New AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend welcome offer: Up to 30,400 bonus miles

American Express has launched a new welcome offer for the AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend, which runs from now till 28 February 2024. 

New-to-AMEX customers who apply via The MileLion and spend S$3,000 in the first 90 days will receive up to 30,400 bonus miles, while existing AMEX cardholders will receive up to 20,400 bonus miles with the same minimum spend. 

These offers are noticeably weaker than the ones that just concluded, so if there’s no immediate need I might hold off on applying and wait for a better deal to come along.

New AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend sign-up offer

AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend
Apply Here
	New Customers	Existing Customers
Spend S$3,000 (Mo. 1-3)	30.4K	20.4K
Base Miles from S$3,000 (@ 1.2 mpd)	3.6K	3.6K
Total Spend	S$3K	S$3K
Total Miles	34K	24K
Annual fee must be paid

American Express is offering two different sign-up offers for the AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend, depending on whether you count as a new or existing customer.

New customers

All first-time American Express KrisFlyer cobrand cardholders will enjoy 5,000 miles on their first spend of any amount. This is a once per lifetime bonus; if you’ve held an American Express KrisFlyer cobrand card before, you won’t receive it a second time.

New customers who sign-up via The MileLion will receive 25,400 miles when they receive approval by 28 February 2024 and spend S$3,000 within the first 90 days of approval. 

To summarise the offer, by spending S$3,000 in the first 90 days of approval, they will receive 34,000 miles, broken down as follows:

• 5,000 bonus miles for first spend
• 25,400 bonus miles for meeting S$3,000 spend
• 3,600 base miles for spending S$3,000 @ 1.2 mpd

Existing customers

All first-time American Express KrisFlyer cobrand cardholders will enjoy 5,000 miles on their first spend of any amount. This is a once per lifetime bonus; if you’ve held an American Express KrisFlyer cobrand card before, you won’t receive it a second time.

Existing customers who sign-up via The MileLion will receive 15,400 miles when they receive approval by 28 February 2024 and spend S$3,000 within the first 90 days of approval. 

To summarise the offer, by spending S$3,000 in the first 90 days of approval, they will receive 24,000 miles, broken down as follows:

• 5,000 bonus miles for first spend
• 15,400 bonus miles for meeting S$3,000 spend
• 3,600 base miles for spending S$3,000 @ 1.2 mpd

When will bonus miles be credited?

If you are eligible for the 5,000 miles bonus for first-time AMEX Singapore Airlines cobrand cardholders, these will be credited to your KrisFlyer account after the month of approval and first spend.

The remaining bonuses of 25,400/15,400 miles for new/existing customers will be credited within 12 weeks of the date you meet the spend threshold. 

All questions about fulfilment should be directed to American Express.

Terms & Conditions

• 5,000 bonus miles (first spend offer)
• 25,400/15,400 bonus miles for new/existing customers

What spending is eligible?

American Express provides a list of excluded spending categories here, but the key ones to take note of are:

• Donations
• Education
• GrabPay top-ups
• Insurance
• Public hospitals and polyclinics
• SPC transactions
• Utilities

CardUp, private and non-profit hospitals, and anything else not explicitly stated in the exclusion list will count as eligible spend.

All spending on supplementary cards will pool with principal cards when determining whether the minimum spend has been met.

Is it worth it?

Compared to the previous offer, new-to-AMEX cardholders receive 2,300 more miles, but give up the Samsonite Red TOIIS C Spinner 75/28 Exp luggage that was offered up till 31 October 2023. We can debate how much that luggage is worth exactly, but I think most people would choose it over 2,300 miles.

If you’re an existing American Express cardholder, the minimum spend has been increased by S$1,000, for an incremental 2,300 miles. That, in my opinion, isn’t much of an added incentive. 

Overview: AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend

Apply Here
Income Req.	N/A*	Points Validity	3 years
Annual Fee	S$340.20	Min. Transfer	N/A
Miles with Annual Fee	None	Transfer Partners	SIA
FCY Fee	3.25%	Transfer Fee	None
Local Earn	1.2 mpd	Points Pool?	N/A
FCY Earn	2 mpd (Jun & Dec)	Lounge Access?	Yes
Special Earn	2 mpd on SIA and KrisShop, 3.2 mpd for Grab	Airport Limo?	No
*AMEX no longer publishes income requirements for the AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend. All applications are subject to internal review. For reference, the last published income requirement was S$50,000 p.a.
Cardholder Terms and Conditions

The AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend has an annual fee of S$340.20 (increasing to S$343.35 in 2024), which must be paid in the first year (it can be waived from the second year onwards at AMEX’s discretion).

Cardholders earn 1.2 mpd on local spend, and 2 mpd on foreign currency spend in June and December (1.2 mpd otherwise). An uncapped 2 mpd is offered on Singapore Airlines and KrisShop transactions year-round, as well as 3.2 mpd on Grab, capped at S$200 per calendar month.

Key card benefits include: 

• 4x lounge passes to participating Plaza Premium Lounges worldwide (including SATS Premier Lounge in Singapore)
• One-night stay at participating Hilton Hotels across Asia Pacific
• Hilton Silver status (which allows you to enjoy the 5th night free on award redemptions- very valuable if you’re buying Hilton points)

Cardholders who spend at least S$15,000 on eligible Singapore Airlines tickets within the first 12 months of approval will be automatically upgraded to KrisFlyer Elite Gold. This upgrade is valid for one year, after which they will need to requalify through regular means.

Complete Guide: KrisFlyer Elite Gold benefits

Spending S$15,000 on eligible purchases on Singapore Airlines tickets between 1 July to 30 June of the following year also gives a double miles accrual voucher, which can be applied to a booking to earn up to 5,000 bonus miles. 

Don’t forget to check out my full review of the AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend below. 

Review: AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend

Conclusion

Apply Here

The latest AMEX KrisFlyer Ascend welcome offer gives new and existing cardholders up to 30,400 and 20,400 bonus miles respectively for a minimum spend of S$3,000.

While it can come in handy for someone with an upcoming big ticket expense, this offer is notably weaker than the one that just ended. If you’re able to delay your expenses, I’d recommend waiting to see what the new offers in 2024 have in store.