Breaking down the common terms found on credit card statements.
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.
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MINIMUM PAYMENT
This is the lowest amount of money that you need to pay each month to keep your account in good standing.
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CREDIT LIMIT
This is the total amount of credit that you have available for transactions. Going over your credit limit can often affect your credit score and you may be charged a fee.
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CASH ADVANCE
One example of this is when you use your credit card to withdraw cash from your credit account at a bank or ATM. This cash may incur a higher interest rate than normal credit card purchases and you may have to pay a transaction fee. Also, your cash advance limit may be lower than your regular credit limit. It’s best to leave cash advances for urgent situations when you can’t get cash from your bank account.
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AVAILABLE CREDIT
This is the remaining credit that you can use for purchases, cash advances and balance transfers. Here’s a breakdown: credit limit - account balance - transactions that have not yet posted to your account = available credit.
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POSTING
This is what the banks call it when your credit account balance is updated to show recent activities, such as purchases you’ve made, cash advances, payments and more.
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ACCOUNT ACTIVITY
Simply put (that’s why we’re here, right?), this is a view of everything that happened during your billing period. It includes transactions, charges, refunds and other information that you should know.
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* If Quick Check pre-approves a card, you can be 100% sure we’ll approve your application as long as:
a. There’s been no 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 at least the age of majority in the province or territory you live in;
c. Your application isn’t flagged for fraud prevention;
d. You don’t have an existing Capital One account; and
e. You haven’t 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®.