The 6 most important terms on your credit card statement
Finance presents a language all its own. There are so many different terms to sort through, and it’s difficult to know where to start. Let’s take a look at some of these terms and help explain them in a way that makes sense.
Account activity
Everything that happened during your billing period. It includes transactions, charges, refunds and other information that you should know.
Available credit
The credit you have left and can use for purchases, cash advances and balance transfers. Think of it as your credit limit minus your account balance and any transactions that haven’t been posted yet.
Cash advance
Using your card at a bank or ABM to withdraw cash from your credit account. Your cash advance limit may be lower than your regular credit limit. You may be charged a higher interest rate for doing this as well as a transaction fee. It’s best to save these for emergencies where you can’t get cash from your regular bank account.
Credit limit
The total amount of credit you have available for transactions. Going over your credit limit can negatively affect your credit score. You may also be charged a fee.
Minimum payment
The lowest amount of money that you need to pay each month to keep your account in good standing.
Tip: Having an account in good standing is the first step to getting credit limit increases. It’s also a requirement for earning rewards points and making balance transfers.
Posting
When your bank has finished processing a transaction and updates your account to show the final amount of your purchase or payment. All transactions start off as pending until they are posted.
Tip: Don’t panic if the pending amount is higher than you expect as it can often differ from the final posted amount you’ll have to pay. This is normal and happens a lot with purchases like gas. For example, you might authorize $100 at the pump but then only need $80 to fill up.
* If Quick Check pre-approves a card, you can be sure we’ll approve your application, except in limited circumstances. Some of the reasons we may not approve your application, among others, include:
a. There’s been a change in your credit file information, personal information or financial status from the time you receive your Quick Check results to the time you apply for one of our credit cards.
b. You’re not at least the age of majority in the province or territory you live in.
c. Your application is flagged for fraud prevention.
d. You have an existing Capital One account.
e. You’ve applied for a Capital One account in the last 30 days or had an account with us that was not in good standing in the last year. In good standing means not past due, over limit, fraudulent, restricted, or part of a consumer credit counselling program or bankruptcy.
In some cases, we may not be able to open an account for you even though your application was approved. This can happen if we’re unable to verify your identity, or you don’t provide the required security funds if you’re approved for a Secured Mastercard®.