a A a A a A
Menu

The war in Ukraine: what is the impact on payment transactions?

Stay up to date with the latest measures from the financial sector

3 min Reading time

The war in Ukraine is persisting. Various economic sanctions have been imposed to counter Russia's military actions. Visa and Mastercard are following suit and have decided to discontinue their activities in Russia completely.

 

But what does this mean for consumers (cardholders) and traders? We list the consequences for you here.

 

For consumers

 
  • Consumers with Visa or Mastercard payment cards issued by a Belgian bank can no longer use these cards in Russia. This means that Belgian cardholders in Russia at the moment can no longer pay for their purchases in physical stores by card or withdraw money from local ATMs. These payment cards are also no longer accepted in Russian web shops. We therefore advise Belgian cardholders in Russia to follow the travel advice of the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs.
  • The reverse applies for consumers with Visa and Mastercard payment cards issued by a Russian bank. They can no longer use their payment cards in Europe.  Russian cardholders in Belgium, and by definition in Europe, at the moment can no longer pay for their purchases in physical stores by card or withdraw money from local ATMs. These payment cards are also no longer accepted in European web shops.
 

For traders

 

  • Currently very few payments using payments cards from Russia are made in Belgium. But some traders may be wondering whether they will still get their money after a Russian customer has used his or her debit or credit card. However, we can reassure them, because when a foreign payment card issuer (such as a Russian bank) is excluded from the card scheme as a result of government sanctions or initiatives, payment using the payment cards of this foreign card issuer is no longer possible in Belgium. These payment cards are therefore refused by online payment terminals.

  • However, for payments that took place before the blocking, we ask the merchant to be extra vigilant. If you have not yet collected authorised transactions that took place before the blocking, we recommend you to contact your payment service provider (Acquirer) immediately.

Any further questions?

Please contact your banker (cardholder) or your payment service provider (trader). They will be happy to help you. You can also always email info@febelfin.be.

Already following us? Stay up to date via Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, LinkedIn & Instagram.
© Febelfin 2024 - Disclaimer - Data Protection Policy - Cookie Policy