HSBC has improved its offering for TravelOne cardholders, with a hiked annual renewal bonus miles when paying the annual fee, though as always the value proposition depends on which transfer partner you’re using, and the cost may still be too high for some.

12,000 miles for paying your annual fee

Here’s the official word from HSBC:

Effective from 1 January 2026, you can receive up to 12,000 miles (in the form of 30,000 Reward points) when you pay your annual fee from the second year onwards.

HSBC

With an annual fee of S$196.20, this translates to a cost per mile of 1.64 cents, actually not a bad rate to buy miles, and it could be useful if a 12,000 boost gives you a nice leg-up to a redemption you’re eyeing.

There’s a catch, though. The card offers no reward points if your annual fee is waived, which happens when you spend more than S$25,000 per year. It’s not clear whether you’ll be able to voluntarily pay the annual fee even with higher spend than this, in order to accumulate the 12,000 additional miles for 1.64 cents each, if you deem that worthwhile.

It’s also worth noting that many cardholders have reported success with annual fee waivers even with significantly less than S$25,000 spend in their membership year, so we suspect it will be a case of either fee waiver, or fee payment with 12,000 bonus miles, largely based on your preference.

KrisFlyer is poorer

Here’s where things get less attractive. That 12,000 miles figure only applies if you transfer to one of the bank’s 2.5:1 ratio partners. Crucially, KrisFlyer is now a 3:1 partner, following a devaluation in the transfer ratio back in January 2025.

If you’re transferring the renewal bonus to KrisFlyer, you’ll actually get only 10,000 miles, which works out at a less-attractive 1.96 cents per mile.

Here’s a reminder of the transfer partners that have good transfer ratios from HSBC Rewards points, and those that have lousy ones!

= Good transfer ratio
= Lousy transfer ratio

HSBC FFP Transfer Partners

FFP			Transfer Ratio
			35,000 10,000 35,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			30,000 10,000 30,000 10,000
			30,000 10,000 30,000 10,000
			35,000 10,000 35,000 10,000
			35,000 10,000 35,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			50,000 10,000 50,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			35,000 10,000 35,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			25,000 20,000 25,000 20,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			35,000 10,000 35,000 10,000

Outside KrisFlyer there are still some great options to consider here – including the British Airways Avios programme, Cathay Asia Miles, Air France / KLM Flying Blue and Qatar Avios (via BA – not direct).

On the hotel side, you can also make transfers to four different loyalty programmes.

HSBC Hotel Transfer Partners

FFP			Transfer Ratio
			25,000 5,000 25,000 5,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			25,000 10,000 25,000 10,000
			30,000 10,000 30,000 10,000

In all cases the transfer ratios shown in the tables above represent the minimum transfer of HSBC Reward points to loyalty programme miles or points – after that it’s flexible denominations with rounding by only a few points.

Sign-up bonus still available

The HSBC TravelOne card also has an ongoing 33,600 miles sign-up bonus, now extended till 31st January 2026.

Is the TravelOne card worth considering?

For those unfamiliar with the TravelOne card, it isn’t the best earning option on the market in Singapore with 1.2 mpd / 2.4 mpd local / overseas earn rates, but has a wide transfer partner variety, including instant, free, flexible transfers in most cases, and a reasonably generous airport lounge visit allowance.

Another plus that might make you keen to dive in with this one – the sign-up bonus is also open to existing HSBC cardholders too, not just new-to-bank applicants, as is usually the case with these promotions, though it’s a smaller 21,600 miles deal in that case.

Fast Facts
Annual fee: $196.20/yr Renewal bonus: 12,000 miles Local earn rate: 1.2 mpd FCY earn rate: 2.4 mpd Lounge access: 4 per year FCY fee: 3.25% Min. age: 21 Min. income: $30,000/yr
33,600 miles when you spend   APPLY HERE

The improved renewal bonus adds a reason to keep the card in your wallet, particularly if you’re targeting non-KrisFlyer redemptions or need a quick top-up to reach a specific award ticket, but generally there are better cards for miles accrual after the sign-up bonus is achieved.

The HSBC TravelOne card has an improved renewal bonus of 12,000 miles for payment of the annual fee. However, generally there are better cards for miles accrual after you’ve hit the sign-up bonus.

At 1.64 cents per mile for the better transfer partners, or 1.96 cents per mile for KrisFlyer, this renewal bonus sits in that grey zone for us where it’s neither a slam dunk nor a complete write-off. It’s worth having if you’re keeping the card anyway, but probably not enough reason on its own to justify holding it if the base earn rates don’t work for your spending patterns.

The card’s real value proposition remains the sign-up bonus and transfer partner flexibility, with this annual renewal sweetener being just that, a nice addition only.

(Cover Photo: Shutterstock)