The Emerald card is a prepaid debit card provided by H&R Block, a tax preparation company based in the US.
Customers who complete their tax returns via H&R Block will receive their tax returns into their account with the company, which can be accessed via the Emerald card.
Applying for an Emerald card is easy. All you need to do is provide your personal information, social security number and the amount you were refunded in last year’s tax return. H&R block will not request your credit history.
Similarly to a bank account, the Emerald card comes with a routing and account number.
One of the main benefits of the Emerald card is the possibility of accessing tax refund advance loans. These types of loans are offered by financial institutions to customers who anticipate receiving a tax refund.
H&R Block offers tax refund advance loans of up to $3,500. Unlike other similar companies, the loans come with 0% APR. However, the loan is exclusively paid onto the Emerald card, and customers must use H&R Block to file their taxes and pay the accompanying fees.
From transferring funds to friends and family to receiving payments from others, the Emerald card functions as a normal debit card. Users can make the most of its features by downloading the MyBlock app.
As it is a prepaid debit card, you cannot reach a negative balance on it.
Withdrawing money from your Emerald card
There are three main ways of withdrawing money from your Emerald card, namely using an ATM, cashback or requesting funds over the counter at a financial institution.
H&R Block charges a standard fee of $3.00 for cash withdrawals. In addition to this, customers may be charged the fee requested by the company operating the ATM. It is therefore advisable to look for surcharge-free ATM networks, such as the one used by MoneyPass, to limit the amount you spend to withdraw cash.
You can also obtain cash from your Emerald card by withdrawing money over the counter from a financial institution. However, this comes with a hefty fee of $35, which makes cash withdrawals from an ATM a much more attractive option.
The best way to withdraw money from your Emerald card is via the cashback method. You can request cash back at a supermarket when you are doing your weekly grocery shopping.
If a store offers free cashback, you will only be charged the price of your shop and the amount you would like to withdraw. Retailers that operate nationally and offer free cashback include CVS and Walmart.
Nonetheless, it is important to note that not all stores offer cashback, and some of them may charge you for the transaction.
But what do you do if you would like to transfer your funds from your Emerald card to your regular bank account? We elaborate below.
Transferring money to your bank account
Transferring money from your Emerald card to your bank account is very simple. However, you need to make sure that you link the two together when you are applying for your Emerald card in the first place.
If you have not done this, you can still link them at a later date by following these simple steps:
- In the MyBlock app, go to the section where you deal with transactions.
- Here, there is the option to add bank details.
- Next, you are prompted to add your bank account details, including the name of the account holder, the routing number and the account number.
And that is it! Once you have completed the above steps, you have successfully linked your Emerald card with your bank account.
In the MyBlock app, there is the option to add multiple bank accounts, allowing you to transfer funds to whomever you want and whenever you like.