Written by Vanessa Santilli on Dec. 26 on CreditCards.ca

When Santa brings you a gift card to your favourite store, you jump for joy. But what if he brings you a card you don’t ever see yourself using? You do have options other than letting it collect dust. Here are few ways to make the most out of that unwanted gift card.

Regift it
Jasmeet Duggal, of Mississauga, received a bookstore gift card and decided she’d hold onto it for someone who would get more use out of it.

“I chose to regift the card because, at that moment, there wasn’t anything in particular that I wanted to buy,” says Duggal. Plus, she adds, it saved her time and money when she needed a gift later.

Sell it
CardSwap is an online marketplace that allows consumers to both buy and sell gift cards.

“Canadians use the CardSwap service to sell their unwanted gift cards and receive cash,” explains founder Frances Ho. “We, in turn, resell the gift cards to another individual who wants to save money at that store.”

In order to use the service, your gift card must have a minimum balance of $25, she adds.

As an example of payout, Ho says CardSwap would offer $80 for a $100 Best Buy gift card. “We will resell that gift card for around $90,” she says.

Another option, adds Duggal, is websites such as Craigslist or Kijiji.

Donate it
Amanda Foster, of Toronto, once received an unwanted gift card.

“I didn’t really have a use for the card at the time, so (I figured) I might as well donate it,” says Foster.

In fact, CardSwap works with the Children’s Wish Foundation, allowing Canadians to donate unused gift cards to the organization. Other charity organizations, such as Covenant House, also accept gift cards as donations.

Return it
This option is hit and miss.

“If a consumer would like to return a retail gift card, the possibility to do so or not is ultimately a merchant decision and can differ from one merchant to another,” says Natasha Nystrom, acting media relations officer for the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada.

The reality is that the vast majority of Canadian retailers don’t accept returns on gift cards. Hudson’s Bay, Indigo, Best Buy, Shoppers Drug Mart and Wal-Mart are just some of the big retailers that won’t let you cash out the cards.

However, Zara, which doesn’t take returns on gift cards purchased in store, will issue returns on e-gift cards, so long as it’s within 30 days of when you sent the card to the recipient.

Another tact you might be tempted to try is purchasing something with the gift card, then returning the item and asking for cash back. However, many stores will only give store credit on returns, so this is hit and miss as well.

Wait it out
You may not be interested in anything the store has to offer now, but that doesn’t mean that will be the case later.

“You can always save it and use it in the long run,” adds Foster. “It doesn’t expire so you can always use it.”