Troubleshoot a declined Wealthsimple prepaid card

Overview

When your Wealthsimple prepaid Mastercard or Visa Platinum* card is declined, we want to help you resolve the issue as soon as possible. We'll send you a push notification to let you know why it was declined and what you can do to fix it.

This article explains common reasons your Wealthsimple prepaid card might be declined and provides steps to help you resolve them.

Insufficient funds

Your Wealthsimple prepaid Mastercard or Visa card might be declined if you don't have enough money in your Available to Spend balance.

How to add funds:

1. Tap the push notification that you get when your transaction is declined.
2. The app will take you to a page where you can Add money.
3. Choose between an instant deposit or a standard deposit:
   • Instant deposit: You'll get immediate access to your funds. There will be an indicator on the deposit page that lets you know if these funds will be available to spend immediately.
   • Standard deposit: Your funds will settle and appear in your Available to Spend balance in three business days.

Your physical card isn't activated yet

If you've just received your physical Wealthsimple prepaid Visa card, it might be declined because you haven't activated it yet. Follow the steps to activate your Visa card.

Locked card

If your Wealthsimple prepaid Mastercard is locked, any transactions you try to make with it will be declined. You might lock your card if you lose it or if it gets stolen, to prevent unauthorized transactions.

How to unlock your card:

1. If you try to use your card when it's locked, you'll receive a notification to let you know why your transaction declined.
2. Follow the prompt from the push notification to access a page where you can unlock your card.
3. Once it's unlocked, you should be able to use your card without issue.

Unsupported transactions

There are certain transaction types and merchants that the Wealthsimple prepaid Mastercard and VIsa card doesn't support.

If you try to use your card for one of these transactions, the push notification will alert you to the fact that "This transaction type is not supported". You can tap Learn More to better understand what is and what isn't supported with your prepaid card. In these cases, there isn't a way to resolve the issue, and you'll need to use an alternative form of payment.

Shopping at Costco 

Costco Canada accepts Mastercard only in-warehouse, so your Wealthsimple prepaid Visa card will be declined there. This is expected and there isn't a way to resolve it at the register. You can buy a Costco Shop Card online at Costco.ca with your Visa card and redeem it in-store, or withdraw cash at an ATM (we reimburse ATM fees globally) and pay with cash.

Choosing 'Credit' instead of 'Debit'

The Wealthsimple prepaid Mastercard and VIsa card are prepaid cards. When you use your card at a payment terminal, you'll need to select Credit. 

• The card uses the Mastercard payment system, so you can use it everywhere that accepts Mastercard.
• The prepaid Visa Platinum card uses the Visa payment system, so you can use it everywhere that accepts Visa, with the Costco exception noted above.

*Trademark of Visa Int., used under license.