Applying For BPI My E Prepaid Mastercard
Prepaid cards are very versatile bank products that you can use for cashless shopping, bills payment and online booking. They are also easy to acquire, there is no need for you to open an account. Those are the reasons that I’ve decided to get a BPI My e-Prepaid Mastercard. I can use it to pay online subscriptions just like a credit card but without the hassle of going through background checks or opening an account. There is also a branch near the place where I live, so it was convenient to purchase one.
In this article, I’m going to describe the experience of getting the card. But if you want to see if other Philippine banks have similar products, you can check out articles on the top prepaid cards.
How to apply for My e-Prepaid Mastercard
There are two ways you can apply for BPI e-Prepaid Mastercard: through online and at any of the BPI branches near you.
- Go to the BPI website.
- Under “II. Card Application”, click the link for application. You may also go directly to this online form.
- Fill out the form.
- Nominate a branch where you want to pick up your card by clicking the Branch Locator button.
- Click Submit.
- Print out a copy of the BPI Prepaid Card Purchase Agreement form.
After five (5) banking days for branches in GMMA—consisting of National Capital Region, Cavite, Laguna, Pampanga, and Rizal—branches or seven (7) banking days elsewhere, bring the BPI Prepaid Card Purchase Agreement form print-out, application fee of ₱350 (₱450 for non-GMMA branches), and one valid ID. They have since reduced the price to ₱150, and there are additional ₱99 charge each on the third and fourth year.
Application at the local bank branch
In my case, I just went directly to the bank. I do not have a printer. And I am not about to go out of my way to have the application printed out. Besides, if I apply online, I will still end up going to the bank.
The clerk who took my application was the same one who helped me open a savings account a year ago. She told me about another prepaid card, the BPI Amore Visa card. It has lower application fee, longer expiry date, and automatic participation in shopping rewards and rebates in Ayala malls and a host of other perks.
I got interested. The reason I needed a prepaid card was to purchase a service at a company located abroad. It did not really matter if I have a Mastercard (My e-Prepaid) or a Visa (Amore). If I can save money (through lower fee and longer expiration), the choice was a no-brainer. I just needed to know one more thing. Can Amore prepaid card can be used for Paypal verification?
Sadly, she didn’t know.
That was a let-down.
I did not have my mobile phone with me to do a quick search on the internet. It was also too much to put everything on hold, go home to do research, and come back. In the end, I requested for a BPI My e-Prepaid Mastercard.
Only afterwards when I got online I found out that yes, the Amore prepaid is valid to have your Paypal account verified. But I have no ill-feelings with the clerk. I was glad she told me about the choices I had back then. I wish that she knew a bit more about the Amore card to help me make a more informed choice, but that is just crying over spilled milk.
An important take-away from this experience is empower yourself. Get as much as information as you need. Do research on mobile internet to get more details about a new product.
Anyway, I digressed.
So I filled out and signed the BPI prepaid card application form. I also provided a photocopy of one valid ID. And I paid the application fee of P450. The clerk told me to come back after a little over two weeks to claim the card.
Update: You can read the update on this article about my experience in in getting my Mastercard and using the card for the first time.
