What card should you use for your overseas holiday?

With the June holidays just around the corner, banks have gotten real aggressive with the overseas spending promos. Over the past few weeks I’ve written numerous articles covering various offers, and by this point you may have lost track of what’s what. 

So in this post, I’ll recap the ongoing offers for foreign currency (FCY) spend, together with the evergreen options available year-round. 

Summary: Overseas Spending Promotions

💳 Overseas Spending Promos
Card	Earn Rate (FCY Fee)	Cost Per Mile	Min/Max Spend
SCB Journey	2 mpd (0%)	–	N/A
Citi Prestige	2 mpd (0%)	–	Min: S$6K Max: S$10K
KrisFlyer UOB CC	5 mpd (3.25%)	0.65	Min: S$1.5K Max: S$2K^
UOB PRVI Miles	5 mpd (3.25%)	0.65	Min: S$1K Max: S$4K
DBS Treasures Black Elite	4.4 mpd (3.25%)	0.74	Min: S$800 Max: S$2.8K*
DBS Vantage	4.2 mpd (3.25%)	0.77	Min: S$800 Max: S$2.8K*
Citi PM Card	4 mpd (3.25%)	0.81	Min: S$5K Max: S$5K
DBS Altitude Card	4 mpd (3.25%)	0.81	Min: S$800 Max: S$2.8K*
^Per spending period; there are three spending periods to enjoy the offer *Per spending period; there are two spending periods to enjoy the offer

Unfortunately, I can only add up to four columns in my tables before the formatting gets messed up, so you’ll need to read below for the full details of each offer.

SC Journey Card

SC Journey Card
FCY Earn Rate	2 mpd
FCY Fee	0%
Online/Offline	Both
Min. Spend	N/A
Cap	N/A
Validity Period	Period 1: 1 Jun to 31 Jul 2023 Period 2: 1 Nov to 31 Dec 2023
Registration	Not required
Full Article
T&Cs

The Standard Chartered Journey Card (and X Card; they’re one and the same now, in case you haven’t been following the news) is offering a 3.5% rebate on online and offline foreign currency spend made and posted during:

• 1 June to 31 July 2023
• 1 November to 31 December 2023

No registration is required, and there is no cap on the maximum spend.

You’ll still earn the usual 2 mpd on foreign currency spend, so the rebate basically offsets the usual 3.5% FCY fee, making the miles free (technically there is a Visa spread, so you’d still be paying more than with Revolut or YouTrip, but my assumption here is you want to earn miles).

Citi Prestige Card

Citi Prestige
FCY Earn Rate	2 mpd
FCY Fee	0%
Online/Offline	Both
Min. Spend	S$6,000 FCY for entire promo
Cap	S$10,000 FCY for entire promo
Validity Period	19 Apr to 30 Jun 2023
Registration	SMS PRSTSPEND<space>Last 4 digits of eligible card number to 72484
Full Article
T&Cs

From 19 April to 30 June 2023, targeted Citi Prestige Cardholders will enjoy a 3.25% rebate on online and offline FCY transactions, with a minimum spend of S$6,000 in FCY, and capped at S$10,000 in FCY.

Just like the Journey Card, you’ll still earn the usual 2 mpd on foreign currency spend, so the rebate basically offsets the usual 3.25% FCY fee. 

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card

KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card
FCY Earn Rate	5 mpd
FCY Fee	3.25%
Online/Offline	Both
Min. Spend	S$1,500 FCY per period
Cap	S$2,000 FCY per period*
Validity Period	Period 1: 29 May to 28 Jun 2023 Period 2: 29 Jun to 28 Jul 2023 Period 3: 29 Jul to 28 Aug 2023
Registration	SMS KFCCFX<space>Last 4 alphanumeric digits of NRIC/Passport to 77862
Full Article
T&Cs
*Assuming overseas general spend. Overseas spend on Accelerated Miles categories or SIA Group will be capped at S$3,800 per period

From 29 May to 28 August 2023, registered KrisFlyer UOB Credit Cardholders can earn 5 mpd on foreign currency transactions, both online and offline.

This is subject to spending at least S$1,500 in foreign currency transactions during any of the three qualifying periods.

The maximum bonus is capped at 7,600 miles per qualifying period, equivalent to S$2,000 of general spend, or S$3,800 of bonus category spend. Since there are three qualifying periods, the maximum bonus you can earn is 22,800 miles.

Citi PremierMiles Card

Citi PremierMiles Card
FCY Earn Rate	4 mpd
FCY Fee	3.25%
Online/Offline	Offline only
Min. Spend	S$5,000 per month
Cap	S$5,000 FCY per month
Validity Period	1 Mar to 30 Jun 2023
Registration	SMS CITIPMFX<space>Last 4 digits of eligible card number to 72484
Full Article
T&Cs

From 1 March to 30 June 2023, registered Citi PremierMiles Cardholders can earn 4 mpd on offline foreign currency transactions, split as follows:

A minimum spend of S$5,000 per calendar month is required to trigger the bonus award. This can be met by any eligible retail spend, whether local or overseas, offline or online. 

The maximum bonus you can earn each calendar month is capped at 10,000 miles, or S$5,000 qualifying spend. 

DBS Cards

DBS Cards
FCY Earn Rate	3.2 mpd (WWMC), 4 mpd (Altitude, Insignia), 4.2 mpd (Vantage), 4.4 mpd (Treasures Black Elite)
FCY Fee	3.25%
Online/Offline	Offline only
Min. Spend	S$800 on “pre-trip travel spend”
Cap	S$2,800 FCY per period
Validity Period	Period 1: 26 May to 31 Aug 2023 Period 2: 1 Sep 2023 to 31 Jan 2024
Registration	Via DBS PayLah app
Full Article
T&Cs

From 26 May 2023 to 31 January 2024, registered DBS cardholders can earn a bonus 2 mpd on offline foreign currency transactions.

This is provided they spend at least S$800 on pre-trip travel spend by 10 September 2023, defined as:

The bonus 2 mpd will only be earned once the minimum spend on pre-trip travel has been met. 

Here’s what the earn rates look like for the relevant DBS cards after a 2 mpd bonus:

	FCY Rate	Bonus Rate	Overall
DBS Treasures Black Elite	2.4 mpd	2 mpd	4.4 mpd
DBS Vantage	2.2 mpd	2 mpd	4.2 mpd
DBS Insignia	2 mpd	2 mpd	4 mpd
DBS Altitude	2 mpd	2 mpd	4 mpd
DBS WWMC	1.2 mpd	2 mpd	3.2 mpd

The bonus 2 mpd is capped at 5,600 miles (S$2,800 overseas spend) per Spend Period. Since there are a total of two Spend Periods, the maximum bonus you can earn is 11,200 miles.

UOB PRVI Miles Card

UOB PRVI Miles Card
FCY Earn Rate	5 mpd
FCY Fee	3.25%
Online/Offline	Offline only
Min. Spend	S$1,000 FCY dining & shopping for entire promo
Cap	S$4,000 FCY dining & shopping for entire promo
Validity Period	1 May to 30 Jun 2023
Registration	SMS PMX<space>Last 4 alphanumeric digits of NRIC/Passport to 77862
Full Article
T&Cs

From 1 May to 30 June 2023, registered UOB PRVI Miles Cardholders will earn 5 mpd on offline overseas dining and shopping.

The bonus is triggered by spending a minimum of S$1,000 on in-person overseas dining and shopping.

The bonus 2.6 mpd is capped at 10,400 miles, or S$4,000 of eligible spending during the entire promotion period.

Which offer is the best?

Each of these offers has their own strengths and weaknesses. 

With a 3.5% cash rebate, the Standard Chartered Journey basically offers a free 2 mpd, with no minimum spend or cap. The main drawback here is the possibility of orphan miles. Standard Chartered has the following minimum conversion blocks:

Frequent Flyer Programme	Conversion Blocks (360° Rewards Points: Partner)
	25,000 : 10,000
	2,500 : 1,000
	2,500 : 1,000
	2,500 : 1,000
	2,500 : 1,000
	3,000 : 1,000
	3,500 : 1,000
	3,500 : 1,000
	3,500 : 1,000
	5,000 : 1,000

Assuming you’re interested in KrisFlyer, you need to make sure your 360° Rewards Points balance is in intervals of 25,000 points (10,000 miles). I’d recommend you monitor your 360° Rewards Points balance closely to get an idea of how much more spending you need to hit the new block.

The 3.25% cash rebate for the Citi Prestige Card also represents a free 2 mpd, but there’s a relatively high minimum spend of S$6,000 FCY required. Moreover, this offer is targeted, and per my understanding has already been fully subscribed.

The KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card’s 5 mpd offer has a fairly low minimum spend of S$1,500 FCY, and covers both online and offline spending. Assuming you’re OK with watching your minimum spend and caps across three different periods (remember, you don’t need to participate in all three), you should be fine.

The Citi PremierMiles Card’s 4 mpd offer is only for in-person spend, and requires a minimum spend of at least S$5,000. Originally, it was possible to meet the minimum spend with no-fee Citi PayAll transactions, but from 2 May 2023, Citibank began excluding these from qualifying spend. I’m not clear what that means for no-fee Citi PayAll transactions made prior to this deadline, and Citi has not been forthcoming with a reply. Proceed at your own risk!

I dislike the DBS offer, because it’s so convoluted. You need to clock that S$800 pre-trip spend first, which only includes limited categories. After that, only your in-person FCY spend is rewarded, with a relatively low cap of 5,600 bonus miles per period.

The UOB PRVI Miles Card’s 5 mpd offer only covers selected MCCs, though to be fair these are the ones you’ll be spending the most on overseas. The minimum spend is low at S$1,000, so this could be a viable option even for conservative spenders. 

Evergreen options

For me personally, I’m sticking to the tried-and-tested combination of the Amaze x UOB Lady’s Solitaire Card. This lets me earn 6 mpd on up to S$3,000 of spend per month, with an implicit FCY fee of ~1.8% (the fee arises because Amaze charges a spread over Mastercard’s rates). I also earn InstaPoints, which are equivalent to a rebate of up to 1%. 

Apply Here

Use code 7HK2A2 for 225 bonus InstaPoints

💳 tl;dr: Amaze Card

Link up to five Mastercard credit/debit cards Overseas transactions are converted into SGD (no FCY transaction fees, but subject to FX spread) and charged to the underlying credit/debit card Transaction MCC remains the same, offline transactions charged to Amaze become online transactions for the underlying credit/debit card Earn 1 InstaPoint per S$1 spent on FCY transactions of at least S$10 (except exclusion categories), capped at 500 InstaPoints per transaction Redeem InstaPoints for cashback in blocks of 2,000 InstaPoints= S$20

You’re right that I could be earning miles for “free” with the Citi Prestige or SC Journey, but at least this way I don’t need to worry about minimum spends or orphan miles.

Other recommended Amaze pairings are as follows:

💳 Amaze Pairings
Card	Earn Rate	Cap
UOB Lady’s Card	6 mpd1	S$1K per c. month
UOB Lady’s Solitaire	6 mpd2	S$3K per c. month
Citi Rewards Card	4 mpd3	S$1K per s. month
OCBC Titanium Rewards	4 mpd4	S$13.3K per m. year
KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card	3 mpd5	None
1. Pick 1: Beauty & wellness, dining, entertainment, family, fashion, transport, travel (T&Cs) 2. Pick 2: Beauty & wellness, dining, entertainment, family, fashion, transport, travel (T&Cs) 3. All transactions except travel (airlines, hotels, rental cars, tour agency, cruises etc.) (T&Cs) 4. Electronics, clothes, bags, shoes and shopping (T&Cs) 5. Dining, shopping, travel, transport. Must spend at least S$800 on SIA Group transactions in a membership year (T&Cs)

You’ll notice that most of the cards featuring overseas spending bonuses are general spending cards. But you could just as easily earn 4 mpd with specialised spending cards, with much less hoop-jumping required. 

Refer to the article below for some ideas.

2023 Edition: Best cards for overseas spending

Conclusion

Using your credit card overseas will be more rewarding over the next few months, with various cash rebates and bonus miles offers lined up. Quite a few of these require registration, so be sure to do so ASAP, while you’re still in Singapore.

If you prefer to keep things simple, then I see little reason to switch away from your preferred Amaze pairings. Amaze spreads may be higher than they used to be, but it still beats paying the usual 3.25% FCY fees imposed by banks.