Travel service
Iranian Tourist Debit Card
A prepaid Iranian debit card in your name, loaded with your cash, so you can pay like a local — because your Visa and Mastercard will not work anywhere in Iran.
Because of sanctions, foreign Visa and Mastercard simply do not work in Iran — no ATMs, no card terminals, no online payments. Travelers arrive carrying their whole budget in euro or dollar notes, then juggle thick stacks of rials where dinner costs millions and prices are quoted in tomans (one toman = ten rials). The workaround the forum keeps asking about is the prepaid tourist debit card. We arrange one in your name before you arrive, hand it over with your airport pickup or at your first hotel, and you load it with EUR or USD cash at the official exchange shops. From then on you tap the same card readers Iranians use — taxis, bazaars, restaurants — reload whenever you need, and any unspent balance is refunded before you leave.
What’s included
- Works at virtually every Iranian card terminal — pay like a local, stop carrying the full cash stack
- Issued in your name; delivered with your airport pickup or at your first hotel
- Load and reload with EUR/USD cash; you control how much goes on it
- Remaining balance refunded at the end of your trip
- Fixed card fee — the from-price is the card itself, not a percentage of your money
Questions travelers ask
Can I use my Visa or Mastercard in Iran?
No. Because of international sanctions, Iran is disconnected from the Visa and Mastercard networks, so foreign-issued cards don't work anywhere — not in shops, not in hotels, and not in ATMs. This applies to every traveler regardless of nationality: it's the card networks that are blocked, not you. There is no cash-machine fallback if you run short, so plan your money before you fly. The two approaches that work are bringing your budget in euros or dollars in cash, and loading a prepaid Iranian tourist debit card that you spend like a local.
What is an Iranian tourist debit card and how do I get one?
A tourist debit card is a prepaid Iranian bank card — Mah Card and the Iran Tourist Card are established options — that gets around the no-foreign-cards problem. You load it with euros or dollars and then pay like a local wherever Iranian cards are accepted, instead of carrying your whole budget as banknotes. You can arrange one before you travel or after you arrive, top it up with cash during the trip, and have any unspent balance refunded before you leave. If you'd like it ready and loaded when you land, we can arrange that as part of your booking.