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Many countries in the EU have recently migrated to chip and PIN technology, which means that those countries will require that all domestic Visa transactions be completed with a PIN instead of a signature. This change in technology is part of an effort to minimize lost and stolen card fraud and counterfeit fraud.

The new technology requirements however, do not apply to visitors travelling to the EU with Visa cards issued from their country of origin. All merchants displaying a Visa logo are required to accept all forms of Visa cards that are presented to them.

As with the introduction of any new technology, it may take time for everyone to get used to the new system and some EU merchants may be unclear as to how to treat foreign-issued cards or cards without a chip. The chip and PIN sales terminals being used in the EU can recognize and handle magnetic stripe and chip and signature cards. The terminal will automatically read the card and know whether a PIN or a signature is necessary. It will then give the sales clerk the appropriate prompts.

If you encounter a problem at a merchant in the EU, you should ask the merchant to swipe the card and follow the prompts on the terminal, or ask the merchant to call their acquiring bank for clarification on the process. If the problem is still not resolved, please call Visa Customer Care Services at the following toll-free numbers for various countries in Europe:

UK: 0800-891-725

Liechtenstein: 0800-89-4732

Belgium: 0800-1-8397

Netherlands: 0800-022-3110

Denmark: 80-010277

Norway: 800-12052

Finland: 0800-11-0057

Portugal: 800-8-11-824

France: 0-800-90-11-79

San Marino: 800-819-014

Germany: 0800-814-9100

Spain: 900-99-1124

Greece: 00-800-11-638-0304

Sweden: 020-795-675

Ireland: 1-800-55-8002

Switzerland: 0800-89-4732

Italy: 800-819-014

Turkey: 00-800-13-535-0900

See full list of numbers worldwide.