Do You Need a Receipt to Sell a Gift Card?

Your aunty is back from Houston with a $100 Walmart card for you. The receipt? Somewhere in a handbag, or possibly in a bin at the airport.

Does it matter? Sometimes a lot, sometimes not at all. It depends on whether the card is physical or an e-code, on the brand, and on the card types the buyer offers. And if the receipt really has gone, that isn't the end of the road.

The short answer

• Physical store cards: a receipt can decide which card type you choose, and with it the rate. It also helps if anything about the card is ever questioned.
• E-codes: the purchase or delivery email is your receipt.
• Prepaid Visa, Mastercard and Vanilla cards: the receipt shows when the card was bought and how much was loaded, which is useful if the balance doesn't match the printed value.
• No receipt at all: many cards can still be sold, usually as a "no receipt" type.

What a receipt actually proves

A receipt does three jobs that nothing else can do quite as well.

It shows the card was bought honestly. Stolen cards are a big worry for anyone who buys gift cards, and a receipt from a real store, with a real date and amount, is the simplest evidence that yours isn't one.

It shows the card was activated, and for how much. A store card has no value until it's activated at the till. The receipt records the amount loaded and usually the last few digits of the card, which should match the card in your hand.

It's what the brand will ask for if something goes wrong. If a card turns out to be used or never activated, the brand's support will usually want the receipt before it can help. Our guide to a gift card that says already redeemed explains that process.

"With receipt" and "no receipt" card types

Gift card buyers often split a brand's physical cards into separate types depending on whether there's a receipt, with names such as "physical with receipt" and "no receipt". The exact names vary from buyer to buyer, and so does the gap between their rates. For some brands it's noticeable; for others there's no difference, or no receipt type at all. Our guide to why gift card rates differ covers the receipt alongside the other factors, such as country and amount.

The rule is simple: pick the type that matches what you really have. Choosing "with receipt" for a card without one can only get your trade held up or rejected.

In the KWIQ app, check the list of card types for your brand. The app shows the types it accepts and their rates, so you can see before you submit whether your card's type is there. The gift card rate calculator gives a quick naira estimate too.

How to photograph a receipt properly

If the app you're selling on asks for a receipt, a clear photo saves time. A good one has:

1. The whole receipt in one frame, flat, with nothing cropped off.
2. Every important detail readable: store name, date, time, amount and the card's last digits.
3. Good light. Daylight by a window is best. A dim room during a power cut is not.
4. No filters and no edits. Not even "just to brighten it". An edited receipt raises questions you don't want.

Do it the day you get the card. Most till receipts use heat-sensitive paper that fades in sunlight and warmth, so one that's crisp in the shop can be hard to read a few months later. Keep the photo, and keep the paper somewhere cool and dark.

E-codes: the email is the receipt

When a card is bought online, the brand or retailer sends an order confirmation, and often a separate delivery email with the code. Together they show who sold it, when, and for how much.

• Keep both emails, and don't delete them after you've copied the code.
• A screenshot of the code alone proves very little, because it doesn't show where the code came from.
• Share the code only where you're selling it, in the way the app asks. Never post it or forward it in a group chat.

Lost the receipt?

1. Ask the person who bought the card. Many stores email receipts or keep them in their app or loyalty account, so it may be easy to find again.
2. Look for the purchase on a bank statement. It's not the same as a store receipt, but it can help if you ever need to contact the brand about the card.
3. If nothing turns up, choose the no-receipt type for your card, if there is one, and accept that type's rate.
4. Never edit, recreate or buy a "receipt". A lost piece of paper is an inconvenience. A fake one is fraud.

When "no receipt" is a red flag

Plenty of genuine cards have no receipt. But a missing receipt combined with a strange source, such as a stranger paying you in cards, a deal that was far too cheap, or someone asking you to sell cards on their behalf, is a reason to stop. Our guide on how to tell if a gift card is real walks through the checks.

Back to aunty's Walmart card

Ask for the receipt today, before the handbag gets emptied. If it turns up, photograph it straight away. If it doesn't, the card is still worth selling as long as you check the balance first and pick the matching type. The sell Walmart gift card page shows how it works on KWIQ.

When you've got the card, and the receipt if you can find it, download the KWIQ app to see the card types and today's rates. If your phone is short on space, create a free account on the web and sell from your browser.