---
title: "What is Cash advance? | Benefit Systems"
description: "A cash advance is withdrawing cash on a credit card, which counts as borrowing and therefore carries its own fees and interest rules."
source: "aus dem gebauten HTML abgeleitet"
---
# What is Cash advance?

A cash advance is withdrawing cash on a credit card, which counts as borrowing and therefore carries its own fees and interest rules.

Also called: Credit card cash withdrawal.

## How it works #

Advances almost always fall outside the interest-free period: interest runs from the day of withdrawal, on top of a percentage fee and any charge from the machine’s operator. If the machine also converts into your home currency, three separate markups land on one withdrawal. A debit card without foreign usage fees is nearly always the cheaper route to cash abroad.

## Not to be confused with #

A cash advance is not the same as a purchase: purchases are interest-free until the statement is due, advances are not.

## In German #

The German term is Bargeldvorschuss. [German version of this term](/de/glossar/bargeldvorschuss)

## Related terms #

- [APR](/en/glossary/apr): APR is the price of borrowing on a card account, expressed as an annual percentage rate.
- [Foreign transaction fee](/en/glossary/foreign-transaction-fee): A foreign transaction fee is a percentage charge added by the card issuer on purchases that are not in the card’s billing currency.
- [Dynamic currency conversion](/en/glossary/dynamic-currency-conversion): Dynamic currency conversion is the offer to settle a payment abroad in your own home currency, with the merchant side choosing the exchange rate.

## Articles that use this term #

- [What’s the cheapest way to get cash abroad?](/en/knowledge/cash-abroad)
- [What is a foreign transaction fee and when does it apply?](/en/knowledge/foreign-transaction-fee)
- [What does carrying a balance actually cost you?](/en/knowledge/carrying-a-balance)
- [How much is a welcome bonus actually worth?](/en/knowledge/welcome-bonus-value)
- [statement-date-vs-due-date](/en/knowledge/statement-date-vs-due-date)
- [Is paying taxes by credit card worth it?](/en/knowledge/paying-taxes-by-card)