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That's really odd, I've never heard of fees that high - in the UK I can use my credit cards with Amazon and only pay a few pennies in transaction fees. Have a look at the CaxtonFX Dollar Traveller, you need to load it with $200 but then there's no transaction fees I think, except a slightly worse exchange rate..

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Sure there are workarounds. But why should I have to jump through hoops when my account at Amazon is already entrusted with a European credit card and merrily charging euros for all other goods?

This sounds like it's an issue related with your bank trying to scrounge more money off you. I have a European debit card and I get charged the equivalent in EUR, nothing more.

You'll have to ask your bank since they're the ones screwing you. I've been using my US Wells Fargo account in Europe, and my British Lloyds TSB account in Europe and the US, and I've never gotten screwed anywhere near that bad. Maybe 1-5% premium I had to pay in some cases.

But in any case, you should look into getting a USD account. I have a USD and EUR account from Lloyds TSB International and it is a good way to guarantee I never get screwed even a little bit when I'm traveling and doing a lot of small transactions.

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