Guide to Citibank Balance Transfer Credit Cards
Posted October 26th, 2009 and last modified March 23rd, 2012A Citibank balance transfer might be a good way to reduce the rate of interest you are paying on credit card debt.
A balance transfer is when you transfer the balance of one credit card onto another card. Usually this is done to take advantage of lower interest rates and to make card management easier. There are a few things you should know before you set up a balance transfer.
Comparison of Citibank Credit Cards
Citibank balance transfer guidelines:
- The minimum amount for a balance transfer is $500.
- Customers who do not currently have a Citibank card can apply for a card and the transfer at the same time. Citibank will need information on the current card and the amount you would like to transfer. Current customers may apply for a balance transfer on line, by fax, mail, or telephone.
- Requests for a Citibank balance transfer take up to ten business days to process.
- The maximum amount you can transfer is your available credit limit on the day of the transfer.
- The actual balance transfer process takes anywhere from five to ten days or more depending on the method you used to make the transfer.
- Citibank balance transfers are not eligible for rewards points.
- Your interest rate on a balance transfer is likely to be less then the interest rate on purchases. As such, any payments you make will be applied to the balance transfer or the debt with the lowest interest rate, first.
The last point is important to remember when doing a Citibank balance transfer. What this means to you is that any purchases you make will continue to accrue interest until the balance transfer is paid off. If you are smart you will discontinue use of the Citibank card until the balance transfer is paid in full in order to avoid paying excessive amounts of money in interest. You might consider having a separate card just for purchases because it could take a while to pay off a large balance transfer. If you think you will continually make balance transfers then you may even want to use the Citibank card for that purpose only.
A Citibank balance transfer can help you manage your credit accounts and more importantly save money. It is key that you understand how the interest works and if you are using an introductory offer when it runs out. Be sure to pay your bill on time to avoid losing any of your valuable benefits.
Making a Citibank balance transfer can be a wise move if you are trying to juggle several debts, losing track of payment dates, and suffering high rates of interest.
By applying for a Citibank balance transfer you can tidy up those messy finances by consolidating your non-Citibank credit cards, store cards, lines of credit or credit accounts into your Citibank credit card. Then you will have just one statement to read every month, with one minimum payment, and you will benefit from the lower rate of interest offered on your balance transfer. This lower interest should allow you to pay off your debt sooner than you expected.
How do I request a Citibank balance transfer?
If you are a new customer, you can make a Citibank balance transfer request at the same time as you are applying for your credit card. You will need to provide the following information about the account from which you want the transfer to take place:
- The name and address of the issuing organisation.
- The name of the account holder.
- The type of card or account.
- The card or account number.
- The amount to be transferred.
Existing cardholders have several options. They can make their request via the Account Services facility on Citibank’s internet banking – by selecting Credit Cards followed by Balance Transfer; or they can make their request over the phone, by mail or by fax.
The minimum amount you can transfer with a Citibank balance transfer is $500, and the maximum amount is whatever credit you have remaining on the day you make the transfer.
What happens next?
If you have requested a Citibank balance transfer via the online facility, you can expect to wait around ten working days for the transfer to be fully processed, although much depends on how quickly Citibank’s cheque arrives with the other institution, and whether they then expedite things at their end. If you have requested the transfer via CitiPhone you should be looking at around five to ten working days to complete.
If you want to check how things are progressing, and whether the transaction has been made yet, this can be done via Citibank’s online banking. If it seems the process is taking longer than the specified times, it is a good idea to verify whether the other institution has received the cheque before you call Citibank to have it cancelled and reissued. It may be that it is with them, but just moving through their system at a slower than expected pace.
Be aware that a Citibank balance transfer will not count towards any reward points scheme, and that any payments made to clear your overall card debt will actually first of all go to clear the balance transfer at the lower interest rate, and not any purchases made at the higher rate.
Citibank have a wide range of 0%-5% balance transfer offers savvy Australian consumers can take advantage of.
Check out today's featured offers:
| HSBC Credit Card | ANZ Platinum | Citibank Rewards Credit Card - Platinum Card | Westpac Low Rate Card |
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0% p.a. for 8 months with 2% balance transfer fee on balance transfers. |
0% p.a. for 6 months on purchases & balance transfers. |
0.9% p.a. for 15 months |
1.9% p.a. for 9 months (reverts to 13.49% p.a.) |
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Hi,Is this credit card transfer offer valid also for people living in New Zealand?
Best regards
Chris