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Dynamic Currency Conversion
In a "regular" credit card transaction in a foreign country, the guest's credit card authorization and settlement are handled entirely in the hotel's local currency. Guest credit card authorization for the amount of the stay is shown in the hotel's currency, and at the time of settlement, the guest's credit card account is charged in the hotel's currency. The guest's folio also shows amounts owed in the hotel's currency.
It is not until the card-issuing bank processes the transaction that the amount in the hotel's local currency is converted into the bank's (and the cardholder's) "home" currency. The issuing bank performs the currency exchange calculation using the prevailing exchange rate at the time of processing, which is usually the same day the guest checks out. The guest may not know the amount owed in his own currency until his statement arrives.
OPERA's integrated Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) feature allows guests who are paying with a credit card in a foreign country to know on-the-spot the applicable exchange rate, the amount authorized at check in, and the amount charged to their credit card at settlement, in their own "home" currency. With DCC enabled, the credit card interface dynamically communicates with credit card interface functionality that can identify a foreign credit card and, if the bank where the hotel maintains its account supports conversion of the guest's home currency, can calculate currency exchange rates in real-time.
Note: The merchant/hotel may be eligible to pay a lower percentage to the credit card transaction processor for DCC transactions because the processor does not need to calculate currency exchange rates. Check with your credit transaction processor.
The Dynamic Currency Conversion feature is activated by the OPP_DCC add-on PMS license code. When this license code is active, the IFC>Dynamic Currency Conversion application setting allows you to specify the points at which the OPERA should allow the guest to opt for or against DCC. The application setting options are:
When the CHECKIN option is selected, DCC functionality first checks whether the credit card presented for payment is issued in a foreign currency. If it is, DCC checks whether the hotel's bank supports conversion of the guest's home currency. If these checks are positive, a message prompts you to indicate whether the guest wishes to use Dynamic Currency Conversion or not. (If these conditions are not met, no prompt appears.)
The message shows the cardholder's home currency code, the current exchange rate for the cardholder's home currency and the amount authorized in the cardholder's home currency. If the guest wishes to use DCC, select the Yes button. Otherwise, select No and the authorized amount is shown in the hotel's local currency.
When DCC is used at check in, the registration card generated for the guest can include a disclaimer relative to the currency conversion and may show, via merge codes, the guest's home currency, the current exchange rate, and the authorized amount in the guest's home currency. The use and exact wording of this disclaimer is determined by the credit card transaction processor used by the property.
Note: When the CHECKIN option is selected for the IFC>Dynamic Currency Conversion application setting, DCC is automatically applied if the guest settles by credit card at check out. (No "opt out" message appears.)
When the CHECKOUT option is selected for the IFC>Dynamic Currency Conversion application setting, DCC checks are applied at both check in (in the background) and at check out; the guest has the opportunity to "opt out" at check out only.
If DCC is used at check out, the folio or receipt generated for the guest can include a disclaimer relative to the currency conversion and may show, via merge codes, the guest's home currency, the current exchange rate, and the amount the guest will be charged in the guest's home currency. The exact wording of this disclaimer is determined by the credit card transaction processor used by the property.
When the CHECKINOUT option is selected for the IFC>Dynamic Currency Conversion application setting, DCC checks are applied at both check in and at check out; the guest has the opportunity to "opt out" at both check in and at check out. However, if the guest "opts out" at check in, no prompt is presented at check out.
When MICROS Payment Gateway (MPG) is the active credit card interface, the application settings CASHIERING>PRINT AUTHORIZATION RECEIPT and CASHIERING>PRINT DCC RECEIPT will be available. When either of these are set to Y, the setting can be set to DO NOT PRINT, ASK TO PRINT, or ALWAYS PRINT.
See Also
