Some Issues In The Use Of EMV Bank Card

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) issued Circular No. 808, dated August 22, 2013, requiring all banks to change their customers’ Automated Teller Machine (ATM) Cards from the magnetic strip technology to EMV chip-compliant cards. EMV stands for Europay-Mastercard-Visa, the three international companies that developed the latest global standard in ensuring more secure transactions through the use of a microprocessor chip. When fully implemented, EMV Bank Card can be used both as an ATM card and a debit card by its holder.

Aimed at preventing bank frauds due to ATM skimming, BSP has set a January 1, 2017 deadline for the shift to EMV chip technology. However, in lieu of their banks’ failure to issue EMV bank cards, clients may continue to use their magnetic strip ATM cards while their banks process the migration to the EMV system. After the deadline, should customers using their old ATM cards fall prey to fraudsters, the burden of losses will be borne by the bank that has not yet adopted the chip card technology according to BSP.

I was informed via text message by my bank in late January of this year that my EMV Card was already available for pick-up at their branch where I have my SSS pension account. I did not get to pick it up until early March. After the usual procedure on first-time use of an ATM card like changing the system-generated password to my own password in the ATM at my branch, I was able to withdraw money using my new EMV bank card.

I was very glad to have an EMV bank card which aside from being an ATM card also function as a Mastercard Debit Card. I now have a debit card that I can use for online transactions like those with PayPal and other online merchants who do not accept COD payments. I immediately register it on my PayPal account and the procedure went smoothly until some issues arise. I wish to describe the issues below so that you may know what to do if ever you intend to use your EMV bank card for the same purpose.

After registering my EMV bank card to PayPal, the next step will be to get it verified. For the purpose, PayPal debited a small amount and generated a 4-digit confirmation code that their system sent to my account. I was supposed to see the code on my online bank statement but all I saw was the amount it debited. I had to call PayPal International to verify what happened but was told that their system had already sent the code and the problem was with my bank. I was lucky to talk to my bank’s marketing person who help me get the 4-digit confirmation code manually from their system.

The next issue I encountered in the use of my EMV card was the refund of the verification fee that PayPal debited on my account. It was not appearing on my online bank statement as I expected. Unlike using credit card, debit card transactions are cash transactions where the amounts immediately change hands. It is but proper for me to expect that refunds will be immediately credited to my account. Aside from the PayPal refund of the verification fee, I also had another online transaction where the merchant refunded me for an unconsummated purchase. I again had to seek the help of my bank’s marketing person to get the refunds.

The latest issue I encountered in using my EMV bank card was that I cannot withdraw money from an ATM. I thought it might be because the other banks ATM where I tried to withdraw was not EMV ready. Much to my surprise, I was not able to use the card on my own bank’s ATM. I immediately sought help from my bank’s personnel and was told that they will get back to me on what to do after they consult with their IT people. This is still a pending issue.