Last month, the UOB PRVI Miles Card launched a rare no-cap offer of 45,200 bonus miles with S$1,000 spend per month in the first two consecutive months of approval. While UOB couldn’t resist playing some games with the eligibility criteria (see below), this was one of the better offers we’ve seen in recent times.
This offer was originally set to lapse on 30 April 2023, but has now been renewed till 31 May 2023.
| โ Applied last month? |
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If you applied for this card in April, you’ll still need to be approved by 30 April 2023 to be eligible for the bonus- and based on the comments I understand that approvals are dragging for some individuals. If you want to apply this month, do so ASAP because your approval must come by 31 May 2023. |
UOB PRVI Miles 45,200 miles sign-up bonus
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| Details |
New-to-bank UOB PRVI Miles Cardmembers who apply and get approved from 1-31 May 2023 will enjoy up to 45,200 bonus miles, split into:
- 20,000 miles for paying the S$259.20 annual fee
- 25,200 miles for spending S$1,000 per month for two consecutive months
| โ New-to-bank |
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New-to-bank customers are defined as those who:
When the offer first launched on 1 April, UOB defined “new-to-bank” as anyone who did not currently hold a principal UOB credit card, and had not cancelled a UOB PRVI Miles Card in the past 6 months. On 3 April, they quietly changed “UOB PRVI Miles Card” to “any principal UOB credit card” and backdated the T&Cs to 1 April! I have no idea what happens to those who applied from 1-3 April in reliance on the old T&Cs, but that’s UOB for you I guess. |
There is no cap on the maximum customers eligible for either component. However, do note that you must be approved by 31 May 2023, so don’t leave your application till the last minute.
Assuming the S$2,000 minimum spend is clocked locally, a further 2,800 base miles (@ 1.4 mpd) will be earned. If the minimum spend is clocked overseas, a further 4,800 (@ 2.4 mpd) base miles will be earned. UOB assumes the latter scenario in its marketing, which is why you’ll see claims of a 50,000 miles sign-up bonus (45,200 bonus + 4,800 base) on its website.
This offer applies to all three versions of the UOB PRVI Miles Card, namely:
Annual fee bonus
Cardholders who pay the first year’s S$259.20 annual fee will receive UNI$10,000 (20,000 miles).
Since the first-year annual fee is waived by default, cardholders must opt in by sending the following SMS to 77862 by 30 June 2023.
| ๐ฑ SMS to 77862 |
| PMAF<space>Last 4 alphanumeric digits of NRIC/Passport (Example: If your NRIC is S1234567A, send โPMAF 567Aโ) |
S$259.20 for 20,000 miles works out to 1.30 cents per mile, which is one of the cheapest opportunities to buy miles on the market right now.
Spending bonus
Cardholders who spend S$1,000 in eligible transactions per month for two consecutive months following approval will receive UNI$12,600 (25,200 miles)
For example, if your card is approved on 10 May 2023, you will need to fulfil the minimum spend criteria as follows:
| Min. Spend | Qualifying Spend Period |
| At least S$1,000 | 10 May to 10 Jun 2023 |
| At least S$1,000 | 11 Jun to 10 Jul 2023 |
For avoidance of doubt, you cannot simply spend S$2,000 in the first month of approval and say to yourself “job done”. The minimum spend of S$1,000 needs to be clocked in each of the two spending periods.
What counts as qualifying spend?
Eligible transactions include all retail transactions in local or foreign currency, and a full list of exclusions can be found at point 1.4(c) in the T&Cs.
The key exclusions to highlight are:
- Charitable donations
- Education
- Government payments
- Hospitals
- Insurance
- Prepaid account top-ups (e.g. GrabPay or YouTrip)
- Utilities
For avoidance of doubt, CardUp transactions are eligible to earn miles, and will count towards minimum spend. Don’t forget that CardUp has launched a 1.75% promotional fee for income tax payments with Visa cards (use code MLTAX23), so a UOB PRVI Miles Visa cardholder could buy miles from as little as 1.23 cents each, while clocking spend towards the sign-up bonus requirement.
Supplementary cardholder spending will be pooled with the principal cardholder’s in determining if the minimum spend has been met. And before you say “isn’t that obvious?”, remember that UOB is not above such shenanigans.
When will the bonus miles be credited?
Annual fee bonus
The S$259.20 annual fee will be posted to your account by 24 July 2023, and the UNI$10,000 will be credited by 31 July 2023.
Spending bonus
The UNI$12,600 from meeting the 2x S$1,000 minimum spend will be credited by 31 August 2023.
Terms and Conditions
The full T&Cs for this offer can be found here. I would recommend saving a copy of the document for your own reference, since the link may be replaced with a newer promotion after the current one ends.
Annual fee waiver option
UOB has a separate offer which allows cardholders to receive a first-year fee waiver and earn 25,200 bonus miles with the same 2 x S$1,000 minimum spend. However, this offer is capped at the first 200 cardholders.
I’m of the opinion that it’s less risky (and more worth it) to apply for the fee-paying option, but if you’re interested in the waiver you can read the T&Cs here.
Overview: UOB PRVI Miles Card
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| Apply (AMEX) | |||
| Apply (MC) | |||
| Apply (Visa) | |||
| Income Req. | S$30,000 p.a. | Points Validity | 2 years |
| Annual Fee | S$259.20 (FYF) |
Min. Transfer |
5,000 UNI$ (10,000 miles) |
| Miles with Annual Fee |
N/A | Transfer Partners |
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| FCY Fee | 3.25% | Transfer Fee | S$25 |
| Local Earn | 1.4 mpd | Points Pool? | Yes |
| FCY Earn | 2.4 mpd |
Lounge Access? | No |
| Special Earn | 6 mpd on Agoda, Expedia, UOB Travel | Airport Limo? | Yes (AMEX only) |
| Cardholder Terms and Conditions | |||
UOB PRVI Miles Cards are issued across all three networks: American Express, Mastercard, and Visa. Earn rates are the same for all (1.4 mpd local, 2.4 mpd overseas), though the American Express version has two unique features:
- 20,000 bonus miles for spending at least S$50,000 in a membership year
- Complimentary airport limo transfers with a minimum spend of S$1,000 in foreign currency per calendar quarter
UOB UNI$ can be converted to either KrisFlyer, or Asia Miles at a 1 UNI$= 2 miles ratio, with a S$25 conversion fee.
Be sure to check out my full review of the UOB PRVI Miles Card below.
Conclusion
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| Apply (AMEX) | |||
| Apply (MC) | |||
| Apply (Visa) |
The UOB PRVI Miles Card has extended its uncapped sign-up bonus for May, with approved applicants getting 45,200 miles for paying the S$259.20 annual fee and spending S$1,000 per month for two consecutive months.
If you meet the eligibility criteria, then this is a great opportunity to pick up some bonus miles in the process- just be sure to apply as early in the month as you can since approval needs to come by 31 May 2023.
Hi Aaron
I applied for this card at the end of April but have not been approved yet and now it is May.
Do you think it is a good measure to re-apply in such a situation? Of course there is a possibility that I will be denied for a duplicate application.
i think you should call up UOB and ask if you can cancel your pending application, then apply again under the may offer.
advice on sgโs worst bank, and anecdotally from my own application- Dont call in. Youll end up waiting 30 mins on the line, and the phone officer will say that they dont have access to the card applications department. Theyll arrange a callback for you, which will never happen. Dont bother making a formal complaint. They say they will address your query within x business days, and then long after x days has passed, and even after you have already received your credit card, youll receive an email from them saying they will look into why its taking so long.… Read more »
Same experienceโฆ third world bank standards. And guess what today I get an sms that itโs approved. Now the most important question is do I still qualify for the promo. Or I just lost my new-to bank status for nothingโฆ
I am in a similar situation and have just called up UOB to clarify. They mentioned that since the approval date is on May and the promotion is still ongoing, i would still be eligible to earn the bonus miles (despite the fact that my application date is in April)
Hello Aaron, thank you for this! My fiancee just applied for UOB Lady this afternoon and still pending approval, do you know if she applied for this now, she will be considered new to bank and eligible for the 45K sign up miles?
well if her lady’s card gets approved first, no.
Between Visa and Mastercard, which has the edge when it comes to FCY conversion (not just the % but also the exchange rate)? Am intending to just apply for just 1 of these cards.
Hi, does anyone know if this card linked to AMAZE is eligible transactions? The document says it excludes AMAZE* TRANSIT*; wondering if this includes AMAZE transactions or just specifically for transit
Hi Aaron, do you think i will be able to enjoy this promo if i apply through my UOB app?