HSBC Premier credit card - too good to be true?

[NM]

12 August 2026 – Annual fee
No annual fee will be charged from 12 August 2026.
We’ll refund any annual fees already charged to your account in the last year (from 13 August 2025) on a pro-rata basis.
The refunds will be processed by 12 October 2026, provided your account is still open at the time.

This came a good news for me. I have the HSBC Qantas Visa Platinum card and the same "No annual fee" condition apples. My first year fee was waiver ($0) and that initial free year was to expire Mid September so I was planning to close the card before then. But with other previously noting that HSBC does not pay rewards points for the final month when you close the account, I was to not spend on the card for the last statement period, forgoing the opportunity to continue earning 1.5 points/$ spend for the final month of my annual term. But now with no renewing of annual fee, I can continue using the card and will likely earn 6K+ points on it and just let it self-close in November and pay the final amount due when the final statement arrived. No more concern about missing out on the points from the last statement period when closing the account myself.

 

[aaa99]

The HSBC rewards website seems to only allow transfers to airline programs in multiples of 5000 points.

Is there any way around this? I am going to end up with some points orphaned.

The chat suggested spending more money to get the balance up . Wasn't going to do that

 

[asterix]

I've just spent some more to get myself to 40,000 at the end of the current statement period.

 

[BJReplay]

The HSBC rewards website seems to only allow transfers to airline programs in multiples of 5000 points.

Is there any way around this? I am going to end up with some points orphaned.

The chat suggested spending more money to get the balance up . Wasn't going to do that

I'm aiming for near enough for a multiple of 5,000 points, because it's a reasonably high point earning card, compared to alternatives.

But yeah, that's a coughty move not to allow the transfer of all points on a card they're forcibly closing on you.

 

[NM]

My HSBC card earns 1.5 QFF points/$ (direct sweep, so no minimum thresholds) for first 12 months, which ends in 7 days. So, I have been spending quite heavily on the card recently. Then it drops back to 1 QFF point/$ but with the annual fee waiver I plan to just let it fall into the abyss when it does its own natural death in a few months.

 

[Supersonic Swinger]

The HSBC rewards website seems to only allow transfers to airline programs in multiples of 5000 points.

Is there any way around this? I am going to end up with some points orphaned.

The chat suggested spending more money to get the balance up . Wasn't going to do that

That has always been the case, no? I wouldn't expect them to change anything with them shutting the card down...

 

[BJReplay]

That has always been the case, no? I wouldn't expect them to change anything with them shutting the card down...

Well, there is a difference between you not being able to redeem residual points because you choose to close an account, and you wanting to redeem points, but being unable to redeem them because you can't earn more to meet artificial redemption buckets and not being able to do anything else because they are removing access to the card and program.

A program that you may have paid annual fees for.

 

[Supersonic Swinger]

Well, there is a difference between you not being able to redeem residual points because you choose to close an account, and you wanting to redeem points, but being unable to redeem them because you can't earn more to meet artificial redemption buckets and not being able to do anything else because they are removing access to the card and program.

A program that you may have paid annual fees for.

I see your point, but I think HSBC aren't looking to salvage any customer goodwill (by saying you can redeem whatever your balance is for half the number of Velocity / KrisFlyer / Asia Miles) given that they are effectively writing off any goodwill by shutting the card business down.

 

[BJReplay]

I see your point, but I think HSBC aren't looking to salvage any customer goodwill (by saying you can redeem whatever your balance is for half the number of Velocity / KrisFlyer / Asia Miles) given that they are effectively writing off any goodwill by shutting the card business down.

No, indeed.

However, for the measly cost, of, on average, 2,500 points, they will alienate customers who have products in other geographies.

What they used to have was a globally unique product. Global banking.

It has been overtaken and beaten on price, features and lower fees in many cases by products from competitors like Wise, Revolut, and others.

Pissing off customers may prompt them to take all of their business elsewhere, from overseas jurisdictions, too.

 

[Supersonic Swinger]

No, indeed.

However, for the measly cost, of, on average, 2,500 points, they will alienate customers who have products in other geographies.

What they used to have was a globally unique product. Global banking.

It has been overtaken and beaten on price, features and lower fees in many cases by products from competitors like Wise, Revolut, and others.

Pissing off customers may prompt them to take all of their business elsewhere, from overseas jurisdictions, too.

Yes, but sadly they have been pulling back from "the world's local bank" for 15 years or more.

If you look at their corporate website (HSBC at a glance | HSBC Holdings plc), they now have 4 divisions:
1. HK
2. UK
3. Corporate & Institutional
4. International Wealth & Private Banking

If you're not in the UK or Chinese Asia, unless you are a corporate or with their Private Bank, they aren't really worried about us, certainly over some credit card rewards points.