How to Remove Credit Card Info With Microsoft When They Don't Need It

i had the same thing... i used my cc to buy 2 months of gold for £2 back in may, then before it was due to end i used a prepaid card 12months of gold.... because the previous subscription didnt end, the prepaid card is attached to my cc, meaning i cant remove it till august, unless i forfeit my gold.... why cant microsoft be like every other business where once something is paid for, the card can be removed? its hardly safe!! the reason i topped up before it ended was so i got my 200 reward points.

The simple answer to the question "why" is so that they can use the CC for automatic renewal (charge) when your member ship is up.  There's really no other reason to have it on file, there are other means that can be used to verify your identity.  What you can do is get one of those temporary credit cards from the store with a small amount of cash on it and transfer the account over to that one.

Hey there Bug! If you would rather not have a CC on file, all you'd need to do is turn off auto renewal, wait for your current subscription to end, remove the payment method, and then you can use prepaid LIVE Gold cards for your subscriptions instead. If you would rather purchase LIVE Gold subscriptions on the console, you could instead use a PayPal account instead of your CC. I hope this helps, let me know if you have any questions. Thanks!

One can argue it goes to motive and to compliance with Microsoft's Terms of Service.  With a credit card on file, they have your authorization (by virtue of you supplying the card and continuing to use the service) to bill you for any monetary option available on the XBOX Live service.  This is not limited to subscriptions or automatic renewal.  It's so they can make money.  With a credit card on file, they can charge you.  Without one, quite simply, they can't.  They'd have to demand payment vs charge you up front.  More work for them.

To comply with the XBOX Live Terms of Service you are require to keep your billing information up to date.  Going forward, I would suggest pre-paid cards/codes to use for subscription or points purchases.

You can perhaps inquire with XBL Support to (1) cancel your subcription BUT (2) request the remaining subscription > a month to be reimbursed through pre-paid codes.  Only then can you have the credit card removed for billing purposes.  Please note, you can not have a card PERMANENTLY removed unless you make that request IN WRITING to Microsoft.  It will simply show on your billing account as "(Removed)" but will retain the account purchase history.

Call MS support and ask to remove credit card. If you have at least a month or more remaining if it's a 3 or 12 month subscription, ask for tokens for remaining time. Once they remove CC it will no longer be usable or available for any charges on Live. The last 4 and CC type will only remain on the billing.microsoft.com website for your own reference only.