Single-Use Virtual Card

{ "@graph": [ { "@type": "DefinedTerm", "@id": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary/single-use-virtual-card#term", "name": "Single-Use Virtual Card", "description": "A single-use virtual card is a card number that expires automatically once one transaction has cleared against it. The card is generated for a specific purchase, used once, and then closed without anyone having to remember to cancel it. Because the number has no value after that transaction, a single-use card removes the risk that comes with storing a reusable number in a vendor system or handing it to a third party.", "url": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary/single-use-virtual-card", "inDefinedTermSet": { "@type": "DefinedTermSet", "@id": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary", "name": "Opal Glossary", "url": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Opal", "url": "https://www.opalspend.com" }, "datePublished": "2026-08-27", "dateModified": "2026-08-27" }, { "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "Should ad platforms be funded with single-use cards?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "No. Meta, Google, and TikTok charge the stored payment method repeatedly, either at a billing threshold or on a monthly cycle. A card that expires after one charge will fail on the second and can pause delivery. Use a merchant-locked card with a spending limit instead." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What happens if a single-use card is charged twice?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The second charge is declined. Some merchants also place an authorisation hold before the final charge, which is worth checking before using a single-use card with an unfamiliar vendor." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Are single-use cards free to create?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "On platforms with unlimited free virtual cards, yes. Opal includes unlimited virtual cards at no cost on every account." } } ] } ] }