Best Cashback Credit Cards for Overseas Spending Comparison

Credit Cards Overseas Transaction Fees

Credit cards typically charge 2.5% to 3.5% for overseas transactions in a different currency. These transaction fees are usually lower then the merchant's exchange rate. Hence, it makes sense to charge your purchases in a foreign currency when abroad and use the credit card's exchange rate instead of the merchant's exchange rate. As a general rule of the thumb, MasterCards and Visa Cards have similar transction fees while American Express Cards have the highest transaction fees.

Benefits for Using Credit Cards Overseas

Despite the transaction fees, banks often tangle attractive cashbacks for using credit cards abroad. These cashbacks can sometimes more than offset the transaction fees involved. To make things easier for comparison, the table below will summarise the rate of cash rebate for using various cashback credit cards abroad as well as the minimum requirements needed to qualify for the cashback.

Credit Cards Cash Rebate for Overseas Spending Comparison Table

Credit Card Issuer and Type of Credit Card	Minimum Requirements / Conditions	Rate for Cash Rebate
CIMB Platinum MasterCard	Minimum spend of $500 with at least 8 transactions of min $30 each in a month	Earn 10% rebates on travel expenses only
BOC Family Card	Minimum spend of $700 in a month	Earn 10% cashback on overseas dining only
Maybank Family & Friends Card	Minimum spend of $1000 or $500 in a month	Earn 8% or 5% cash rebate at leading petrol stations and hypermart in Malaysia only
POSB Everyday Card	Minimum monthly spend of $1000 in a month	Earn 5% cash rebates on all overseas transactions
UOB One Card	Minimum monthly spend of $2000 for all 3 months in a quarter	Earn 5% cash rebates on all transactions
BOC ZaoBao Card	Minimum spend of $600 in a month	Earn 5% cash rebate for spend in China only
UOB UnionPay Card	Minimum spend of $200 / $400 / $500 in qualifying period	Earn 3% / 4% / 5% cash rebates on all transactions
ICBC Unionpay Dual Currency Card ICBC Visa Dual Currency Card	Minimum spend of $500 a month for all 3 months in a quarter. Cashback only applicable on spending in excess of $500 each month	Earn up to 2% / 5% / 8% cashback for 1st / 2nd / 3rd month in a quarter on all spend in excess of $500 for each month
Standard Chartered Unlimited Cashback Card	For 1st 3 months only	Earn 3% cash rebate on overseas spending
ICBC Global Travel MasterCard	None	Earn 3% cashback on overseas spend
ICBC Koipy Dual Currency Card	Minimum spend of $1,000 in a month	Earn 3% cashback on all spend
American Express True Cashback Card	Maximum spend of $5,000 for first 6 months	Earn 3% cashback on any purchase
Standard Chartered MANHATTAN World MasterCard	Minimum spend of $3,000 in a month	Earn 3% cash rebate on all spending
UOB Visa Signature Card	Minimum spend of $1,000 per statement period	Earn 2.3% cash rebate or 10X UNI$ per $1 overseas spend
CIMB Visa Infinite Card	Minimum spend of $2,000 per statement period	Earn 2% cash rebate on overseas spending
UOB UnionPay Card	None	Earn 2% cash rebate on all spending

Best Cashback Credit Card for Overseas Spending

The flexible UOB One Card gets our vote for the best credit card for overseas travel. It is strictly-speaking not a cashback credit card for overseas spending as it awards a potential cashback of 5% for everyday purchases. The 5% cashback comes with conditions such as three minimum purchases per statement period and a minimum monthly spend of $2000 for all three months in a quarter. Despite the conditions, failure to spend the minimum monthly spend will still earn you 3.33% cashback (which is still higher than the other above listed cards) provided you meet the minimum monthly spend of $500 for all three months in a quarter. Additional perks include enrolment in the SMART$ rebate programme, a huge rarity among credit cards that already earn cash back in the first place.

An ongoing promotion by POSB Everyday Card that expires on the 31 Jul 2018 award 5% cash rebate for overseas spending. The rebate is capped at $50 a month with a minimum spend of S$1,000 which can easily be exceeded by high overseas expenditure while on holidays.