Extended: Citi PremierMiles 1.5 mpd offer on PayAll tax payments; buy miles for 1.33 cents

Income tax season is here, and on cue, the banks are starting to roll out promotions. This can be an opportunity to buy miles at a very low price for a payment you’ll need to make anyway.

Full Guide on Earning Miles for Income Tax

Citi PremierMiles offering 1.5 mpd on income tax payments

As you may already know, Citibank has a feature called Citi PayAll, which allows you to earn points when using your Citi cards for income tax, rent, education expenses, condo management fees, or electricity bills.

Citibank is currently running a promotion specifically for Citi PremierMiles cardholders who pay income tax via PayAll. 

From 11 May-31 August 2020, cardholders will earn 1.5 mpd on their income tax payments via PayAll, 25% more than the usual 1.2 mpd. The bonus 0.3 mpd will be credited to within 8 weeks from the end of the promo period.

With PayAll’s usual 2% fee, the cost per mile is reduced from 1.67 cents to 1.33 cents

	CPM @ 1.2 mpd	CPM @ 1.5 mpd
	1.67	1.33
💡 Working: A S$1,000 tax bill with a 2% PayAll fee would earn 1,500 miles @ 1.5 mpd (you don’t earn miles on the PayAll fee). Paying S$20 (2% of S$1,000) to buy 1,500 miles is equivalent to buying miles at 1.33 cents each.

To be eligible, you must charge your payment by 31 August 2020. It may take Citibank a couple of days to charge your card, so don’t wait till the last minute to set it up.

Last I heard, this bonus will not reflect on the Citi app. You’ll still see an earn rate based on 1.2 mpd when scheduling your payment. However, the T&Cs are pretty unambiguous about this, so I wouldn’t worry too much. 

Moreover, the promotion is featured on the card’s public landing page, so it shouldn’t be a targeted offer. 

Don’t use Citi PayAll to overpay your taxes

What I’ve always found strange about Citi PayAll is that they don’t request a copy of your NOA. Therefore, they have no way of knowing how much tax you actually need to pay.

Given the relatively low cost of buying miles through Citi PayAll, it’s unsurprising that some cardholders have tried to take advantage by overpaying their tax bill (and then requesting a refund via cheque). IRAS frowns on this, because it creates an additional administrative burden. From what I understand, taxpayers have received warnings for such behavior, and Citi’s on to you.

Ah well, at least they’ll refund you the PayAll service fee.

Citibank offers the most transfer partners in Singapore

I’ve made the case that in these uncertain times, Citi Miles are probably one of the best currencies you can earn. They don’t expire, and with a choice of 11 different transfer partners, you’re more protected against any given one devaluing.

	Transfer Ratio
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1
	1:1

A S$26.75 conversion fee applies for every transfer, and do note that Thank You points earned on the Citi Prestige/Citi Rewards cards do not pool with Citi Miles, so you’ll have to redeem them separately.

The flexibility of Citi Miles means they’re a great way to enjoy sweet spots in programs like Etihad Guest, British Airways Avios and Turkish Miles&Smiles.

For example, you could redeem a Singapore to Europe round-trip Business Class flight for just 90,000 miles with Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles. That’s half the price that Singapore Airlines charges (albeit with fuel surcharges), which means you could fly two people for the cost of flying one with KrisFlyer.

Conclusion

This promotion represents the cheapest price at which Citi PremierMiles cardholders can generate miles while paying taxes.

If this is something you’re interested in, be sure to schedule your payment well before 31 August 2020.