HeyMax First membership guide: Fly now, earn later

HeyMax First is a paid membership for HeyMax users that’s basically a “fly now, earn later” facility. Members can borrow Max Miles to redeem a flight or stay today, then earn back the deficit at their own pace.

It’s a novel solution that flips the script on earning and burning. Traditionally, you earn miles first, and hope that a redemption opportunity will arise later — all the while praying that devaluations and programme changes don’t shift the goalposts. HeyMax First takes the uncertainty out of the situation by allowing users to redeem first, then earn back the miles later.

Initially launched as an invitation-only programme, HeyMax First is now open to everyone. In addition, the first year’s membership fee is now waived for all users, rather than just limited to the first 10,000, as originally announced. 

In this guide, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about HeyMax First, including the rules, fees, and when it’d come in most useful. 

Overview: HeyMax First

Get 200 Max Miles when you sign up for a HeyMax account and complete one transaction

Get a HeyMax account

Join HeyMax First

HeyMax First is best thought of as a credit line of Max Miles. 

You can draw from it when needed, then pay it back at your own pace as you earn Max Miles through shopping at partner merchants, buying vouchers, using linked cards, converting yuu Points, referring friends etc.

To be clear: there is no automatic lump sum deposit when you join HeyMax First. Rather, you trigger the withdrawals when you want, in the quantity that you want.

HeyMax First offers four tiers of membership, which differ in terms of credit line (referred to as a “miles pool”), membership fee and access fee.

Membership fee

The entry tier of HeyMax First is Silver, which is free for life.

The membership fee for Gold, Platinum and Reserve ranges from S$299 to S$1,999 per year.  It will be waived for the first year for all new joiners, until further notice. However, the membership fee must be paid from the second year onwards.

Membership fees are paid via credit card, under MCC 5311 (Department Stores). You’ll be prompted to provide your card details at the time of joining, but the membership fee will only be deducted from the second year onwards.

Access fee

In addition to the membership fee, users will pay an access fee every time they wish to draw down from their miles pool, which ranges from 2.3 to 3 cents per mile.

Withdrawals can be made in blocks of 10,000 Max Miles. For example, a Gold member has a pool of 100,000 miles to draw from. He can withdraw 50,000 Max Miles by paying a fee of S$1,350 (50,000 x 2.7 cents each).

Here’s the critical bit: unlike the membership fee, the access fee is refundable.

The access fee can be reclaimed in blocks of 10,000 Max Miles, as you earn them from day-to-day HeyMax activity. Going back to our Gold member example, once he earns 10,000 Max Miles, he can reclaim S$270 (10,000 x 2.7 cents each).

Therefore, the membership fee — which is waived in the first year — is the only unavoidable component. 

Access fees are paid (and refunded) through PayNow.

How do I withdraw from or repay my miles pool?

To make a withdrawal or repayment to your miles pool, open the HeyMax app, tap on Profile > HeyMax First.

Withdrawals

Tap on Draw Miles, then select the number of miles you wish to withdraw (in blocks of 10,000) and pay the access fee through the PayNow QR code that will be generated.

Once you’ve made payment, tap “I have paid via PayNow”, and the miles will be deposited instantly.

Repayment

Tap on Reclaim Now, then select the number of miles you wish to repay (in blocks of 10,000). Confirm your PayNow mobile number, and the refund will be made within one day.

Is there a deadline to repay?

Not really. You can reclaim your access fee so long as you’re a HeyMax user.

There’s no deadline. Reclaim eligibility persists indefinitely — even if you don’t renew a paid tier or pause your HeyMax activity. Your outstanding access fees remain reclaimable for as long as you’re a HeyMax user.

-HeyMax

That said, you don’t want to wait too long, because your funds with HeyMax won’t be generating any interest.

In case you were wondering, making a withdrawal does not “lock you in” to your current tier. If your membership year is ending and you still have an outstanding balance, there is no obligation to renew at the same tier level. 

For example, suppose I’m a Platinum member with an outstanding drawdown of 200,000 Max Miles. At the end of my membership year, instead of renewing Platinum and paying a further membership fee of S$699, I can downgrade to the free Silver tier. When I repay my outstanding balance, the access fee will be refunded at the original Platinum rate of 2.5 cents per mile.

Of course, I won’t be able to withdraw any further miles from the Silver tier’s pool of 30,000 Max Miles until my outstanding balance is less than 30,000, but at least I won’t be forced to renew at the same Platinum tier. 

What if I never repay?

That’s up to you, really, but HeyMax First is structured in a way that repaying is in your own interest.

Why? Because the access fee is set at a level which makes the cost per mile unattractively high for buying. So you’re perfectly at liberty to draw down 1,000,000 miles and disappear into the night, but is paying 2.3 cents per Max Mile really a good deal? I don’t think so. 

Remember: HeyMax First is fundamentally about borrowing miles, not buying miles per se.

What’s the catch?

With HeyMax First, you’re basically making an interest-free loan to HeyMax, in return for upfront miles.

The quantum of the loan depends on the extent of the drawdown, but could potentially reach as high as S$23,000, for a Reserve member who maxes out his credit line.

Therefore, you need to weigh the utility of having miles now, versus the opportunity cost of tying up your funds with HeyMax. It’s also worth remembering that repayments are in blocks of 10,000 Max Miles, which limits the rate at which you can recover your access fee.

Furthermore, because you’re making a loan, you’ll need to evaluate the “credit risk” of HeyMax. Do you believe it will be a viable business long enough for you to claim your access fee back? Mind you, the access fee isn’t custodised, so if the worst happens, you might not be able to recover it.

What happens when you renew HeyMax First?

Renewing your HeyMax First membership does not give you a fresh batch of miles per se. Rather, it allows you to continue using the credit line that you were granted when you initially registered.

For example, John is a Gold member who has drawn down 40,000 Max Miles from his 100,000 Max Miles credit line. Renewing his membership for a further year does not mean he has a 200,000 Max Miles credit line now. He’s still a Gold member, with a net credit line of 60,000 Max Miles to draw from.

How do upgrades and downgrades work?

HeyMax First members have the option to upgrade to a higher tier, or downgrade to a lower one.

Upgrades

Upgrades can be performed at any time.

Members will simply pay the difference in membership fee, after which they will have access to the larger miles pool. Any outstanding access fees can be reclaimed at the rate which was originally paid, with the earliest drawdown returned first. 

For example:

• John was initially a Gold member, with a drawdown of 40,000 Max Miles
• He subsequently upgrades to Platinum, and pays an additional S$400 membership fee (difference between S$299 and S$699)
• He then makes a further drawdown of 60,000 Max Miles
• When the time comes to reclaim the access fee, 40,000 Max Miles will be reclaimed at the Gold rate of 2.7 cents per mile, and 60,000 Max Miles at the Platinum rate of 2.5 cents per mile

If you qualified for the first year membership fee waiver and upgrade during the first year, the membership fee waiver extends to the new tier as well (i.e. there is no upgrade fee). However, the end date of your membership year remains the same.

For example:

• John became a Gold member on 1 June 2026
• On 15 October 2026, he upgrades to Platinum
• His Platinum membership will be valid until 31 May 2027

Downgrades

Unlike upgrades, downgrades cannot be performed mid-year. 

Members can choose a lower tier from the next renewal. Any outstanding access fees can be reclaimed at the rate which was originally paid, with the earliest drawdown returned first. 

For example:

• John is a Gold member with a drawdown of 50,000 Max Miles
• He can downgrade to become a Silver member
• When the time comes to reclaim the access fee, 50,000 Max Miles will be reclaimed at the Gold rate of 2.7 cents per mile

When would HeyMax First be useful?

HeyMax First is designed for moments when you find yourself thinking “I wish I had more Max Miles”.

Consider the case of a couple planning their honeymoon, but find themselves short of the necessary miles. With HeyMax First, they can get the miles upfront, lock in the tickets, then gradually earn back the shortfall, knowing their plans are already secured. 

However, what I see as the key benefit of HeyMax First is having a credit line on standby, ready for drawdown when opportunities arise.

Award space suddenly appears

Award space often follows a famine and feast pattern — there may be long periods where nothing good is available, and then a brief moment where a lot of seats suddenly pop up.

When that happens, it’s helpful to have a ready stash of miles that you can quickly convert to snap up awards.

Devaluations

If a loyalty programme announces an upcoming devaluation, you might want to lock in some flights at the current prices. Again, having a credit line would be useful for doing so, if you’re just shy of the miles required for a redemption, or if there’s a particular sweet spot award you’d like to book several of. 

Transfer bonuses

HeyMax occasionally offers transfer bonuses, which can be opportunities to get outsized value for your Max Miles.

For instance, HeyMax recently ran an uncapped 20% transfer bonus for converting Max Miles to Accor Live Limitless, which worked out to a value of 3.56 cents per Max Mile (based on the previous 1:1 ratio, which has now been devalued to 3:2). I know of many people who drained their accounts for this, and probably wish they had more Max Miles handy!

What can you do with Max Miles?

Max Miles can be converted to the following airline and hotel programmes, mostly at a 1:1 ratio. All transfers are free of charge.

Max Miles can also be redeemed via the FlyAnywhere feature at 1.8 cents each, but borrowing Max Miles at 2.3-3 cents only to cash them out at 1.8 cents doesn’t really make a lot of sense.

HeyMax First FAQs

HeyMax has published a full set of FAQs for HeyMax First, which can be found here.

Conclusion

Get 200 Max Miles when you sign up for a HeyMax account and complete one transaction

Get a HeyMax account

Join HeyMax First

HeyMax First is an innovative “fly now, earn later” scheme that gives you the Max Miles you need to redeem a trip today, and worry about replenishing your balance later.

Used correctly, it can be a powerful tool — especially for time-sensitive opportunities like award space drops, transfer bonuses, or looming devaluations. Having a credit line of miles on standby can make the difference between snagging a great redemption and missing out entirely.

That said, it’s not a free lunch. You’re effectively extending an interest-free loan to HeyMax, and the opportunity cost (plus platform risk) shouldn’t be ignored. The relatively high access fee also means this only makes sense if you fully intend to earn back the miles and reclaim your cash.