DBS has a new bonus miles earning deal for its Altitude cardholders, with 5 mpd on offer for online travel spend or in-store and online foreign currency spend on up to S$2,000 of transactions per month, between now and the end of 2024.

The deal doesn’t have the simplest structure.

It requires advance registration, and is limited to the first 10,000 successful sign-ups in each calendar month, while the bonus earn categories themselves switch halfway through the four-month deal.

• 5 mpd for Online Travel Spend
  1st September – 30th September 2024
  1st October – 31st October 2024
• 5 mpd for In-Store and Online FCY Spend
  1st November – 30th November 2024
  1st December – 31st December 2024

In other words, DBS is effectively trying to get you to book your flights and hotels with your Altitude card over the next two months (September and October), then actually use your Altitude card while overseas in the subsequent two months – November and December.

You’ll also need to hit at least S$1,000 (in any retail spend) during each calendar month of the promotion you participate in, to trigger the 5 mpd enhanced earning rate.

While the mechanics are indeed a little complex, this is still a good deal to consider if you’re booking and/or travelling on year-end overseas trips.

The basics

All principal DBS Altitude Visa Signature and DBS Altitude American Express cardholders are eligible for the offer, but registration through the DBS PayLah! app is required.

Simply log on and go to the “Rewards” tab, then you will be able to find the offer on that screen.

Any spend made by supplementary cardholders during this promotion will be combined with that of the principal cardholder, for calculation of both the qualifying minimum spend and the eligible spend components.

Calculation of the minimum spend requirement and overseas spend is based on the transaction date of the retail spend, not the posting date to your card account, so it’s still safe to make purchases on the last day of the month (in Singapore Time).

Do note that DBS applies a 3.25% FCY transaction fee, so the 5 mpd you’re earning under this promotion for eligible non-SGD spend aren’t coming completely free (don’t worry though – it’s still worth it).

5 mpd Online Travel Spend offer

The first part of this deal runs in September 2024 and October 2024, and is good for 5 mpd when you spend on airline tickets, hotel stays and tour agencies.

There’s a pre-registration period for the September 2024 period, which runs from 27th August 2024 to 31st August 2024, but you’ll need to register again to participate in October, from 1st October 2024 onwards.

For example, if you register on 27th August 2024 for the September period, you do not need to register again on 1st September 2024 to participate that month. However, you will need to register again on 1st October 2024 to earn the bonus miles for October.

You can register after the start of each month, provided there are enough slots still left, but you will only then be eligible for the bonus miles for eligible spend made after you have successfully registered.

Here’s how the eligible bonus spend is defined.

• Online Travel Spend
  Travel transactions made online in local and/or foreign currency that are charged to your card under the following spend categories:
  – Airlines (e.g. Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways)
  – Hotels / Lodgings (e.g. Hilton Hotels, Marriott International)
  – Tour Agencies (e.g. Expedia, Agoda)

The DBS Altitude cards usually earn 1.3 mpd for local spend and 2.2 mpd for FCY spend.

You will earn bonus miles for up to S$2,000 of online travel spend over these two months, subject to successful registration, as follows:

Online Travel Spend Promo
(Sep & Oct 2024)

Transaction type	Base miles	Bonus miles	Total miles
Local Spend	1.3 mpd	+ 3.7 mpd	5 mpd
FCY Spend	2.2 mpd	+ 2.8 mpd	5 mpd

Remember that you’ll also have to hit S$1,000+ in total retail transactions (any category) during the same calendar month to qualify for the 5 mpd bonus earn rate. Some or all of this can be made up of spend in the bonus category.

5 mpd FCY Spend offer

The second part of this deal runs in November 2024 and December 2024, and is good for 5 mpd when you make any FCY spend, either in-store or online.

Again, there’s a pre-registration period for November 2024, which runs from 25th October 2024 to 31st October 2024.

However, for the December period you’ll have to register again on 1st December 2024, if you want to participate.

You can register after the start of each month, provided there are enough slots still left, but you will only then be eligible for the bonus miles for eligible spend made after you have successfully registered.

Here’s how the eligible spend is defined.

• Overseas Spend In-store and Online Transactions
  Card transactions made overseas at point-of-sale (in-store) in foreign currency, or made online in foreign currency. Card transactions made overseas but effected / charged in Singapore Dollars will not be valid.

You will earn bonus miles for up to S$2,000 of in-store or online FCY spend as follows:

FCY Spend Promo
(Nov & Dec 2024)

Transaction type	Base miles	Bonus miles	Total miles
In-store FCY	2.2 mpd	+ 2.8 mpd	5 mpd
Online FCY	2.2 mpd	+ 2.8 mpd	5 mpd

As with the September and October periods, you’ll still also have to hit S$1,000+ in total retail transactions (any category) during the same calendar month to qualify for the 5 mpd bonus earn rate.

Monthly cap

Bonus miles are capped at S$2,000 of eligible spending (i.e. 10,000 miles total, including the bonus) within each calendar month of the promotion you participate in.

You’ll still need to make S$1,000+ of qualifying general spend (on anything) in each calendar month to ‘activate’ the bonus rate for that month, having successfully registered for the promotion that same month.

Qualifying spend

For the S$1,000 in monthly charges to the card to qualify for the applicable enhanced earn rate within that month, the following typical DBS exclusions apply:

Posted 0% interest-free instalment plan monthly transactions (“IPP”)
Posted My Preferred Payment instalment plan monthly transactions (“MP3”)
Interest, finance charges, cash withdrawal, cash advance, balance transfer
AXS payments, SAM online bill payments, bill payments via internet banking
All fees charged by DBS and any refund or transaction which is subsequently reversed or re-credited (whether in whole or part)

Unlike some DBS promotions, the general monthly spend of S$1,000+ to activate this bonus 4 mpd rate can include CardUp and ipaymy transactions. For example, if you’re already paying your monthly rental through CardUp using your Altitude card, you may well qualify immediately every month for spend in the bonus categories!

You can track your minimum spend requirement for this offer on the DBS PayLah! app under the “Rewards” page.

The promotion tracker is updated within three working days after each minimum spend transaction is reflected.

Qualifying spend vs. Eligible spend

Qualifying spend can include eligible spend, for example if you have successfully registered then make a S$2,000 in-store FCY payment in November 2024, it will unlock the bonus earn rate (S$1,000+ qualifying achieved) and be awarded 5 mpd earn rate (since it’s also eligible spend).

In other words you don’t necessarily need to make S$1,000+ of qualifying spend to then unlock the bonus for subsequent eligible overseas spend, the two amounts can ‘overlap’ if you wish.

When are the bonus miles credited?

Initially you’ll earn miles (as DBS Points) at your Altitude card’s usual earn rate of 1.3 mpd for local spend or 2.2 mpd for overseas spend.

Bonus miles applicable from this promotion will be credited to your card account on the 16th of the month following the promotion month you participated in.

Is it just for KrisFlyer miles?

No. These bonus miles will be credited as DBS Points, so you can transfer them into your choice of four different frequent flyer programs. For example 5,000 DBS Points transfers into:

• 10,000 KrisFlyer miles
• 10,000 Asia Miles
• 10,000 Qantas Points
• 15,000 AirAsia BIG Points

Our advice? Forget AirAsia BIG Points (worth about 0.34 Singapore cents each as mentioned in our full review of this card) and stick with KrisFlyer miles, Qantas Points or Asia Miles, all worth closer to the 1.9 Singapore cents per mile / point mark.

DBS Points never expire, so there’s no rush to transfer to your preferred program. Do be aware however that DBS Points typically take up to four days to credit into KrisFlyer upon each transfer request, and we expect Asia Miles and Qantas transfers are probably no different.

Whichever frequent flyer programme you choose, there’s a S$27.25 fee (including GST) each time you transfer DBS Points into an airline scheme.

Terms and conditions

Full terms and conditions for this 4 mpd bonus miles offer are available at the DBS website:

 DBS Altitude 4 mpd Online Travel & FCY TnCs
 FAQs

DBS is offering its Altitude cardholders 5 mpd on up to S$2,000 of online travel spend each month during September 2024 and October 2024, then a fresh 5 mpd on up to S$2,000 of in-person or online FCY spend during November 2024 and December 2024.

The deal is subject to successful registration for the promotion each month via the DBS PayLah! app, and there’s an advance registration period at the start of both offers you should definitely take advantage of, to give you a better chance of being eligible.

You’ll need to spend S$1,000+ on the card in each of the calendar months you wish to participate, but this can include spend in the bonus categories, so it’s not really a huge stumbling block.

The offer is capped at the first 10,000 to register each month, with slots for September 2024 already reducing, so it’s best to act now and again at the very start of each subsequent month, if you wish to participate in all four months of the promotion.

For full details of the DBS Altitude cards, see our comprehensive review.

(Cover Photo: EDITION Hotels)