What is the minimum age to get a credit card in canada



What is the minimum age to get a credit card in canada?

In Canada, the minimum age to have your own credit card (ie: one that is not co-signed by a parent or other credit-worthy person) is your province's Age of Majority, which is either 18 or 19, so this guide is mainly for college and university students.

What is the minimum interest rate on credit cards?

Standard Rate of 21.0% applies if your minimum payment is more that 30 days past due

Quick Fact:

47 per cent of all Canadian households spent more than their pre-tax income in 2001.

Source: Statistics Canada

Quick Fact:

Percentage of Canadian credit card holders who are not aware of the interest rate charged by their main credit card company:

41 per cent

Source: Financial Consumer Agency of Canada

Top 10 credit card issuers worldwide

(Ranked by total worldwide outstandings)

1. Bank of America/MBNA - $194.70 billion

(Includes outstandings from U.S., U.K., Ireland, Canada, Spain)

2. Chase - $184.09 billion

(U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, U.K., Mexico, & 22 other countries)

3. Citi - $148.90 billion

(U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, & 34 other countries)

4. American Express - $105.00 billion

(U.S., Canada, Australia/New Zealand, U.K., Mexico, Italy, Japan, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore, & 34 other countries)

5. Capital One - $68.78 billion

(U.S., Canada, U.K.)

6. HSBC - $58.50 billion

(U.S., U.K., Mexico, Hong Kong, Turkey, Canada & 45 other countries)

7. Discover - $49.60 billion

(U.S.)

8. Wells Fargo - $36.40 billion

(U.S., Canada)

9. Barclays - $32.60 billion

(U.S., U.K., Germany, South Africa & over 30 others)

10. Lloyds TSB/HBoS - $19.29 billion

(U.K.)

(Source: Nilson Report, December 2009)

Total cards in circulation in U.S.

* Visa credit: 309 million, as of June 30, 2009 (Source: )

* MasterCard credit: 211 million, as of September 30, 2009 (Source: )

* American Express credit: 54 million, as of December 31, 2008 (Source: )

• Discover credit: 57.1 million, as of December 31, 2008 (Source: )

Quick Fact:

Average amount charged on a Visa or MasterCard per purchase:

$102

Source: Canadian Bankers Association

Quick Fact:

Maximum annual interest rate allowed under the Criminal Code of Canada:

60 %

Quick Fact:

Number of payday loan stores in Canada:

1,200

Source: Canadian Association of Community Financial Service Providers

Quick Fact

Canadians have more than 50 million Visa and MasterCards. And we've charged almost $50 billion to them.

Quick Fact

Canadians received 208.3 million credit card solicitation offers in the mail in 2001, mainly for so-called platinum cards. Most were from American card companies like MBNA and Capital One.

Quick Fact

As of 2003, Canadian households owed an average of $2200 on each of the 22 million credit cards that regularly carry a balance. At an average interest rate of 18%, these cardholders pay almost 9 billion dollars per year in interest.

Quick Fact

Average amount owed by bachelor's degree grads who left school in 2000 with student debt:

$19,500

Source: Statistics Canada

-----------------------

Let's assume you owe $10,000 on a credit card that carries an 18-per-cent interest rate. Let's also assume you want to take them up on their minimum monthly payment terms of three per cent of the outstanding balance (or $10, whichever is greater). Enter the variables and you'll see that simply paying the minimum will mean that it will take you 272 months to pay off the debt (that's almost 23 YEARS). You'll also pay almost $9,800 in interest, almost as much as you charged. And this assumes you charge nothing more on that card during that 23-year period.

So how do I get around those high rates?

The easiest way is, of course, to pay off your balance in full each month. If you can't do that, you can try transferring that debt to something that costs less to service. A personal line of credit for most Canadians can be arranged at their local financial institution, often at single-digit rates. Secured lines of credit, like home equity loans, are the cheapest.

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download