How to Activate Standard Bank Card for International Use

Are you looking for information on how to activate your Standard Bank debit and credit card for international use? Standard Bank has millions of clients across South Africa. If you are one of them, you may find yourself needing to activate your card to be used when travelling abroad. Doing this is the right approach. It means you won’t need to carry all your money as cash. So, how do your turn on international banking?

Activate your Standard Bank Debit and Credit card for international use

The following is how to activate your Standard Bank debit or credit card for international use via the app;

1. Open the Standard Bank app on your phone or tablet.
2. Once logged in, go to Manage cards.
3. Select the card that you wish to activate to be used abroad.
4. Open Card settings.
5. Choose Use card abroad.
6. Enter the dates during which you will be travelling.
7. Click on Activate.

Alternative methods

That’s how to activate your Standard Bank card for international use. But are there alternative methods for those looking to do this? Perhaps you do not have the Standard Bank app on your phone.

In that case, you have the option to have the feature activated at your nearest Standard Bank branch. You can also call Card customer services to get them to turn on international banking.

The number to use is 0861 201 000 if you are calling from South Africa. When calling from abroad, the number to use is +27 11 299 4520.

What happens if I don’t activate your card before travelling?

Standard Bank advises that you need to activate you card for international use before travelling abroad. You can also do it from abroad using the number given above.

But it doesn’t mean that you card cannot be used abroad. What usually happens if you try to use it internationally without activation is that you will get a call from Standard Bank asking you to verify the transaction. So, this is something that you may wish to avoid.

Buy forex before travelling

Another option when travelling abroad is to carry cash. In fact, you should have a little bit of cash before travelling abroad. That’s essential for convenience. You can buy this cash from Standard Bank.

It’s also possible to get a prepaid MasterCard for use abroad. Standard Bank calls this TravelWallet. The good thing about this is that it allow you to plan exactly how much you are going to spend.

Here is how to activate your Standard Bank ATM card PIN.