12 months Balance Transfer Offers
Following are the top 12 month balance transfer and longer balance transfer offers that are available in the Australian market. Unfortunately there are a lot more 6 months offers that are available although it might be worthwhile considering a balance transfer for life to give yourself more time if you need it.
Featured 12 Months Balance Transfer Credit Card
If you are looking to clear an existing debt then the NAB Gold Credit Card is an option for you. It offers a long term balance transfer deal together with a low annual fee.
- $90 annual fee
- 19.49% p.a. on purchases
- 1% p.a. for 12 months on balance transfers
- Cash Advance Rate of 21.74% p.a.
- 44 days interest free
12 Month Balance Transfer Comparison:
| Interest Rate (p.a.) | Balance Transfer Rate (p.a.) | Annual fee | Cash Advance Rate (p.a.) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 NAB Gold Card |
19.49% | 1% for 12 months | $90 | 21.74% |
  |
 Citibank ReadyCredit |
18.99% | 2.9% for 24 months | $0 | 18.99% |
|
 Citibank Clear Platinum Card |
11.99% | 0% for 12 months with 3% handling fee | $99 | 21.74% |
|
 Virgin Flyer Credit Card |
20.99% | 1.9% for 12 months | $50 (for first year thereafter $99) | 20.99% |
|
 Citibank Rewards Credit Card – Platinum Card |
20.99% | 0.9% for 15 months | $199 | 21.74% |
|
 Bankwest Breeze MasterCard |
0% for 6 months (reverts to 10.99% ) | 4.99% for 9 months | $49 | 21.99% |
|
 HSBC Credit Card |
17.99% | 0% for 8 months with 2% handling fee | $0 | 21.99% |
|
 Bankwest Breeze Gold MasterCard |
0% for 6 months (reverts to 10.99% ) | 4.99% for 9 months | $89 | 21.99% |
|
 Bankwest Breeze Platinum MasterCard |
0% for 6 months (reverts to 10.99% ) | 4.99% for 9 months | $99 | 21.99% |
|
 Bankwest Zero MasterCard |
0% for 6 months (reverts to 17.99% ) | 4.99% for 9 months | $0 | 18.99% |
|
 Bankwest Zero Gold MasterCard |
0% for 6 months (reverts to 17.99% ) | 4.99% for 9 months | $0 | 18.99% |
|
 Bankwest Zero Platinum MasterCard |
0% for 6 months (reverts to 17.99% ) | 4.99% for 9 months | $0 | 18.99% |
|
 Bank of Melbourne Vertigo Credit Card |
13.24% | 0.99% for 6 months | $55 | 21.49% |
|
 St.George Vertigo |
13.24% | 0.99% for 6 months | $55 | 21.49% |
|
12 Month Balance Transfer Guide
A balance transfer credit card can be a lifeline for many people struggling with high interest charges on their credit cards. Even if you have several credit cards which have an outstanding balance you can still benefit from a balance transfer credit card – especially a 12 month balance transfer offer – to help you gain control because balance transfer credit cards are a quick and easy way to consolidate your high interest debts into a more manageable repayment.
With 12 months to repay your transferred balances, you have a real chance to become debt free in that extended period of time. The fact is – most balance transfer credit card providers don’t want you to, and don’t expect you to, repay your transferred balance within the low interest transfer period. Instead, these providers simply use balance transfer offers to lure customers away from their competitors, banking on the fact that you won’t bother to look for another balance transfer offer and will stay on as a customer after your unpaid balance reverts to the standard interest rate.
However, with a 12 month balance transfer offer you can focus on your balance and your repayments without worrying about a deadline, all the while saving on interest now that you’re paying a rate of just one or two per cent, rather than one in the high teens. You don’t have to stretch yourself too far to repay your balance within 12 months, and at the end of the balance transfer period you are left with a cleared credit balance.
What is a 12 Month Balance Transfer?
When you take advantage of a balance transfer offer, you are able to escape your high standard interest rate, for a much lower one. In the case of a 12 month balance transfer offer, that rate is rarely 0% as you will find on some shorter term balance transfer offers, but it is still significantly less than you have been paying. However, with a balance transfer credit card, that low rate is for a limited time, and in this case while that time period is an extensive 12 months, the low rate does still expire. You will also only qualify for the low interest rate if you transfer a balance from another provider’s card, for example, you can’t transfer a balance from a Citibank Silver Credit Card to a Citibank Gold Credit Card and receive the balance transfer rate.
Credit card interest is calculated either daily or monthly, and charged to your account at the end of the statement period. Therefore, with a 12 month balance transfer offer which has a 2.9% pa rate, over the 12 month balance period you will repay 2.9% more than your original balance, in interest. This means that the monthly interest rate you are being charged is around 0.24%.
However, as your balance goes down, the interest portion of your repayment goes down too – provided you haven’t been spending on the card. This means that if you maintain the same repayment amount, even though the minimum required has gone down, you can repay your balance faster as more of your repayments are going towards your principal balance.
To see exactly how much you could save with a balance transfer credit card, consider the repayments you are making on a credit card charging you 18% interest, on which you have maxed out a $5,000 balance. Your monthly repayments would be approximately $225 and if you made just these minimum repayments and made no new purchases, you would repay your balance in 28 repayments, or 2.3 years. Over that time you would have paid $1,127 in interest.
However, if you transferred your $5,000 balance to a 12 month balance transfer credit card charging 2.9% by making monthly repayments of $425 you would repay your balance in full in one year. Plus, you would have only paid $78 in interest.
Even if you had increased your monthly repayment on your standard 18% credit card by $200 to $425 per month, you would take 14 months to repay your balance, and you would have paid $542 in interest.
How to Choose the Best 12 Month Balance Transfer Offer?
Understanding the benefits of a type of balance transfer credit card isn’t the end of your decision making process, because while the basis of all 12 month balance transfer offers is similar, you still need to choose the credit card and deal which is right for you now, will suit you over the coming year, and one which can even help you avoid getting into the situation of needing another balance transfer in the future.
That is why you need to compare features such as the annual fee and the purchase interest rates of the top 12 month balance transfer credit cards, side by side.
Compare the annual fees:
- Aussie MasterCard has an annual fee of $49.
- Citibank Emirates Platinum Card has an annual fee of $229.
- Citibank Silver Card has an annual fee of $89.
- Citibank Gold Card has an annual fee of $149.
- Citibank CitiBusiness Gold has an annual fee of $74 (half price annual fee for the first year thereafter $149).
- Citibank BP Card has an annual fee of $89.
- Citi Select has an annual fee of $700.
- Suncorp Clear Options Gold Visa Card has an annual fee of $60 annual fee for the first year ($120 thereafter).
- Suncorp Clear Options Platinum Visa Card has an annual fee of $27 for the first year ($55 thereafter).
- Suncorp Clear Options Plus has an annual fee of $63.
Very few balance transfer credit cards in Australia will charge you a fee to accept your balance transfer, however, it is important you look out for this cost because it can be a set fee of just $50 or could be charged as 1% of your balance. These featured 12 month balance transfer credit cards do not charge a balance transfer fee.
Compare the revert rate, which is the interest rate charged if you don’t repay your transferred balance in full, before the end of 12 months:
- Aussie MasterCard charges their cash advance rate of 19.99% p.a.
- Citibank Emirates Platinum Card charges their cash advance rate of 21.24% p.a..
- Citibank Silver Card charges their cash advance rate of 21.74% p.a.
- Citibank Gold Card charges their cash advance rate of 21.74% p.a.
- Citibank CitiBusiness Gold charges their cash advance rate of 221.49% p.a.
- Citibank BP Card charges their cash advance rate of 21.39% p.a.
- Citi Select charges their cash advance rate of 21.24% p.a.
- Suncorp Clear Options Gold Visa Card charges their cash advance rate of 20.74% p.a.
- Suncorp Clear Options Platinum Visa Card charges their cash advance rate of 20.74% p.a.
- Suncorp Clear Options Plus charges their cash advance rate of 20.74% p.a.
Compare how and when you can make a balance transfer:
- Aussie MasterCard allows you to make your balance transfer in your application, which is recommended because the 12 month term begins from the time your credit card application is approved. If you want to make the transfer after approval, you can complete a same day transfer using online banking, or request a transfer over the phone which takes up to three days.
- Citibank Emirates Platinum Card allows you to transfer your balance in your credit card application, or through internet banking once your account is approved. The transfer can take up to 10 days to be processed.
- Citibank Silver Card allows you to transfer your balance in your credit card application, or through internet banking once your account is approved. The transfer can take up to 10 days to be processed.
- Citibank Gold Card allows you to transfer your balance in your credit card application, or through internet banking once your account is approved. The transfer can take up to 10 days to be processed.
- Citibank CitiBusiness Gold allows you to transfer your balance in your credit card application, or through internet banking once your account is approved. The transfer can take up to 10 days to be processed.
- Citibank BP Card allows you to transfer your balance in your credit card application, or through internet banking once your account is approved. The transfer can take up to 10 days to be processed.
- Citi Select allows you to transfer your balance in your credit card application, or through internet banking once your account is approved. The transfer can take up to 10 days to be processed.
- Suncorp Clear Options Gold Visa Card allows you to apply for a balance transfer in your online application, which takes just 10 minutes to complete and will give you an answer on your approval within 60 seconds.
- Suncorp Clear Options Platinum Visa Card allows you to apply for a balance transfer in your online application, which takes just 10 minutes to complete and will give you an answer on your approval within 60 seconds.
- Suncorp Clear Options Plus allows you to apply for a balance transfer in your online application, which takes just 10 minutes to complete and will give you an answer on your approval within 60 seconds.
Compare purchase rates for use after you have repaid your transferred balance in full:
- Aussie MasterCard charges a purchase rate of 9.99% p.a. for 12 months (reverts to 13.29% p.a.)
- Citibank Emirates Platinum Card charges a purchase rate of 20.99% p.a.
- Citibank Silver Card charges a purchase rate of 20.99% p.a.
- Citibank Gold Card charges a purchase rate of 20.99% p.a.
- Citibank CitiBusiness Gold charges a purchase rate of 0% p.a. for 4 months (reverts to 20.74% p.a.)
- Citibank BP Card charges a purchase rate of 20.89% p.a.
- Citi Select charges a purchase rate of 20.74% p.a.
- Suncorp Clear Options Gold Visa Card charges a purchase rate of 20.50% p.a.
- Suncorp Clear Options Platinum Visa Card charges a purchase rate of 20.74% p.a.
- Suncorp Clear Options Plus charges a purchase rate of 20.49% p.a.
It is also important to consider the other benefits and features of a balance transfer credit card, which could be useful to you after you have successfully become debt free. If you can avoid another credit card application you will not only save yourself time and money on fees, you will also avoid having multiple applications for credit in your credit history.
How to Use a 12 Month Balance Transfer Credit Card
To get the most out of your 12 month balance transfer credit card, apply for your transfer in your application. Often the 12 month period begins from the time your card is approved, so to make sure you don’t miss out on any of that time – and you don’t forget to make the transfer – have your provider do it for you automatically in your application.
The transfer of your balance can also take some time, almost two weeks in some cases. That is why it is important that you continue to make repayments to your old credit card until you are notified by your new provider that the transfer has been successfully completed.
To make sure you repay your balance within the 12 month transfer period follow these steps:
- Create a budget and stick to it. Work out how much you need to repay each month to clear your debt and set up a direct debit for that amount.
- Don’t become complacent. With 12 months to repay your balance it is easy to put off larger repayments, thinking you have plenty of time. However, in the example above, just $200 more paid each month – that’s just an extra $50 each week – takes your monthly repayment to $425 and clears your balance in one year.
- Make the same repayment each month. As you are not using your balance transfer credit card, your balance is going down and so too is the interest portion of your repayment. Therefore, if you continue to make the same repayment each month, you will be able to pay off the principal amount sooner. This also gives you some breathing room in your repayments if you can’t meet that larger amount in some months.
- Be ready to repay. As soon as you apply for a balance transfer make sure you are geared up to make your new repayment amounts because interest is applied from the approval date.
- Never spend on your card. Don’t spend on your balance transfer credit card unless the purchase rate and the balance transfer rate are the same, for the same period. Otherwise your balance transfer amount will continue to be paid down first and your new purchases will be left to accrue interest.
Related posts:
- How to do a good balance transfer
- Aussie Balance Transfer Credit Cards vs UK/USA
- Why balance Transfer debt?
- New Free Aussie Credit Card Balance Transfer eBook
Posted on Wednesday, March 31st, 2010 at 10:11 am
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