Alternative funding methods for US players

[HalfSugar]

Post your methods here and help your fellow player
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Guess what? I got a fever, and the only prescription, is more cowbell!

[General Sal]

Okay, so I got a myspace bulleting regarding this one. Full Tilt now also uses MyWebATM. It a debit card, not a credit card. It links directly to your bank account... so this is somewhat like Neteller. The drawback is that there is a monthly maintenance fee of $2.95. There are some other fees associated like a 3.7% reload fee using a credit card load. The table of fees is listed on the "Terms and Conditions" page.

The link is located in the bottom right hand corner of the page, along with the other icons for the other funding methods.

[General Sal]

Please note the source the following info is taken from: The Featured Tabledotcom

Best Funding Method Right Now
If I were to start a new online poker account right now, here is how I would do it:

1) Sign up for epassporte - Do this first to get the process going because it could take about a week before you can use your account. Remember to make sure the site you want to play at accepts epassporte.

2) Get a small prepaid gift card - While waiting for your new epassporte account to be validated, go to the Web site of a prepaid Visa or Mastercard gift card company. Gift2Go and AllAccess are two of them. Enter your zip code and find a local retailer that sells the cards. Go to the store and buy a $50 card (the minimum deposit amount on many sites).

3) Test the gift card - Go to your poker site of choice and try to make a deposit with the gift card. Just choose the Visa or Mastercard option and enter your card number. Chances are the transaction will go through (this has been confirmed on Poker Stars). If it goes through, you know you can buy a larger denomination card to fully fund your account. If not, you are stuck with a gift card with $50 on it. Fortunately these cards work just like regular credit cards and can be used anywhere! I mean any store or Web site that the US government is not trying to shut down at the moment. So go buy yourself a gift with your shiny new gift card. You deserve it for having to deal with all this crap! And since you have already set up an epassporte account, you don't have to start from square one again.

4) Play poker! - You have funded your account with the gift card, you have verified your epassporte account (which works the same way Neteller does/did). So now, you have been playing poker for a week while your friends were waiting for their epassporte accounts to be verified and, in the end, you have epassporte as a withdrawal option, while people who only used the gift cards are left trying to get a check in the mail. It's not perfect, but, in my view, it's the best option available at the moment. Good luck and hopefully, we will all look back on this time one day and laugh. Right?

2007-02-04 01:07:55 GMTComments: 1 |Permanent Link

MywebATM
Full Tilt has added "MywebATM" as a new deposit option. Frankly, it looks to be just as complicated to set up as Neteller was and as epassporte is now. The difference with MywebATM is you actually get an ATM card in the mail (you can start using the service after sign-up before you receive your card). This card can be used at any regular ATM. Again, I can't say I understand the point of this (unless you can't get an ATM card from a regular bank for some reason).

There is a fee for using your credit card to fund your account. But, on the positive side, it seems like you can use your bank account for free direct transfers, which has always been my preferred method.

But here is where this payment method goes south in a hurry: There is a $10 fee for the card and - the worst part of all - there is a $3.95 fee per month for the priviledge of having the card!

So, unless this becomes the only available option for funding an online poker account or they make major changes to the fee structure, I will not be using MywebATM.

[Kalbelgarion]

Seems to me that the best method is the gift card go-around, and if you can wait a couple of weeks to get your money, just cashing out by getting a check in the mail. This is what I'm going to do from now on.

[lwestatbus]

I've been looking into the gift card choices and found some interesting considerations.

1. Some gift cards behave like credit cards and some behave like debit cards. The All Access card site says it behaves like a debit card and also that if you want to use the card online or for phone orders you have to register the card on their site (tell them who you are).

2. The Gift2Go card processes like a credit card (no pin). You may register the card but it is not necessary. (Not sure if some retailers might validate customer against the cardholder name.) This card has a purchase fee but no usage fee. The purchase prices are stepped by card amount with the cutoffs as:

[Dave B]

I am still using click2pay without any problems.
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Don't talk unless you can improve the silence.

[mackkie]

giftcards dot com has been what I am using.

Worked on Poker stars and full tilt without a problem. You can order a virtual visa gift card that comes in your email in 2 hours.

You can put anywhere between $25-500 on the card and they only charge you a $2 processing fee, which is much better than most places.

Just fill in the same info for both the sender and recipient of the card and its fine.

[Dave B]

OK, I now expect to have problems with click2pay. They removed the "withdrawal" option from my account. Also, they have a notice on their home page saying that they are no longer accepting US based accounts.

Their email support promptly responded to an inquiry and said that I can withdraw via email. I will let y'all know if that works.
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Don't talk unless you can improve the silence.

[khaosanroad]

All this is making me a little nervous about opening an e-passporte account. I'm seriously thinking of trying to open an account while I'm overseas in a couple weeks.

[keyser_kid]

Man am I glad I stumbled on to this site. Alot of great info here.

I purchased a virtual gift card from giftcards dot com but it has been over 24 hours and it still has not processed. The site says within a couple hours so I am wondering what's up.

I sent an email to customer support and they haven't replied or even responded that they received my email.

Has anyone had any bad experiences? Should I be worried?

[xDiamond_CutteRx]

I have used my Wells Fargo Visa Debit Card twice in the last 2 months (including yesterday), and my purchase was approved in seconds. This may be open until the 270-day deadline, but both this and the Visa gift card could potentially be cut off any time between now and then.
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Some people are like slinkies
They really don't serve a purpose
But they still bring a smile to your face
When you push them down the stairs

[Casey ATB]

Well…, it's been about a week since I applied for an epassporte account. Epassporte is supposed to make a small deposit (less than $2US) to the two accounts that I will be using to fund my play. I am supposed to notify them of the exact amounts deposited by them, as a verification of the process. I check the accounts each day, but there has been no activity from epassporte yet.

If there is any action, I will certainly post it to let you know. It is quite more involved than dealing with Netteller. I Hope to have some positive results, …and soon!!

I would appreciate hearing from anybody who has 'jumped through these hoops' successfully.
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I was doing okay... but I'm gettin' over it.

[vyni]

Contact espassport and your bank. I walked through the setup process maybe 2 weeks ago testing it out for people (and to answer questions like these). If I recall, it wasnt an <2 deposit, I think it was an <2 charge. If thats the case, you're asking the bank for the wrong info.

Anyways, almost all my banking is done online, and was able to confirm back to epassport the 1.34 charge like 1 minute after I opened the account (how sick is it that I can't remember names, dates, etc, but I can remember numbers like this?).

Check your accounts 1 more time, looking for a debit and not a credit. If you don't find anything, definitely contact epassporte. Sure they'll be willing to assist.

[Casey ATB]

quote="vyni"If I recall, it wasnt an <2 deposit, I think it was an <2 charge.

I did receive two mini-deposits from epassporte yesterday, but will still have to wait about a week for my deposited funds to get to my poker accounts. Idon't know why, as they've already approved my deposit, but the $$ won't hit the accounts for about eight more days. ..!?
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I was doing okay... but I'm gettin' over it.

[Nihil75]

quote="Casey ATB"