Best No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards in Canada for 2023

For an annual fee of $139, card holders obtain an array of travel benefits including point travel redemption, travel insurance and airport lounge access. Scotiabank boasts about this credit card because it is the only major bank in Canada that offers a credit card with no foreign transaction fees and airport lounge access.

• Amazing Welcome Offer. When you spend $1,000 on the credit card within the first three months of ownership, you’ll earn 40,000 bonus points (worth about $400).
• Bonus Earning Offers. If you spend $40,000 in a year with this credit card, you’ll earn an additional 10,000 points (worth about $100).
• Scotia Rewards Earnings. Earn 2 Scotia points for every dollar you spend on groceries, dining, entertainment and daily transit. Earn 1 Scotia point for every dollar spent on other purchases.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees. While the exchange rate of your foreign purchases will still apply, you’ll save money on foreign transaction fees which would typically be 2.5%.
• Airport Lounge Access. A complimentary Priority Pass membership is provided with this credit card along with six free lounge visits per year.

The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite*Card offers 2 points for every $1 spent on grocery store, dining, entertainment, and transit purchases, and 1 point per $1 on everything else. That’s hardly best-in-class, so why does the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card tie for best Scotiabank travel credit card?

Two reasons: a very lucrative bonus point offer and no foreign transaction fees.

Let’s start with the bonus points. You earn 40,000 welcome points when you spend $1,000 in the first 3 months. That’s worth up to $400, is easy to obtain, and is a solid reason to try this card for a year.

But wait, there’s more. Every year you charge $40,000 to your Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you’ll get 10,000 bonus points. If you can hit the $40,000 minimum each year, the 10,000 bonus points will nearly cancel out the $139 annual fee.

If that wasn’t enough, the Scotiabank Passport® Visa*doesn’t charge any foreign transaction fees. It comes with a suite of travel insurance benefits, Visa Infinite benefits, and includes six free airport lounge passes.

With a generous rewards rate of up to 6 points per dollar on gas, groceries, restaurants and entertainment, the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card will help make your travel plans a reality. Plus, with a flexible points program, you can book you flights on your own schedule.

• Generous sign-up bonus -The Scotiabank Gold American Express® offers a way for new cardholders to quickly stockpile points. It lets you earn up to 45,000 bonus Scene+™ points in your first year (that’s up to $450 towards travel)   
• Flexible redemption options - With the Scotia Rewards Program, you can book your travel with any airline or hotel through its full-service travel agency. You can use your points to cover the whole cost of the trip, including taxes and fees, or combine your points and a charge to your card. Points can also be used to book hotels and rental cars.
• Travel convenience - Added features such as rental car discounts and hotel room upgrades are designed to make travel as convenient and comfortable as possible.
• Additional protection - This Amex credit card provides has one of the most comprehensive travel protection benefits with insurance against flight delays and lost baggage even insurance against burglaries.

With a generous rewards rate of up to 6 points per dollar on gas, groceries, restaurants and entertainment, the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card will help make your travel plans a reality. Plus, with a flexible points program, you can book you flights on your own schedule.Excellent credit card with 7 types of travel coverage and great reward earn rates.

• Generous sign-up bonus -The Scotiabank Gold American Express offers a way for new cardholders to quickly stockpile points. It lets you earn 45,000 bonus Scene+™ points in your first year. 
• Flexible redemption options - With the Scotia Rewards Program, you can book your travel with any airline or hotel through its full-service travel agency. You can use your points to cover the whole cost of the trip, including taxes and fees, or combine your points and a charge to your card. Points can also be used to book hotels and rental cars.
• Travel convenience - Added features such as rental car discounts and hotel room upgrades are designed to make travel as convenient and comfortable as possible.
• Additional protection - This Amex credit card provides has one of the most comprehensive travel protection benefits with insurance against flight delays and lost baggage even insurance against burglaries.

With no foreign transaction fee and no annual fee in one credit card, what’s not to like about the Home Trust Preferred Visa? And because this is a no fee credit card, all benefits come free.

Why We Like It:

• No annual fee – You can try it for free.

• No foreign exchange fees – 0% foreign currency conversion charge when shopping abroad. It’s perfect for online and cross-border purchases – saving you 2.5% of the total cost.

• 1% Cash back rewards – Regardless of the category, this credit card gives 1% cash back on all eligible purchases. The total cash back balance is credited to your account at the start of each year.

One of the most attractive features of the Home Trust Preferred Visa is the cash back rewards. Cash can be earned on all eligible purchases and there is no limit on how much cash you can earn. Your rewards are paid as a credit to your credit card statement annually (every January).

In addition to the lucrative cash back rewards, there is no annual fee for this card. There are also secondary benefits that card holders are eligible for including no foreign exchange fees.

The most notable of this list is the lack of foreign exchange fees. If you’re an avid traveler or do a lot of online shopping in foreign currencies, the Home Trust Preferred Visa is an excellent choice. Foreign transaction fees might seem like nothing, but they add up, especially when you factor in foreign exchange rates. 

Not only is the Home Trust Preferred Visa great from a financial aspect, the bank itself has stellar ideals and makes it their mission to cater to their customers. They aim to provide financial services to individuals who don’t have a typical credit background and can’t reach their financial goals with traditional banks. 

There are some drawbacks to using this credit card and working with Home Trust. For one, this card is not accessible in Quebec. In addition, the amount of transactions the cardholder can incur per day is ten. Most credit card users won’t exceed this limit, but it’s a hassle to always have it on your mind. The card also does not allow for tap payments and customer service is not available 24/7, only during business hours.

Overall, the Home Trust Preferred Visa is a phenomenal choice. If you’re an individual who travels a lot, this card is especially beneficial considering how rare no foreign transaction fees are in combination with no annual fee. Home Trust is a small, yet effective, bank that delivers to their customers. 

This credit card has a close cousin which is the Home Trust Secured Visa.To get more information read our review on the Home Trust Secured Visa.

Earn 3% in travel rewards on all eligible travel purchases(6 Points per $1) and 1.5% in travel rewards on all other eligible purchases(3 Points per $1).

This card comes with no foreign transaction fees, 31-day emergency travel medical insurance coverage, a 10% discount on hotel bookings, unlimited Wifi through Boingo, extended warranty, purchase assurance, and $100 travel enhancement credit.

The HSBC World Elite® Mastercard® is a modern rewards card that is quite useful for any clients who are using their credit cards for any type of purchase. With this card, you can get 6 points for every $1 you spend on eligible travel purchases, 3 points per $1 spent on all other eligible purchases. 

This card also comes with no foreign transaction fees, 31-day emergency travel medical insurance coverage, a 10% discount on hotel bookings, unlimited Wifi through Boingo, extended warranty, purchase assurance, and $100 travel enhancement credit. 

The HSBC World Elite® Mastercard® costs $149 a year and comes with a standard interest on purchases of 19.9% and interest on balance transfers and cash advances of 22.9%.The current Welcome Bonus is 20,000 Points ($100 travel value) PLUS apply by May 31, 2023 and get an additional 40,000 Points ($200 travel value) when you spend $6,000 in the first 6 months of account opening*, and get a 1st Year annual fee rebate for Primary Cardholder*($149 value), and receive an additional 20,000 Points ($100 travel value) as an Anniversary Bonus* 

You can use all points accumulated on this card to purchase airplane tickets to the airline partners of HSBC, which are British Airways, Singapore Miles and Asia Miles. As for medical travel insurance, this card is one of the absolute best, coming with $1 million in medical insurance, $500,000 in common carrier travel insurance, $750 for lost or delayed baggage, $5,000 trip cancellation in total, and another $65,000 in auto rental collision insurance.