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UOB launched a revised sign-up bonus for all three of their PRVI Miles cards yesterday – and this time it actually includes a miles bonus rather than the (frankly odd) S$80 cashback offer they had running for some time.
As you may know from our recent article UOB cut the income requirement for their PRVI Miles cards from S$50,000/yr (or S$80,000/yr for the Visa card) to a much more palatable S$30,000/yr for all three card products (S$40,000/yr for foreigners).
When UOB say promotion…
The bad news is typically just round the corner when UOB announce a promotion and this one is no exception.
This new sign-up bonus is subject to being among the first 2,000 cardmembers to spend at least S$6,000 on eligible transactions in the first three months from card opening date.
That’s right – at the end of the 3 month period having pushed over S$6,000 of spending through the card you may well be told that you simply didn’t qualify and therefore receive nothing. It’s effectively gambling and something other banks in Singapore do not expect you to do in our experience. UOB though are masters at this.
To complicate it further the is bonus is split into two qualifying periods as follows:
| Qualifying Period* | Cardmembers Entitled | Bonus Award Date |
| 5th May 2018 – 15th Jun 2018 | 1,000 | 30th Nov 2018 |
| 16th Jun 2018 – 31st Jul 2018 | 1,000 | 31st Jan 2019 |
* Based on card opened date
To add insult to injury you’ll have to wait 6 months to actually receive the bonus miles too (or not, as the case may be). There is a full breakdown of the enrolment instructions, qualifying transactions and full terms and conditions of this offer available here.
What about existing cardholders?
Existing UOB PRVI Miles cardholders or those who have held one in the last six months are not eligible for the promotion. If you already hold a different UOB credit card (i.e. not PRVI Miles) you can still take part but will only be entitled to a 2,000-mile bonus – under the same principal spending and entitlement conditions.
Is it just for KrisFlyer miles?
No – in fact the bonus is credited as 5,000 ‘UNI$’, which transfers into either 10,000 KrisFlyer miles or 10,000 Asia Miles. For existing UOB credit card customers who are new to the PRVI Miles card it’s paid as 1,000 UNI$ (equivalent of 2,000 miles).
Remember there is a 2 year expiry for UNI$ so be sure to transfer them to your chosen frequent flyer account before that.
| UOB PRVI Miles | ||
|
Sign-up Bonus: | 10,000 miles |
| Annual Fee: | Free in Year 1 | |
| Cost per mile: | Zero | |
| Min Spend: | S$6,000 in 3 months | |
| Min Income: | S$30,000/yr | |
Summary
What’s a shame here is that the UOB PRVI Miles card is actually not a bad product, particularly given the recent favourable adjustment to the income requirement. It retains one of the highest miles earning rates on the market, and the ‘PRVI Pay’ facility allows you to generate ‘unlimited’ miles at 2 cents each (see our review for details on that).
The Amex version in particular stands out to us with 20,000 bonus miles for a S$50k annual spend (one of UOB’s few ‘unconditional’ offers it seems).
We think ‘gambling’ promotions like this new sign-up bonus however – simply spoil the card’s allure. UOB would be perfectly happy for you to apply under the promotion in the last week of July for example, knowing full well that it had already been exhausted.
For those still interested in this card despite this rather lacklustre sign-up bonus – we’ve updated our full review of the UOB PRVI Miles cards with all the latest details.
(Cover Photo: UOB Group)