the key point is that bank products have evolved as dodgy systems on top of creaking systems, whereas products like Revolut are designed from scratch from the perspective of “what should this look like?”.


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## tecate (16 Nov 2019)

5) Provides the ability to purchase cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin without having to go through a cryptocurrency exchange (and with that, go through another round of KYC/AML).   In this respect, it's fulfilling a similar role to that of (Twitter founder) Jack Dorsey's Square Cash App in the US - which posted $148 million in quarterly bitcoin sales for the third quarter of 2019.


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## so-crates (16 Nov 2019)

I use the vaults quite a bit especially for short-term "saving". For example I have vaults set up for my house and car insurance and tax and every week they get a regular transfer in. It has proved a very handy way of smoothing those expenses. Being able to mark off things that I know fall due every year and pay them off week by week in advance is very beneficial. I use the spaces on my N26 in a similar manner but as I haven't paid for the premium product in either instance, I am limited on how many spaces/vaults I can have.

In terms of using the card day to day, I generally keep a low balance on it. Initially I was using it a lot as a petty cash card but I have consciously changed from that, I made a conscious decision to revert to using cash for day to day spending as I found that I seemed to spend more using cards even with all the notifications. I use it in the UK always as it is so simple and straightforward having a sterling balance, means I don't have to be constantly mentally converting. I will do similar for other non-euro currencies I think. I have used it for sending and receiving sterling as well.

One thing I do is rather than keep an accessible balance on the card, I keep it in a vault and transfer before using, obviously when I was using it as a petty cash card I didn't do that but I didn't keep the main balance available in the account, I used a vault. This means that the balance available for tap was always low.


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## MrEarl (17 Nov 2019)

Hi,

There must be very few here paying any transaction charges on their current accounts, otherwise I'd have expected people to recommend Revolut as a way to keep the level of current account transaction charges down - by using their Revolut Card, rather than their Debit Card.



> An interesting other use is to get essentially free short term credit. Most banks don't charge you for topping up your Revolut card with a credit card (they treat it as a purchase). Hence, if for example you owe €1000 on your credit card bill next week, you can top up you Revolut card by €1000 using your credit card and then do a transfer from your Revolut card to your Credit Card Account. End result is the same balance on your credit card, but you now have a month longer to repay...



I didn't know that, but must check it out with my own credit card provider.

Thanks.


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## adox (17 Nov 2019)

The fact that it allows you to add funds instantly from a debit/credit card is a great feature.
i Just have a virtual card but use it for most day to day purchases. I don’t keep a large amount in it. I can top up instantly as needed. 
It supports Google Pay so I use my phone to pay for everything. The instant notifications are great too. Love that feature. 
have it linked to my amazon account and pay in Sterling all the time. Some of the best rates from Revolut.

I pay for my Netflix with Turkish Lira and bought a lot of it(Netflix sub wise)when the currency crashed last year and that goes out every month from my Revolut.

The apps that the likes of Revolut and N26 provide are light years ahead of the Irish ones.


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## Slim (18 Nov 2019)

I like the Revolut app and would consider using the card exclusively for business use but I would like to be able to retain paper copies for tax purposes. How do I print from the app? Cheers, Slim.


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## Coldwarrior (18 Nov 2019)

Slim said:


> I like the Revolut app and would consider using the card exclusively for business use but I would like to be able to retain paper copies for tax purposes. How do I print from the app? Cheers, Slim.



You can generate PDF(or Excel) bank statements within the app that can then be printed off


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## Slim (18 Nov 2019)

Coldwarrior said:


> You can generate PDF(or Excel) bank statements within the app that can then be printed off


Thanks. How do I go about that? I have the standard card.


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## Coldwarrior (18 Nov 2019)

Slim said:


> Thanks. How do I go about that? I have the standard card.


See here for steps: https://www.revolut.com/help/exploring-revolut/managing-my-money/viewing-my-account-statements


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## Slim (18 Nov 2019)

Coldwarrior said:


> See here for steps: https://www.revolut.com/help/exploring-revolut/managing-my-money/viewing-my-account-statements


Superb and effective. Thank you for the help Coldwarrior.


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## Brendan Burgess (19 Nov 2019)

I do my normal AIB online banking from my desktop which I prefer to my mobile.

Am I right in saying that I can't do any of the Revolut stuff from my desktop and must use my phone?

Brendan


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## 24601 (19 Nov 2019)

Brendan Burgess said:


> Am I right in saying that I can't do any of the Revolut stuff from my desktop and must use my phone?
> 
> Brendan



Yes, unlike N26, Revolut operate a mobile app only.


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## Brendan Burgess (20 Nov 2019)

OK, so I should have thought of that before signing up.


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## elcato (20 Nov 2019)

Brendan Burgess said:


> I do my normal AIB online banking from my desktop which I prefer to my mobile.


Except now you need to login to your phone at the same time for verification which is slightly painful.


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## Brendan Burgess (20 Nov 2019)

elcato said:


> Except now you need to login to your phone at the same time for verification which is slightly painful.



Not at all. I take out my phone and log into AIB's App. 
Then when I log on the desktop, I just press a button.

So it's just like being asked to enter your pin twice. 

That is not too big a burden for the extra security.

Brendan


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## jaykay (20 Nov 2019)

Slightly less of a standard use, but the disposable card is handy for setting up multiple accounts on the likes of paddypower and other sites that check for duplicate accounts under one credit card.
You use it once, then it goes up in a puff of smoke and generates a new disposable card.


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## Brendan Burgess (20 Nov 2019)

I have edited this key post to compare Revolut and N26





__





						Key Post - Revolut and N26 Current Accounts
					

Revolut N26   Status Electronic money institution Licensed bank   Access via a web based browsers No Yes  - but transactions must be confirmed by app.   Deposits are guaranteed No Yes - German bank up to €100k   IBAN number Yes for EUR account  Yes   Direct debit facility Yes Yes   Can be topped...



					www.askaboutmoney.com
				




Are there any other significant differences? 

Brendan


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## tecate (20 Nov 2019)

Brendan Burgess said:


> I have edited this key post to compare Revolut and N26
> Are there any other significant differences?


Revolut customers can purchase cryptocurrency through the platform whereas N26 have suggested they will add support for crypto but have not done so as yet.


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## SparkRite (20 Nov 2019)

Revolut customers can very easily dabble on the stock markets via the app.


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## Brendan Burgess (22 Nov 2019)

I went to deposit some money and got the message that I was over my 24 hour deposit limit.

*Are there any deposit limits?*
For newly added cards (including replacement cards received from your bank), you will have a temporary limit that allows you to add a certain amount of money per 24 hours. Some users may find they have a lower daily limit to begin with, however, your daily deposit limits will increase over time and we can't change these manually for you. Try and add your desired amount. If you wish to add more than your daily limit, you can add money by other methods available in your country.
Other than that, there aren't any specific limits. On some occasions, we may ask you to verify your source of funds, which is something we need to do to meet our regulations.
If you are expecting a large transfer to your Revolut account, please reach out to us.


I then reduced the amount I wanted to deposit and got the message "Something went wrong. We lost the connection" and the 24 hour message again.

So I reduced it again and got the same error. 

But now I see that the second two transfers did actually go through. 

Brendan


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## Eithneangela (23 Nov 2019)

I like the fact that Revolut sends me a message every time I make a purchase. My Revolut card was scammed a few years ago when I was in the States and quite a few purchases were made on it in a short space of time. It was all sorted out and Revolut returned the money but the new feature sending me a message detailing spending is great.


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## SparkRite (23 Nov 2019)

Eithneangela said:


> I like the fact that Revolut sends me a message every time I make a purchase. My Revolut card was scammed a few years ago when I was in the States and quite a few purchases were made on it in a short space of time. It was all sorted out and Revolut returned the money but the new feature sending me a message detailing spending is great.



That's unfortunate, do you mind telling us how it was scammed @Eithneangela  please?


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## Eithneangela (23 Nov 2019)

I have no idea, and neither did Revolut at the time. I only noticed when I checked my balance after returning from the States. I was in Florida, the card seemed to be used in a completely different State. I was able to clearly identify the items I had not purchased and Revolut just reversed them after a few weeks when they checked them out.


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## SparkRite (24 Nov 2019)

Good that they refunded you. 
Another reason for the location security feature to be turned on. 
I assume you have this enabled now.


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## Eithneangela (24 Nov 2019)

Yes. Have turned off online payments, that seems to have been the scam route. No problems for past 3 years, use it in the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand on regular basis.


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## SparkRite (24 Nov 2019)

Yep, I use a virtual card for online, freezing and un-freezing it as needed.


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## Slim (24 Nov 2019)

Thanks to this thread, I have been able to print statements and freeze my card. How do I add location security? What is the benefit of a virtual card if I already have a physical card? Thanks for the advice on here. Slim


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## SparkRite (24 Nov 2019)

Slim said:


> Thanks to this thread, I have been able to print statements and freeze my card. How do I add location security? What is the benefit of a virtual card if I already have a physical card? Thanks for the advice on here. Slim


On the app go to 'cards' select the physical card, select PIN & Security and turn on Location Based Security.

One of the benefits of a virtual card is that if it should be compromised then just 'throw' it away and get another one. Not quite as easy with a physical
card ie. cost plus wait period for replacement. With the upgraded Revolut account you can effectively have disposable virtual cards so use once then dispose of them.
Very secure.


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## Armada (25 Nov 2019)

Slightly off topic here.. but a bit of an unusual one with Revolut.

My nieces decided to open Revolut accounts (partly sibling rivalry to get the free €10). However, one of them couldn’t complete opening the account as she is only 17. I didn’t realise it wasn’t fully functional and transferred €20 to her - she appeared in my list of contacts.( 8 days ago)

It seems she can’t access the money now although it is showing in her account. She can’t transfer it back and I can’t request it back from my side either. (Webchat)

It seems odd that Revolut is allowing me to transfer to a partly disabled account. No major problem given that it’s a small amount, but it is making me a bit more nervous now of sending funds again. Thoughts? 

It will probably sit there until she is 18 and then she can get it


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## Slim (25 Nov 2019)

SparkRite said:


> On the app go to 'cards' select the physical card, select PIN & Security and turn on Location Based Security.
> 
> One of the benefits of a virtual card is that if it should be compromised then just 'throw' it away and get another one. Not quite as easy with a physical
> card ie. cost plus wait period for replacement. With the upgraded Revolut account you can effectively have disposable virtual cards so use once then dispose of them.
> Very secure.


Many thanks, I am now frozen and location protected!


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## NoRegretsCoyote (25 Nov 2019)

@Armada 

I opened an account recently. I was a bit surprised that I could transfer funds in before I had completed the customer verification process.

Am not sure what the logic is. Particularly as customer verification took about three minutes.


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## MrEarl (25 Nov 2019)

Hi,

If you opt to turn on the location security - does it cause an issue if using your Revolut Account with Google Pay (in other words, does Google Pay also know where you are and confirm it to Revolut, to allow the payment be processed) ?


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## Boyd (30 Nov 2019)

I just spent two weeks with Revolut as my main card in USA. It worked almost everywhere, bar 3 places I think. I'd suggest having some cash/other card as backup just in case. 
It's also unclear about how tips work with the card. You pay the base bill via the card, card is then returned and you then write a new amount on a new receipt (including tip) which they take away after you leave. I assume they should cancel the first payment and charge the new one including tip. I haven't been charged any of these tips on my Revolut card yet though. Other places allowed adding of a tip before charging anything which was much more straightforward IMO.
Overall the card was a positive experience.


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## EmmDee (30 Nov 2019)

username123 said:


> I just spent two weeks with Revolut as my main card in USA. It worked almost everywhere, bar 3 places I think. I'd suggest having some cash/other card as backup just in case.
> It's also unclear about how tips work with the card. You pay the base bill via the card, card is then returned and you then write a new amount on a new receipt (including tip) which they take away after you leave. I assume they should cancel the first payment and charge the new one including tip. I haven't been charged any of these tips on my Revolut card yet though. Other places allowed adding of a tip before charging anything which was much more straightforward IMO.
> Overall the card was a positive experience.



That is standard in the US for all card payments. The initial scan is a bit like a "hold". When you add a tip, they are able to go back in and adjust the final amount. You should only see one amount go across your card for the final amount.


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## Itchy (30 Nov 2019)

Just back from three weeks in New Zealand. I used Revolut exclusively, no cash. No problems at all would recommend highly.


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## Boyd (30 Nov 2019)

EmmDee said:


> That is standard in the US for all card payments. The initial scan is a bit like a "hold". When you add a tip, they are able to go back in and adjust the final amount. You should only see one amount go across your card for the final amount.


Makes sense but i thought it'd be charged by now, especially from a payment from 2 weeks ago. I read here that Revolut doesn't seem to allow the adjusting to happen: https://www.reddit.com/r/UnethicalL..._source=amp&utm_medium=&utm_content=post_body. Perhaps this is an extra Revolut security feature?


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## Boyd (30 Nov 2019)

It seems some of them have rounded up to include tip. I can tell as they end in .00 which is what I always round the tip up to. Others show as completed with amount like $34.66 meaning it's not including tip [edit] after checking the completed ones with decimal amounts its exactly 20 percent tip added. Perhaps I wrote that, who can remember ten days later, which is the confusing thing, unless you write it again on your own receipt copy and keep every one of those. Anyway they all seem to have added it. [End edit]
The entire system of tipping with a note on a piece of paper then changing the card payment after you've left the building seems very backward and confusing to me.


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## EmmDee (2 Dec 2019)

username123 said:


> It seems some of them have rounded up to include tip. I can tell as they end in .00 which is what I always round the tip up to. Others show as completed with amount like $34.66 meaning it's not including tip [edit] after checking the completed ones with decimal amounts its exactly 20 percent tip added. Perhaps I wrote that, who can remember ten days later, which is the confusing thing, unless you write it again on your own receipt copy and keep every one of those. Anyway they all seem to have added it. [End edit]
> The entire system of tipping with a note on a piece of paper then changing the card payment after you've left the building seems very backward and confusing to me.



Yeah - chip and PIN is only recently introduced in the US. And you rarely see the small card readers brought to tables.


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## unclefester (8 Dec 2019)

Has anyone used it for their salary instead of regular bank accounts?


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## so-crates (9 Dec 2019)

One bum note on Revolut, I attempted to pay my house insurance over the phone using it and it was not to be. Revolut refused to pay them saying they were an unsupported merchant, I transferred the money thereafter but I had no issue paying with my BOI debit card last year over the phone so I was disappointed not to be able to do the same this year.


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