Interac Flash ®
Whether it’s a trip to the grocery store or your morning cup of coffee, Interac Flash® offers a fast, convenient and safe way to use your CUA debit card to tap and pay for everyday purchases up to $250* – no PIN required.
How it works
- Look for the Interac Flash® logo or contactless symbol when making a debit purchase
- Hold your card within four centimeters of the front of the debit terminal
- Wait for the terminal to ‘beep’ or show an approval message, letting you know the purchase is complete
- The amount of your purchase will be debited from your CUA account.
Benefits of Interac Flash®
- Fast and Convenient. Tap and pay on purchases up to $250* (up to a combined daily maximum of $400) before needing to enter your personal identification number (PIN).
- Contactless. Avoid high-touch surfaces by paying for purchases without needing to handle a merchant terminal.
- Secure. Purchases are backed by Interac’s Zero Liability Policy, meaning your transactions are protected.
*Debit card tap limits have recently increased. To make it easier to make a wider range of purchases, tap limits have increased for CUA debit cards effective December 1, 2020. With the new limits, you can use your card to make individual purchases up to $250 per transaction, and up to a combined daily maximum of $400 without needing to enter your PIN. If you are a current CUA debit card holder, your purchase limit will be $100 until you enable the new limits. To enable the new limits, make three consecutive debit transactions by inserting your chip card and entering your PIN. These can be made at any ATM or point-of-sale terminal of your choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have a question about Interac Flash®? Check here for your answer. Don’t see your question? We’re here to help! Let’s Talk.
Interac Flash® is a payment technology that allows you to make smaller, everyday purchases simply by holding your CUA debit card up to an Interac Flash®-enabled point-of-sale terminal – no personal identification number (PIN) required.
Many retailers accept Interac Flash®. Point-of-Sale terminals will display a contactless symbol to let you know you can tap and pay using your CUA debit card.
Purchases made using Interac Flash® will be debited from the chequing or savings account that’s designated as primary on your CUA debit card. By default, this is set up as your chequing account. If you don’t have a chequing account, purchases will be debited from your savings account.
There are no fees associated for using Interac Flash®; however, it’s a good idea to keep in mind that purchases made using Interac Flash® are counted as debit transactions toward your monthly account service package.
Yes. With Interac Flash®, you can tap and pay to make single purchases up to $250 without needing to enter your PIN. For purchases over $250, you will still be able to insert your debit card and enter your PIN to complete your payment. As an added safeguard, Interac Flash® also has a $400 maximum daily spending limit. This is the sum of all the contactless payments that you have made with your card since entering your PIN. When this limit is reached, you will be asked to insert your card and enter your PIN. Entering your PIN will reset your limit so you can continue to use Interac Flash® for future purchases. It is also possible that a retailer may impose limits other than the transaction limits listed above. If this situation occurs, please let us know by calling our Customer Contact Centre at 1-902-492-6500.
Yes. Interac Flash® uses the latest chip technology and has unique security features that protects each transaction. Payments made using Interac Flash® are covered under Interac’s Zero Liability Policy, which protects you from unauthorized use of your card.
For Interac Flash® to work, a terminal would need to be ready to receive a debit transaction and your card would need to be within four centimeters of the front of the machine. It is very unlikely to make an accidental payment.
The Interac Flash® function has a Zero liability guarantee for members, making use of the card risk free. However, Interac Flash® is an optional feature and intended to offer you more convenience. You can choose to not use this feature and continue using your CUA debit card to make purchases by inserting your card into the machine and entering your PIN.
When you receive your new Interac Flash® CUA debit card, it will have a new number on the front, but it will still contain your existing PIN. To activate your new card, enter your existing PIN at a debit machine the first time you use it. Once this is done, your new card is activated and so is the Interac Flash® feature.
