CIMB Visa Signature Card Overview:
The CIMB Visa Signature card offers a high 10% cashback rate on selected categories which makes it perfect for shoppers who consistently purchase products or services from a wide range of categories. This card also has no annual fee attached to it making it an even attractive card to have.
Requirements
- You qualify if: you have no CIMB credit card right now
- For the base reward (S$138), spend S$108 within 30 days of card approval
- For the higher reward (S$238), reach S$988 total spend within 60 days
- SingSaver will email you a Rewards Redemption Form — check inbox (and spam folder) after applying. Fill it in within 14 days to claim your gift, or you'll lose it.
Eligibility & Fees:
- Minimum Age: 21 years old
- Minimum Annual Income: S$30,000 (locals/PRs & Foreigners)
- Applicants who do not meet the minimum income requirement can submit a minimum Fixed Deposit Collateral of S$10,000.
- Annual Fee: Free for life for all Principal and Supplementary cards
Key Benefits:
- Earn 10% cashback on online shopping, groceries, beauty/wellness, pet shops/veterinary services and cruises with a minimum spend of S$800, capped at S$100 per statement month (S$20 per category)
- Earn 0.2% cashback on all other spend with no minimum spend
- No annual fees for life + up to 4 supplementary cards with no annual fees
How to Best Optimise it:
Best Used on Specific Categories Below:
- This can be used on online shopping, beauty/wellness, pet services, groceries, and cruises with a 10% cashback as long as you reach the minimum spend requirement of S$800; with S$100 cap per statement month and each category are individually capped at S$20. In order to achieve optimal 10% cashback, you would actually need to hit 4 out of the 5 categories to get the 10% cashback.
Category | Eligible Transactions | Monthly Cap | Sweet Spot Spending |
Beauty & Wellness | All local and overseas transactions made at personal care facilities, pharmacies, cosmetic stores (excluding department stores), hairdressers, massage parlours, health, and beauty spas | S$20 | S$200 |
Grocery | Online & offline spend at supermarkets (local & overseas) | S$20 | S$200 |
Online Shopping | All local and overseas online retail transactions made via shopping websites MCC 5611: Men’s and Boys’ Clothing and Accessories Stores MCC 5621: Women’s Ready to Wear Stores MCC 5631: Women’s Accessories and Speciality Stores MCC 5641: Children’s and Infants’ Wear Stores MCC 5651: Family Clothing Stores MCC 5661: Shoe Stores MCC 5691: Men’s and Women’s Clothing Stores MCC 5699: Miscellaneous Apparel and Accessories Stores MCC 5732: Electronic Stores MCC 5311: Department Stores Alibaba, Amazon, Apple, Daigou, Ezbuy, Razor, Shopee | S$20 | S$200 |
Pet Services | All local and overseas transactions made at pet shops and vet service | S$20 | S$200 |
Cruises | Local and Overseas transactions with cruise lines | S$20 | S$200 |
Utilise Complimentary Travel Insurance
- Make use of your complimentary travel insurance of up to S$500,000 when you charge your travel fares to this card
What to Avoid:
What is Excluded on Online Shopping Category:
- all other online websites, not limited to movies, food & beverage, travel, airline, government, brokerages/securities, insurance, tuition and online gambling websites.
Exclusion List:
- Any cash advances
- Any gambling-related transactions
- Any quasi-cash transactions
- Any payments to insurance companies
- Any payments to government institutions (this includes but is not limited to government services, government related postal services, government related purchases, court costs, fines, bail and bond payments and tax payments)
- Any donations or payments to non-profit organisations (this includes but is not limited to religious and charitable organisations and social services)
- Any payments for utilities (this includes but is not limited to electric, gas, heating oil, sanitary and water utility bill payments)
- Any payments done via any AXS network
- Any late payment charges or interest charges on any Card
- Any fees payable to the Bank (or any other third party) for transfer of any debit balance on any other credit card to a Card
- Any other interest, fees and charges (this includes but is not limited to cash advance, annual or monthly fees or charges) imposed by the Bank from time to time
- Balance and/or funds transfers to or from the Card Account
- Any credit card transaction that was subsequently cancelled, voided or reversed for any reason and
- Any other transactions that may be prescribed by the Bank.
Is it Worth it:
Advantages:
- Relatively high cashback for common categories
- No annual fees for life
- Can use when situation arise – but if you use, should ideally reach minimum spending to qualify for 10% cashback
Disadvantages:
- Relatively high minimum spending S$800 in the statement month to qualify for 10% cashback.
- Category split makes it difficult to optimise without tracking
- Random category like cruises for cashback
Frequently Asked Questions:
When is cashback credited: Cashback will be credited to the cardmember’s account on a monthly basis in the following statement month
Final Thoughts:
CIMB Visa Signature is honestly a great card with a high cashback rate of 10% especially if you spend a lot on the aforementioned eligible spending categories. In order to achieve optimal 10% cashback, you would actually need to hit 4 out of the 5 categories to get the 10% cashback, which is a little restrictive for most people. I think Maybank Family & Friends offers great customisation of categories and flexibility, albeit a lower but still great cashback rate of 8% for the same minimum monthly spend requirement.
💳 Credit cards change their T&Cs every so often and it is difficult to stay updated. That’s why I created a Telegram Broadcast where you can receive timely bite-sized updates to get the most out of your spending.
💡 We believe in always paying our credit card bills on time and in full. It is only by doing that, can we fully maximise our credit card benefits.
