can we not buy lindens with visa gift cards?

[SelenaMay1]

can we not buy lindens with visa gift cards?i have tried all day and it wont let me.it is a registered card associated with my address.

[Rolig Loon]

Nope.  From the Knowledge Base:

 

Issues with prepaid and gift cards

A common cause of payment method failure is the use of unsupported card types. At this time, the majority of prepaid cards are not compatible with our system, even if they bear the VISA/AMEX/Mastercard logo. This includes cards purchased at retail stores, rechargeable credit cards, and bank-issued check cards.

[Sephina Frostbite]

Walmart Visa Cards work

[Rolig Loon]

Sephine Frostbite wrote:

       Walmart Visa Cards work

Sometimes, but not always.  The problem with prepaid cards is that there is no way for Linden Lab to verify in real time that the card still has a balance to charge against.  When you buy something in SL, LL charges your current L$ balance first.  If there isn't enough in that balance, they then charge your payment information on file -- sending the charges to PayPal or to your credit card company.  Linden Lab doesn't need to know how much money you have in that account.  It's none of their business, and the company wouldn't tell them anyway.  Linden Lab gets paid immediately, and PayPal or your credit card company bills you later to collect.  When you have a prepaid card, however, there's no company to bill you later. If your card has a zero balance, Linden Lab still can't know that, and there's nobody beyond it to bill.  So Linden Lab refuses to let you use the card.

[Phoenix Dionysus]

---

Sephine Frostbite wrote:

       Walmart Visa Cards work

Sometimes, but not always.  The problem with prepaid cards is that there is no way for Linden Lab to verify in real time that the card still has a balance to charge against.  When you buy something in SL, LL charges your current L$ balance first.  If there isn't enough in that balance, they then charge your payment information on file -- sending the charges to PayPal or to your credit card company.  Linden Lab doesn't need to know how much money you have in that account.  It's none of their business, and the company wouldn't tell them anyway.  Linden Lab gets paid immediately, and PayPal or your credit card company bills you later to collect.  When you have a prepaid card, however, there's no company to bill you later. If your card has a zero balance, Linden Lab still can't know that, and there's nobody beyond it to bill.  So Linden Lab refuses to let you use the card.

 

 

I cant believe what an utter falsehood this is.....when you try to use a giftcard thru LL they charge it immediately with a fee whether the transaction goes through or not, this means that their system and the credit card system are in immediate contact with one another....just like any third party retail buyer is.....what this means is that if you want to purchase $40 worth of lindens and you hit pay, LL could charge whatever card youre trying to use that amount, if the balance is there...then balance is there.....if the balance isnt there....then it should get denied but what this person is saying is a straight up lie

 

 

PS never encountered a company that doesnt want money so much as this.....its ridiculous...NO I dont want to deal with paypal or any other shady money interlopers...I went and bought a Visa gift card for this very reason and I cannot find anyone to accept it for lindens....money is money....you cant tell me that the system of detecting whether there are funds or not is any different from one credit card to another, within the same company of cc issuers,((visa/mastercard/american express etc)) 

[Rolig Loon]

Phoenix Dionysis wrote:

"I cant believe what an utter falsehood this is.....when you try to use a giftcard thru LL they charge it immediately with a fee whether the transaction goes through or not, this means that their system and the credit card system are in immediate contact with one another....just like any third party retail buyer is.....what this means is that if you want to purchase $40 worth of lindens and you hit pay, LL could charge whatever card youre trying to use that amount, if the balance is there...then balance is there.....if the balance isnt there....then it should get denied but what this person is saying is a straight up lie."

Unfortunately, it is true.  When you try to register ANY card with LL, they do what most RL businesses do -- they enter a charge of $1 against the card and then immediately pay it back.  It's a standard way to verify that the card is legitimate.  If you have a prepaid card, their repayment won't work, so you lose the $1 and your card is not verified.

To buy L$ on the Lindex, you must either have a verified credit card or a PayPal account on record.  If you have a PayPal account, it must either have a credit card or a bank account as a verified backup source of funds.  If you use a bank account as the backup for your PayPal account, you must have enough cash in the PayPal account itself to cover any L$ purchase.  Again, as explained above, Linden Lab's accounting system cannot do an instant check of your bank account to verify that you have enough in it to pay for your L$.  It's a slow system.  This is not Amazon.com.

There is another way to buy L$, however.  You may buy from any of the Authorized Resellers on this list. Some of them charge a higher exchange rate than the Lindex, so check first.

[Phoenix Dionysus]

this is just nonsense what youre saying, they are able to charge 1 dollar fee((which cant be repaid so in effect youre STEALING)) and then you say that it cant be charged well how can that be if you just charged it????

yesterday I bought a Visa prepaid gift card and LL wouldnt accept it, Virwox wouldnt accept it and a few other third parties wouldnt accept it....

today one of my friends bought a visa prepaid gift card and LL accepted it....she has neither paypal account info or a real CC linked to her account

so obviously what youre saying is not at all the truth, two of the same gift cards bought, one denied one accepted....

LL needs to figure out there stuff because I cant be the only one that feels like never giving you/them business again....

you sitting here spinning falsehoods does nothing to ease that sentiment in the least

[Rolig Loon]

Relax. I am a SL resident like you. All I can do is tell you what Linden Lab tells all of us residents, and being abusive to me or other volunteers here won't change anything. If you choose not to accept it, try taking it up with LL directly.

[GroudonKnight]

My Payroll card worked.

[Rolig Loon]

Congratulations. Don't count on it continuing to work, but use it while you can. Since Linden Lab changed its credit handling system last summer, they have been accepting fewer and fewer prepaid cards.

[GroudonKnight]

I'm not being the villain here, but I agree with Phoenix. They do have the responsibility to make sure everything in SL works properly. Also, Rolig has a good point as well. We need to keep cool heads. Pointing fingers don't solve problems. If LL does find a solution at some point, they will let us know. Until then, try to keep calm and stick with what we have. OK guys? Try using StuffPoints. That is what I use.

[Rolig Loon]

This is an ancient thread. Quite a bit has changed since the last time anyone looked at it. Most recently, Linden Lab changed its credit processing service in mid summer 2015, and they discontinued the Authorized Resellers program a couple of months before that. Many of the bits of advice that we used to give here are outdated now, so anyone reading a thread this old should be cautious.

[annettehnc]

I have used gift cards here, but for the last month or more it hasn't let me.  I got a brand new card for it and still nooo.  As I read on a post, I have never seen a biz so not wanting to accept money than LL.  Surely there is another sim world that is easier to work with.

[Rolig Loon]

Linden Lab upgraded its credit card handling service last summer. Since then, almost no gift cards have been accepted. Because they are anonymous and largely untraceable, they present a high financial risk for companies. Linden Lab has apparently decided that it is not a risk that they want to take.

[maricezz]

hi there i have the same pob i used my visa gift card to was working last week now itsbe deline to im from new zealand can anyone tell wat eles i can do wat other cards i can use in sl that well work ty

[Rolig Loon]

You cannot use prepaid or gift cards at all.

 

Accepted currencies and payment methods

 

You may use the following payment methods with Second Life:

 

Visa

American Express

MasterCard

Delta Online (non-U.S. Residents only)

JCB

Diners Club

Discover (U.S. Residents only)

Visa Electron (non-U.S. Residents only)

PayPal

Skrill

 

The currencies accepted for payment include:

 

CAD, AUD, JPY, EUR, GBP for non-U.S. Residents, and

USD for U.S. Residents

 

Note: If you have had a payment method on file since before December 7, 2011, you may need to remove and re-add that payment method before making payments in non-USD currencies.

PayPal

 

For a complete list of currencies accepted by PayPal, visit their official website and view the page on multiple currencies. To use your PayPal balance when making transactions with Second Life, it must be in USD. You can convert your balance to USD at paypal.com (PayPal may impose exchange fees).

Skrill

 

Skrill offers a variety of payment options including Visa, Mastercard, and American Express, along with over 100 local payment options listed on their Payment Options page. For a complete list of currencies accepted by Skrill, visit their official website and view the page on Fees and Availability.