Online Shopping and Transactions are on boom now a days. Almost everyone can shop and transact online using their Debit Card, Credit Card, Net Banking Account etc.
But problem arises when a prospective buyer don’t possess a real credit card and the:
- Merchant Website don’t accepts Debit Card, Wire Transfer etc.
- Merchant Website only accepts foreign currency like US Dollars (USD) etc.
Under above circumstances, Virtual Credit Card (VCC) comes as a rescue for many people!
What is a Virtual Credit Card or VCC?
A Virtual Credit Card (VCC) is a replica of Real Credit Card which user can generate online, anytime whenever he/she wants to transact on any specific website. A Virtual Credit Card (VCC) functions just like a normal Credit Card, though it’s generated in a virtual environment. See example of VCC generated Online in the following screenshot:
Just like a Real Credit Card, a VCC possess all the following information required for a successful online transaction:
- Name of Card Holder
- Credit Card Number
- CVV/CVV2 Code
- Expiry Date
- Visa or Mastercard Support – This completely depends on the bank which is providing VCC facility to its customers
Advantages of a Virtual Credit Card
Following are the advantages of transacting online using a VCC:
- A Virtual Credit Card is only valid for one time transaction. It automatically expires once a transaction is successful. This means, no one can use a particular Virtual Credit Card and its number more than once.
- A User can set his/her own limit on the VCC Amount/Currency. For Example, if 100 USD equals to 4500 INR (depending on the exchange rate), than user can set his/her currency limit to 4500 INR, when he/she wants to transact/shop online for 100 USD. Because of this feature, the merchant website can’t charge more than 100 USD in any condition, from user’s bank account.
- Almost all Payment Gateways recognizes a Virtual Credit Card as a real Credit Card, and because of this any user can shop/transact online, if he/she don’t possess a real Credit Card
How to get a Virtual Credit Card?
Getting a Virtual Credit Card completely depends on a Bank Services. Some Banks (like HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank in India) provides VCC Facility and some Banks don’t. So, it’s suggested that a particular user should find a Bank in his/her locality, which provides VCC like facility. A user may need to open a Saving Bank Account in that particular Bank, to enjoy VCC facilities. Check out How HDFC Bank VCC Facility Works?, in order to get a brief idea about features of VCC
Important Notes:
- Some Payment Gateways like PayPal may recognize a VCC by its number or Bank, and may reject your Virtual Credit Card. It’s recommended that you should contact Merchant Website first, before using a VCC on their Site/Payment Gateway
- Features of Virtual Credit Card may differ from one bank to another
- Some Banks/Payment Gateways may charge additional fees for Currency Conversion or Service charge
- Setting/Limiting Amount LESS than the amount which a Payment Gateway is going to charge (as per Exchange Rate), will result in either deduction of Remaining Amount from your Bank Account OR Payment Rejection at a later stage.
- This whole post on Virtual Credit Card (VCC) is for general information only. VCC facility may not be available in your state/country and if it’s available, it’s features and rules may differ from one bank to another. It’s recommended that you should contact Bank for getting information on every aspect of their Virtual Credit Card (VCC) Facility