[Glossary](https://pecuvo.eu/en/glossary/) · Banking and payments # Prepaid card **In short:** a prepaid card is a card you first load with an amount (electronic money) and then spend only up to it; you cannot spend more than you loaded. **Simply put:** It works like a voucher with a hard ceiling. It suits a limited budget — for a child, for online shopping or for travel. When the amount runs out, payments stop. **Example:** You load €30 for the month onto a 13-year-old's card. They pay €12 for a book and €8 for the cinema. €10 is left, and they cannot spend more until the next top-up. **Watch out:** ask about the top-up fee, the expiry date and whether the balance can be refunded. Money on a prepaid card issued by an e-money institution is not a deposit and is not covered by the deposit guarantee scheme. > **Example: Bulgaria** — funds received by an e-money institution are not a deposit (Payment Services and Payment Systems Act, Article 40(2)); registers of these institutions are kept by the BNB. > > **Check in your country** — whether the issuer is a bank or an e-money institution, in your central bank's or financial supervisor's register. **Source:** Regulation (EU) 2015/751, Article 2: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2015/751/oj · BNB — registers under the Payment Services Act (in Bulgarian): https://www.bnb.bg/RegistersAndServices/RSPIPublicRegisters/index.htm ## In depth in the modules - [Module 21](https://pecuvo.eu/en/modules/payments-and-purchases/) - [Module 28](https://pecuvo.eu/en/modules/digital-finance-and-security/) ## Related terms - [Debit card](https://pecuvo.eu/en/glossary/debit-card/) - [Account for a minor](https://pecuvo.eu/en/glossary/account-for-a-minor/) - [Card limit](https://pecuvo.eu/en/glossary/card-limit/) - [In-game purchases and loot boxes](https://pecuvo.eu/en/glossary/in-game-purchases/) - [Pocket money](https://pecuvo.eu/en/glossary/pocket-money/)