Woolworths gift card thread

[Big John]

From freepoints

20x Everyday Rewards points on Uber, Good Food, Rebel, BCF and Supercheap Auto gift cards at Woolworths - FreePoints

23 Sep to 29 Sep 2026

freepoints.com.au

Thanks Serfty. I didn't know that I could change the payment method on past Uber purchases!

 

[VantageXL]

From freepoints

20x Everyday Rewards points on Uber, Good Food, Rebel, BCF and Supercheap Auto gift cards at Woolworths - FreePoints

23 Sep to 29 Sep 2026

freepoints.com.au

Thanks. Here's the catalogue image:

TCN Good Food gift cards can be used at:

• 5812: Eating Places, Restaurants
• 5813: Bars, coughtail Lounges, Discotheques, Nightclubs, and Taverns: Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)

Unofficially, TCN Good Food gift cards have been known to also support:

• 5811: Caterers
• 7011: Lodging: Hotels, Motels, Resorts: not elsewhere classified

You should always convert physical TCN Good Food gift cards into digital ones here (via the Go Digital button) so that you can add them to your mobile wallet (e.g. Apple Pay) as they’re more likely to be accepted that way.

 

[markis10]

Freepoints seem to get in early!

20x Everyday Rewards points on TCN Gift, Teen, Baby, Restaurant, Pub & Bar, Event and Village gift cards at Woolworths - FreePoints

30 Sep to 6 Oct 2026

freepoints.com.au

 

[Jacques Vert]

An update on this...

I did find 10 cards that had the external packaging intact (or so I thought). When I returned home I removed the cards from their packaging and added them to my stash. It was only when I was looking to use one of the cards that I noticed that the film over the PIN code had been scratched off (yes, slack of me not to notice when I opened the packaging). So when I went through all the cards I found 8 that had been tampered with (6 x HIM and 2 x FILM BUFF). Luckily for me, a quick balance check on line revealed that none had been used. I contacted TCN who have cancelled the cards and promised to replace them.

TCN requested a photo of the backs of all the cards + a photo of the receipt (which I always keep). Never had problems with the HIM or FILM BUFF cards before but I guess I'll be opening all cards before I leave the shopping centre in future.

Be aware at supermarkets on the NSW Mid North Coast.

Replacement cards have now been received.

 

[VantageXL]

Freepoints seem to get in early!

Thanks. Here's the catalogue image and a list of where these gift cards work:



Note that this is usually the last time we see 20x points on TCN Restaurant gift cards until March so if you're a fan of them it could be worth stocking up.

TCN Baby gift cards can be used at Adairs Kids, Adore Beauty, ASOS, Baby Bunting, Bae The Label, Bonds, Booktopia, Cotton On Body, Cotton On Kids, Decathlon, DoorDash, Dymocks, H&M, Kidstuff, Lorna Jane, Mocka., Peter Alexander, Ripe Maternity, Seed Heritage, T2, Temple & Webster, The Trybe, Thread The Word, Toyworld.

TCN Gift gift cards can be used at Adairs, Adidas, Adore Beauty, ASOS, BCF, Bed Bath N’ Table, Big Swing Golf, Bonds, Calvin Klein, Champion, City Beach, Cotton On, Culture Kings, Decjuba, DoorDash, Dr. Martens, Drummond Golf, Dymocks, Foot Locker, Glassons, H&M, Hype DC, Jay Jays, JB Hi-Fi, JD Sports, Just Jeans, Kingpin, Kogan.com, Macpac, Nike, Petal & Pup, Peter Alexander, Platypus, Princess Polly, Rebel, Reebok, Roblox, Shein, Smiggle, PlayStation Store, Sportsgirl, Supercheap Auto, Supre, Surf Dive n Ski, T2, The AFL Store, The Good Guys, The Oodie, Timberland, Timezone, TK Maxx, Tommy Hilfiger, Typo, Uber, Uber Eats, Universal Store, White Fox Boutique, Zone Bowling.

TCN Teen gift cards can be used at Adidas, Adore Beauty, Allkinds, Archie Brothers, ASOS, Beginning Boutique, Billabong, Bonds, Calvin Klein, Champion, City Beach, Cotton On, Culture Kings, DoorDash, Dr. Martens, Dymocks, Factorie, Foot Locker, Ghanda, Glassons, H&M, Hijinx Hotel, Holey Moley, Hype DC, Intersport, Jay Jays, JB Hi-Fi, JD Sports, Kikki.K, Kingpin, Minecraft Java and Bedrock, Minecraft Minecoins, Movie World, Nike, Perfect Stranger, Peter Alexander, Platypus, Princess Polly, Quiksilver, Rebel, Reebok, Roblox, Sea World, Seed Heritage, Shein, Showpo, PlayStation Store, Sportsgirl, SportsPower, Strike, Supre, Surf Dive n Ski, T2, Thats So Fetch, The AFL Store, The Athletes Foot, The Oodie, Timezone, TK Maxx, Tommy Hilfiger, Topgolf, Typo, UGG Express, Universal Store, Village Roadshow Theme Parks, Wet’n’Wild, White Fox Boutique, Xbox, Xbox Game Pass Essential, Zone Bowling.

TCN Restaurant gift cards can be used at:

• 5812: Eating Places, Restaurants
• 5813: Bars, coughtail Lounges, Discotheques, Nightclubs, and Taverns: Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)

Unofficially, TCN Restaurant gift cards have been known to also support:

• 5462: Bakeries
• 5811: Caterers
• 5814: Fast Food Restaurants
• 7011: Lodging: Hotels, Motels, Resorts: not elsewhere classified
• 7997: Clubs: Country Clubs, Membership (Athletic, Recreation, Sports), Private Golf Courses

You should always convert physical TCN Restaurant gift cards into digital ones here so that you can add them your mobile wallet (e.g. Apple Pay) as they’re more likely to be accepted that way.

TCN Pub & Bar gift cards can be used at:

• 5812: Eating Places, Restaurants
• 5813: Bars, coughtail Lounges, Discotheques, Nightclubs, and Taverns: Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages)
• 7997: Clubs: Country Clubs, Membership (Athletic, Recreation, Sports), Private Golf Courses

Unofficially, TCN Pub & Bar gift cards have been known to also support:

• 5921: Package Stores, Beer, Wine, and Liquor [excluding most Liquorlands]
• 7941: Athletic Fields, Commercial Sports, Professional Sports Clubs, Sports Promoters

You should always convert physical Pub & Bar gift cards into digital ones here so that you can add them to your mobile wallet (e.g. Apple Pay) as they’re more likely to be accepted that way.

 

[Chicken]

Does anyone know if the TCN pub / restaurant cards work overseas? If they do, they are good value even if they charge a forex surcharge?

 

[VantageXL]

Does anyone know if the TCN pub / restaurant cards work overseas? If they do, they are good value even if they charge a forex surcharge?

I've used them for non-AUD transactions and they do charge a conversion fee.

 

[Chicken]

I've used them for non-AUD transactions and they do charge a conversion fee.

I got these at 10% off, so I'm thinking, I would still be ahead if I were to use them overseas.

 

[Jacques Vert]

I've used them for non-AUD transactions and they do charge a conversion fee.

Did you convert them to digital cards or keep them as physical ones?

 

[VantageXL]

Did you convert them to digital cards or keep them as physical ones?

I always convert them to digital. Easier to manage and more likely to be accepted.

 

[Jacques Vert]

I always convert them to digital. Easier to manage and more likely to be accepted.

And presumably more likely to be accepted overseas.

 

[L2.]

And presumably more likely to be accepted overseas.

These cards are issued as a digital MasterCard when you convert them to a digital card, but in their physical form they are only EFTPOS cards, hence with EFTPOS being a domestic Australian network the chances of a physical card working anywhere else would be slim.

 

[Happy Dude]

These cards are issued as a digital MasterCard when you convert them to a digital card, but in their physical form they are only EFTPOS cards, hence with EFTPOS being a domestic Australian network the chances of a physical card working anywhere else would be slim.

So does that mean they'd [the converted digital MasterCard] would then be accepted at a wider range of places than @VantageXL's list?

 

[Chicken]

So does that mean they'd [the converted digital MasterCard] would then be accepted at a wider range of places than @VantageXL's list?

That's what some people say, but I don't see any difference. For example, I still cannot use them with Square terminals despite I have converted them to MasterCard

 

[VantageXL]

So does that mean they'd [the converted digital MasterCard] would then be accepted at a wider range of places than @VantageXL's list?

The supported merchant categories should be more or less the same across both the physical and digital versions. However, it's likely that there are still a few dining-related MCCs I haven't cracked yet (e.g. it wouldn't surprise me if the Pub & Bar card supports '5811: Caterers' like the Restaurant/Good Food cards).

As for the list I shared on Monday, you can add '7011: Lodging: Hotels, Motels, Resorts: not elsewhere classified' to the Pub & Bar gift card because I finally got around to testing that this week.

That's what some people say, but I don't see any difference. For example, I still cannot use them with Square terminals despite I have converted them to MasterCard

I have used TCN digital gift cards with many Square terminals. How many businesses did you try? If just one or two it's possible they may have been assigned an unusual merchant category code. If you have an Android phone you can use the TCN app to see what MCC was recorded for each transaction – even failed ones.

 

[Chicken]

I have used TCN digital gift cards with many Square terminals. How many businesses did you try?

Heaps, from cafes, bubble tea, Chinese takeaway and those sorts of places, food trucks. Actually, all the cafes near my work at Central station Sydney are all Square, and all decline.

If you have an Android phone you can use the TCN app to see what MCC was recorded for each transaction – even failed ones.

I just checked, they are 5811 caterers and 5814 fast food. And if you think fast food because I tried to use it at KFC, no, they are bubble tea places. I have even found that Gongcha accept them but not Chatime, even though they sell the exact same things.

 

[VantageXL]

5811 caterers and 5814 fast food

Was that with a TCN Restaurant or Good Food/Pub & Bar gift card? If it was the TCN Restaurant, that's very strange as it should definitely support both of those MCCs.

 

[Chicken]

I am sorry to say, but I think your obsession with merchant code is a waste of your own brain capacity.

Here are some of the transactions I have done.

Pub & Bar card

Declined
Serve Australia - bars at festivals - 5811 Caterers
Agape Canteen - food truck at festivals - 5814 Fast Food
C Tea - bubble tea - 5814 fast food
Saltie - cafe - 5814 fast food
Cupino Central - kebab shop - 5814 fast food
KFC - you know what this is - 5814 fast food

Approved
Persah Pty Ltd - hot food kebab fish and chips - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants
GYG Manly Wharf - this is a window only, no sitting down GYG at Manly wharf - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants
Gongcha - bubble tea - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants
Oporto Annangrove Rd - Oporto at an Ampol servo - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants

- If fast food is not allowed on this card, how come I can use it to buy Oporto and GYG?
- If the card says "bar", how come I could not use it at a bar at a music festival?
- How come I am not allowed to buy C Tea (I also know that I can't use this for Chatime), but how come I can use this for Gongcha?

The merchant category code has no relationship with what the business actually is, they just get coded randomly during set up.
- KFC is fast food, but Oporto and GYG are not?
- Gongcha is OK, but C Tea and Chatime are not OK?
- Gongcha is 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants? What are you eating there? Bubbles? Restaurants? Can you sit down at Gongcha? Don't think so.
- One kebab shop is 5814 fast food, another is 5812 Eating Places?

Restaurant card

Declined
Chatime - bubble tea - 5499 Miscellaneous Food Stores–Convenience Stores, Markets, Specialty Stores, and Vending Machines
Saltie - cafe - 5814 fast food
Oliver Brown - sit down cafe - 5814 Fast Food
Fond Patisserie - cafe with cakes, sit down - 5462 Bakeries
Croissant D'or - a bakery - 5462 Bakeries
Bakedell Bakery - bakery with coffee - 5499 Miscellaneous Food Stores–Convenience Stores, Markets, Specialty Stores, and Vending Machines
Riverside Theatres - a bar inside the theatre - 7929 Bands, Orchestras and Miscellaneous Entertainers–Not Elsewhere Classified

Approved
Gongcha - bubble tea - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants
Sharetea - bubble tea - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants
City Edge - hole in the wall sandwich shop - 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants

Again, the category code has no relationship with the business.
- Gongcha Shartea are eating places? What are you eating? Restaurants? Seriously? Oh, and now Chatime is Miscellaneous? Righto.
- City Edge is a hole in the wall selling lunches to office works in the CBD. How is it a restaurant if you can't even walk inside nor sit down? But Oliver Brown, you can order a meal there sit down and eat it, is a fast food?

Hence I think you are wasting your own time.

 

[VantageXL]

I am sorry to say, but I think your obsession with merchant code is a waste of your own brain capacity.

These are merchant category gift cards. That's how they work.

Pub & Bar card ... Declined ... 5811 Caterers ... 5814 Fast Food

No one has ever claimed that the Pub & Bar gift card supports these two MCCs so that's unsurprising.

Pub & Bar card ... Approved ... 5812 Eating Places and Restaurants

That makes sense because 5812 is one of the MCCs that the Pub & Bar gift card supports.

Restaurant card ... Declined

This one is a bit more surprising. 5499 and 7929 aren't supported so those purchases being declined makes sense. 5499 is the most common unsupported MCC I have found in my own testing.

However, it is odd that you weren't able to use them at some businesses using 5814 (fast food) and 5462 (bakeries). I can only surmise that there was some other issue with those transactions (e.g. insufficient funds due to an unexpected card surcharge or something to do with the particular payment terminal used). Although it is worth pointing out that 5814 and 5462 are not officially supported by the TCN Restaurant gift card at all, just something that they've long been known to unofficially support.

For what it's worth, I have tested these gift cards at hundreds of different businesses (including many you listed) and have never had a card declined for an in-store transaction except because of insufficient funds or an unsupported MCC.

The merchant category code has no relationship with what the business actually is, they just get coded randomly during set up.

They're not random. There is, however, significant overlap between some of the merchant category codes (e.g. 5812 restaurants and 5814 fast food) which results in many businesses using one or the other (sometimes multiple). Once you realise this these gift cards become a lot less confusing.

 

[serfty]

It is somewhat strange, especially for Pub/Restaurant cards. I guess it is a case of suck it and see.

In May in Darwin , I was not able to use a physical pub and bar card ordering food at a boat Club, but could at its bar. (I had not the knack of doing a TCN GPay load back then, so have no reference for merchant codes.)

There's some more on the current 20x here:

20x Everyday Rewards points on TCN Gift, Teen, Baby, Restaurant, Pub & Bar, Event and Village gift cards at Woolworths - FreePoints

30 Sep to 6 Oct 2026

freepoints.com.au