Top Credit Card Offers to Explore in December 2019

Here are some notable credit and debit card offers available in December 2019. A few began in November and some run through March 2020. Below is a concise list of worthwhile promotions you can consider.

1. ICICI – 5% Cashback on International Spends

• Offer: Save 5% on international spends with the Amazon Pay ICICI Bank Credit Card.
• Validity: 10 Dec 2019 to 10 Feb 2020.
• Fulfilment: 1% paid as Amazon Pay balance in the monthly statement and 4% as statement cashback. Cashback for spends made between 10 Dec 2019 and 10 Jan 2020 credited by 10 Feb 2020; spends between 10 Jan 2020 and 10 Feb 2020 credited by 10 Mar 2020.

This is a strong option if you don’t have access to premium HDFC cards. After factoring forex charges, the effective saving on international transactions is attractive for an entry-level card.

2. Citi – 2X Points on International Spends

• Offer: Earn 2x rewards points on foreign currency spends with Citi when cumulative non-INR spends reach Rs 1,00,000.
• Validity: 15 Dec 2019 – 15 Jan 2020.
• Fulfilment: Rewards credited within 90 days of the transaction date.

This promotion is particularly lucrative on higher-tier cards such as Citi Prestige, delivering a significant net return on qualifying international spending.

3. HDFC – 50% Cashback on Markup Fee

• Offer: 50% cashback on foreign currency markup fee.
• Maximum cap: Rs 1,000.
• Type: Targeted — available only to selected cardholders who received communication.
• Validity: 1 Dec 2019 to 30 Dec 2019.
• Fulfilment: Cashback credited by 31 Mar 2020.

This promo appears to be targeted to a limited set of accounts, likely those without prior forex activity.

4. Axis – Vistara 2X Points

• Offer: 2X Club Vistara points on flight bookings made with Axis Bank Vistara Credit Card.
• Validity: 16 Dec 2019 to 15 Feb 2020.
• Fulfilment: Points credited within 90 days after the offer end date.

This is modest value compared with higher multipliers, but useful if you frequently fly Vistara.

5. HDFC – 5X Points Offer

• Offer: Earn up to 20,000 reward points per month on qualifying spends in Education, Healthcare, Automobile categories and on HDFC Bank Forex Cards.
• Validity: 1 Dec 2019 – 31 Mar 2020.
• Type: Targeted — available only to selected cardholders who received communication.
• Fulfilment: Points credited within 90 working days from the end of the transaction month.

A positive aspect is that this promotion runs for several months, giving more time to benefit from the higher points.

6. ICICI – 10% Cashback Offer

• Offer: 10% cashback when using ICICI Bank debit cards on select spend categories.
• Validity: 20 Nov to 31 Dec 2019.
• Type: Targeted — for select customers who received communication.
• Fulfilment: Cashback credited within 60 working days after the offer period ends.
• Registration required: To register, give a missed call to 7573043999.

These offers often target customers with privilege or higher-status accounts. If you received communication, it’s worth attempting to register and participate.

Notably, ICICI is running some promotions on debit cards and internet banking rather than on credit cards.

Additionally, HDFC is running a 5X points promotion on insurance spends for eligible credit cards.

Bottomline

The holiday season brings several attractive offers across banks, especially for international spending. While a few high-value promotions from previous years (such as HDFC Diners 10X on international spends) are not present this year, there are still useful deals to consider depending on your spending patterns and which targeted offers you qualify for.

Which of these offers will you use this December? Share your thoughts in the comments below.