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The Benefits of Playing Prepaid Credit Card Poker. If you're a card player and want a faster way to deposit real money to your online account, then prepaid credit card poker sites are the way forward.
One of the few truly global brands, Visa can be used to purchase just about anything – including chips at an online poker site. It’s quick, it’s easy and it’s about as secure as you can get when it comes to online poker deposits, so let’s jump right into the ins and outs of Visa poker sites.
Which US Sites Will Accept Visa?
When you’re talking about poker rooms accepting Visa deposits, you’re looking at a list of the top poker rooms where players from the United States can sign up and battle it out for real money. Based on Visa acceptance rates and other factors regarding the general quality of the site, these are the top sites for Visa poker deposits.
Below is a table ranking the best poker rooms accepting USA Visa poker deposits.
Using Visa for Online Poker Deposits
Getting money from your bank accounts to a real-money site from the US can be annoying, and credit cards like Visa are a welcome respite from the hassle of bank transfers. There are a number of avenues you can pursue for Visa poker deposits, the most popular of which we’ve collected into the brief list that follows.
Use Visa Directly at the USA Poker Site
Visa is the most widely accepted credit card at legal poker sites, so depositing directly is likely to be a viable option for most American poker players. If that’s the case for you, then you shouldn’t worry about other options – just deposit directly at the poker room of your choice using Visa (Bovada & Ignition are the top two sites with the ability to process Visa payments) and you’ll be taking the fastest, safest and cheapest path to depositing with Visa of all.
Third-Party Online Wallets Accept Visa
While online wallets are no longer a primary option for poker players from the United States, you will occasionally find new wallets from time to time. These wallets work just like PayPal, allowing you to fund one central account that can then be used to make purchases at a variety of merchants – including online poker sites. If you learn of a new wallet, Visa makes a great funding source thanks to low fees and low risk.
Fund Prepaid Options With Visa
In our other US online poker guides, we cover payment methods like prepaid credit and debit cards, along with money transfer services like MoneyGram. In many circumstances, you are able to fund these prepaid options using a Visa card, meaning that you basically get to make your online poker deposit using Visa (just with one extra step added). We always encourage players to read the fine print of such cards and transfer services closely, because making a deposit at a poker site using Visa can get pretty costly if you don’t shop around for the lowest fees and charges.
History: The First Visa Cards
Long before poker players from the United States could use Visa to deposit to and from poker sites – in fact, long before online poker or even the concept of “online” itself – Visa issued their very first credit card. You’d have to head all the way back to 1958 in your time machine if you wanted to grab one of the first Visa cards ever issued, but if you went back looking for a Visa card specifically, you’d be out of luck. The cards bore a different name during that first run: Bank AmeriCard. In contrast to the sturdy plastic cards issued today, the cards were thinner than typical playing cards and made of nothing more than paper.
In addition to those drawbacks, modern users would probably take umbrage at another feature of that initial Visa card: The $300 credit limit.
Visa and Phishing Scams
We are big on security when it comes to online poker – not just for poker players from the United States, but for all online poker players. That’s why it’s important to have this section highlighting one of the unintended risks you take on when you acquire a Visa card to deposit at an online poker site. Specifically, you expose yourself to falling victim to what has become one of the most common phishing scams online.
Since Visa is so ubiquitous, it makes sense that scams targeting Visa holders would also be very popular; after all, if you send a malicious email that looks like it’s from Visa to a few thousand people, there’s a very good chance that many of them are Visa holders. Online poker players should practice secure browsing techniques regardless of whether or not they use a Visa poker site for deposits, but those who do have a Visa should be extremely wary of any email correspondence sent from the site. Never click on links in such emails; instead, always visit Visa directly or call the customer support number on the back of your card if you get an email claiming to inform you of an issue with your card.
Staying Secure With Online Poker & Visa
A few simple steps can decrease the risk you face depositing at a legal online poker site with a Visa card.
Online Reloadable Prepaid Visa Cards
First, use a separate Visa card for your deposits, and keep the credit limit very low.
Second, make sure you have phone and email alerts set up for any transactions whatsoever that take place on the card. Since you only use the Visa for poker site deposits, you’ll know right away if there’s a problem when you get an alert.
Finally, resist the urge to carry the card around with you to use it for other purchases.
Only by keeping the card strictly for use as an online poker deposit method can you ensure that the risk you face depositing at an online poker site accepting US players using your Visa is as minimal as possible.
Most Frequently Asked Questions Answered
My visa deposit was declined – Why?
Nearly 75% of all poker transactions involving a credit card are declined. If you run into the same issue, no worries as its completely normal. Its easier to use a Visa than it is a MasterCard but both have issues due to banking regulations. Some banks might bypass the transaction without issues while others might flag it as a gambling transaction and as such, the transaction is declined.
If your transaction was declined, contact the poker room’s customer support team. They’ll be able to better assist you and, in most cases, can process the transaction over the phone.
It doesn’t matter what I do, my Visa deposit continues to be declined. Now what?
If you continue to have issues using your Visa to deposit to a poker site, you might need to look for alternative options such as cryptocurrencies or money transfers. Cryptocurrencies are super-easy to use and equally safe so long as you follow the recommendations on our Bitcoin page.
Will a prepaid visa debit or credit card work?
In some cases, yes! We’ve had success with Vanilla Prepaid Visa debit cards along with a few others that we purchased from our local Walgreens. If you’re not sure which prepaid card to purchase, contact the poker room’s customer support team and they should be able to steer you in the right direction.
Can I request a withdrawal back to my Visa credit or debit card?
This depends on the poker site. Some sites will allow you to cash out and put the money back onto your credit card while others might require you to request a check. Like the other questions on this page, your best option is to contact support and ask.
Are there any deposit limits for using my Visa?
Regardless of the poker site you choose, there are minimum and maximum deposit amounts. Here is the list of minimum deposit limits at the best poker sites as well as the max amounts for Visa.
- Bovada Poker: $20 – $1,000
- America’s Cardroom: $50 – $1,000
- Ignition Poker: $20 – $1,000
- Intertops Poker: $1,000
- Black Chip Poker: $50 – $2,500
- BetOnline Poker: $50 – $5,000
- Sportsbetting.ag Poker: $50 – $5,000
Which poker sites charge will charge me a fee for Visa poker deposits?
Below, you will find the fee % charged by the poker room for initiating a deposit with a Visa. In most cases, the fee is only charged after you’ve made your first poker deposit.
- Bovada Poker: 5.90%
- America’s Cardroom: 0%
- Ignition: 5.90%
- Intertops Poker: 10%
- BetOnline Poker: 0%
- Black Chip Poker: 0%
- Sportsbetting.ag Poker: 0%
What is the verification process for withdrawals processed through a Visa?
All poker rooms go through a process called KYC, which is short for “Know Your Customer”. This process is a simple varication process to confirm you are who you say you are. In the case of Visa deposits, you will be required to send a scanned copy of both the front and the back of your credit card. This is in addition to other documents to prove your identity.
Netspend cards are one of the few that consistently work for online poker deposits. I've seen many reports of players having success with using VISA Netspend when depositing money to US poker sites and it may be worth your while to use these cards as well, because:
- They're easy to get. You can buy Netspend pre-paid debit cards just about anywhere - supermarkets, retail stores, gas stations, banks, etc.
- They're easy to use. Buy the card and enter its details when you make the deposit and you're done. The money will be on your player account instantly.
- They work. VISA Netspend cards have recently had a high success rate at US poker sites. US sites require credit, debit and gift cards to be eligible for both online and international purchases - which Netspend cards are - and these cards work well according to reports.
Top US Poker Sites in 2020 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Site | Rating | Bonus | Visit | |
1. | 8.45Review | 100%up to$1,000 | Play Now | ||
2. | 7.75Review | 100%up to$2,500 | Play Now |
A Popular Deposit Method
VISA Netspend pre-paid debit card is one of the popular pre-paid card options that still work whereas many credit, dedit and gift cards have stopped working for online poker deposits. I've seen many recent reports of players having success with Netspend pre-paid cards at Ignition.
Minimum Deposit:
The minimum deposit limit at Ignition is $20, however, depositing with a VISA Netspend card (or any credit/debit/gift card for that matter) means you'll have to pay a 4.9% fee; therefore the actual minimum deposit for credit, debit and gift cards is $25 at Ignition.
Deposit Fee:
The deposit fee for VISA Netspend at Ignition is high considering that most of US poker rooms take no fees for the same process; in fact, BetOnline Poker is the only poker room besides Ignition that takes a fee (6%) for processing a credit card deposit.
As far as VISA Netspend fees go, you can choose between different plans and either pay a monthly fee or per transaction or both - the exact fees depend on the plan you choose.
Using A Prepaid Visa Online
'We accept only Visa branded credit, gift or debit/check cards. If you decide to buy a gift card, we do not recommend any particular brand as long as the packaging indicates that it is good for online, international purchases. This is important because US/domestic use only cards will not work on our site.'