Prepaid cards in Ireland in 2026 — what still exists, what's closed to Irish residents, the fees that eat your balance, and when a debit card is better.
Updated
Prepaid is close to a legacy category in Ireland now. What people search for as “prepaid credit cards” has mostly been replaced by debit cards from e-money firms and digital banks — Revolut, Wise, N26 and Monese all issue debit, not prepaid.
What is genuinely still prepaid here in 2026: gift cards, the An Post Money Currency Card, and SWIRL.
A prepaid card is not a credit card. It cannot build a credit record and will not appear on the Central Credit Register, so it will not help a future loan or mortgage application. If you are searching for a “prepaid credit card” because you have been refused credit, it solves the spending problem and not the credit problem.
Protection differs too. Bank products carry deposit guarantee cover to €100,000. E-money products do not — One4all states this outright. Your money instead sits in a safeguarded account, segregated from the company’s own funds and protected from its creditors. Real protection, but not the same thing.
The CCPC’s own warning is worth repeating: fees on prepaid cards can be higher than for the same transactions on a debit card.
The strongest prepaid product in Ireland. A contactless Mastercard holding 15 currencies including sterling, dollars, Australian and Canadian dollars. No card fee, no subscription, 0% commission on foreign currency loads.
The costs sit elsewhere: 1.25% on euro top-ups and euro purchases, 1.25% capped at €8 on euro withdrawals at a post office, and a flat ATM fee per currency — €2.00 euro, £1.50 sterling, $2.50 US dollars. Spend a currency you have not loaded and the conversion costs 5.75%, worse than any Irish bank card. Minimum top-up €20, maximum balance €10,000 equivalent.
Suits: someone who loads the right currency before travelling. A poor everyday card.
Issued by EML Money DAC, authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland. The clearest “no credit check, no bank account” product on the Irish market — SWIRL says so explicitly.
It is also expensive: a 2.95% purchase fee on the value of what you buy (minimum €0.75, maximum €2.95), Payzone top-ups at €2.99 up to €350 and €3.99 above, €1.50 flat ATM withdrawals plus the operator’s fee, and the Mastercard rate plus 5% abroad. Bank transfer top-ups are free. Leave it unused for 60 days and €3.50 a month starts.
Suits: a last resort for someone who cannot open a bank account. Check basic bank account eligibility first — you almost certainly qualify.
Ireland’s dominant gift card, from GVS Prepaid (Europe) Limited. It runs on the Visa network but is closed-loop: participating retailers only, not everywhere Visa is accepted.
No ATM withdrawals and no cashback at the till. There is a €50 per transaction limit online under anti-money-laundering rules. Buying is free online, or €2 per card in An Post, Tesco, Circle K or Dealz, waived above €1,000. A €1.45 monthly charge starts in month 19 and runs until the balance hits zero, redeeming a balance to a bank account costs €8, and a replacement €5.
The funds themselves do not expire — the date on the card is the online expiry only. Some One4all pages still say the monthly charge starts at 12 months; the most recently updated official FAQs say 18. Assume 18 and check your own card.
Me2You (Paynovate SA) runs a closed-loop gift card accepted at 8,000-plus Irish retailers, free for 12 months then €1.40 a month, plus a prepaid Mastercard free for three months then €2.00. Its site blocks automated checking, so confirm fees before relying on them.
AllGo (EML Money DAC) is an open-loop Mastercard, so unlike One4all it works anywhere Mastercard is accepted. Sold to businesses for corporate gifting: single-load, maximum €2,500, 2.75% on non-euro transactions, €3.00 a month inactivity after 12 months, €25 to redeem a balance. Ireland’s Small Benefit Exemption — €1,500 across five non-cash benefits per employee a year — is why so much of this market is business-to-business.
Two products people wrongly file as prepaid: Revolut Kids and Teens (a debit card, ages 6 to 17, free for one child on Standard) and Wise (a debit card — €7 once, FX from 0.57%, ATM free to €250 a month then 2.69%, and a Belgian IBAN).
Most comparison sites skip this. These dominate the search results and none will accept you from Ireland: GoHenry (UK and US only), NatWest Rooster Money (UK only — all non-UK accounts closed on 31 July 2023), nimbl (UK mainland only), HyperJar Kids, Starling Kite, Caxton, Pockit and the Travelex Money Card, all UK residents only. Currensea’s binding terms also require a UK address and UK bank account; it took a Dutch payments licence in May 2026 for EEA expansion but has announced no Irish date.
For a child’s card here the realistic choices are Revolut Kids and Teens, An Post Money Mate at €2 a month per child, or a free youth current account from Bank of Ireland, AIB or PTSB.
Yes, it applies. An Post states it plainly for its Currency Card: €0.12 for any ATM transaction in the Republic of Ireland, up to €5.00 a year.
The rule matches debit cards — it is triggered by ATM withdrawals, not by holding the card and not by card purchases or contactless. Never take cash from a machine and you pay nothing. Closed-loop gift cards like One4all attract none at all, because they have no ATM function.
No. “Prepaid credit card” is a contradiction — a prepaid card spends money you have already loaded and involves no credit. The prepaid products here are the An Post Money Currency Card, SWIRL, and gift cards such as One4all, Me2You and AllGo.
Yes. SWIRL states that no credit check and no bank account are required. But it is expensive. Check first whether you qualify for a basic bank account, which is free and gives you a proper debit card.
No. They are not credit and do not appear on the Central Credit Register, which only records credit agreements of €500 and above.
Protected, but not by the deposit guarantee scheme — e-money is excluded. Your funds sit in a safeguarded account, separate from the issuer’s own money and shielded from its creditors.
The An Post Money Currency Card if you load the currency before you go. If you would rather not preload, a Wise or Revolut debit card usually costs less, and N26 charges nothing on foreign card payments.
The funds do not. The date on the card is the online expiry only — ask for a free replacement to reach the balance. A €1.45 monthly charge from month 19 does drain an unused card over time.