ANZ Frequent Flyer Black Credit Card

Got your specs handy? The ANZ Frequent Flyer Black Credit Card comes with Qantas Frequent Flyer points (a sign-up bonus and ongoing points earning) and the extensive suite of member benefits you’d expect from a prestige black card with a mammoth annual fee, but you’ll need to be all over the small print to make sure you extract the maximum advantage for the extra dollars you pay.

High annual fee, but it could be worth it

The annual fee has two components, the $370 card fee and the $55 rewards scheme fee, adding up to $425 per year. For each extra cardholder, add a further $65 ($10+$55). It’s pricey to say the least, but justifiable if you can spend enough each year to score, say, a business class return from Sydney to Melbourne – 32,000 points, requiring a $32,000 spend and saving you at least $1,233 (excluding any additional charges).

And the annual fee will seem insignificant in the first year when it is wiped out by sign-up benefits.

Uncapped points earning

The Qantas Frequent Flyer points earning rate is as high as it gets currently for a Visa card. As well, although there’s a points threshold, beyond which the earning rate decreases, there’s no overall points cap. It’s ANZ’s most rewarding Qantas Frequent Flyer card.

The earning rate is:

• 1.0 Qantas Frequent Flyer point per dollar, up to $7,500 per statement period
• 0.5 points per dollar, above $7,500 per statement period

That $7,500 threshold is probably not going to be a problem for most cardholders in most months, so it’s likely that the vast majority of card spending will earn 1.0 points per dollar.

Sign-up bonus points plus generous cashback

ANZ will welcome you as a new credit card customer with:

• A substantial 120,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer bonus points provided you can spend $4,000 on eligible purchases during the first three months of holding the card. That’s well on the way to enough points for a return economy flight to Europe or New York (120,000 points).

• A generous $275 back for making that same $4,000 worth of purchases in the first three months. (Small print alert. You won’t get the bonus points or money back to your card if you already have, or have had within the last 12 months, any kind of ANZ Frequent Flyer credit card.)

• Qantas Frequent Flyer joining fee paid by ANZ if you’re not already a member, saving you $99.50.

Ongoing benefits

The benefits aren’t confined to the first year. You’ll get these additional complimentary privileges for holding the card, every year:

• Two Qantas Club lounge single-entry passes per year. You can use the worldwide Qantas lounge facilities twice each year (or extend the privilege to a friend if you’re already a member) with these complimentary passes. (Small print alert. You need to be on a Qantas or Jetstar flight in order to use the pass, and you must order it four weeks in advance and wait for it to arrive by mail.)
• Top-of-the-range Allianz multi-trip international travel insurance, covering medical expenses, theft, loss and damage of property, rental vehicle excess in Australia insurance and more. ANZ says you can save up to $775, and it’s certainly true that even a basic policy could cost $450. (Small print alert. You must use the card for at least $250 of each person’s trip’s cost to activate the insurance cover, but that’s a low amount compared with some other cards.)
• Interstate flight inconvenience cover for flight delay, luggage delay, personal property cover, rental vehicle excess in Australia insurance.
• Transit accident cover, providing cash compensation for serious accidents sustained on public transport.
• Extended warranty insurance doubles the manufacturer’s Australian warranty, up to 12 additional months.
• Purchase protection insurance provides purchases protection insurance against loss, damage and theft.
• Guaranteed pricing scheme – price difference refunded if you find items (purchased with the card) cheaper elsewhere within 21 days.
• Personal concierge service. Anyone contemplating a black credit card might well find value in the complimentary concierge service for assistance with travel, entertainment and restaurant recommendations and bookings, worldwide.
• Up to 55 interest-free days on purchases every month provided you don’t have any debt on your card which has passed the payment due date.
• Exclusives by ANZ Invitation-only upmarket entertainment, food and lifestyle experiences.
• Tap and pay using your eligible Android or Apple device via Google Pay, Samsung Pay or Apple Pay.

The downsides

There’s no getting around the steep annual fee, the high ongoing purchase and cash advance interest rate of 20.24% p.a., but holders of black cards don’t usually plan to take cash advances or rack up interest-bearing credit card debt.

You also have to be sure that you want Qantas Frequent Flyer points, because there are no options to earn, or transfer to, any other type of reward or airline points.

Competing cards

If you find the $425 annual fee too much to swallow, consider the ANZ Frequent Flyer Platinum Card instead, with a lower annual fee but also lower points earning rate. NAB, Westpac, St.George, Bankwest, Citi, Commonwealth, American Express, HSBC, Qantas Money, Bendigo Bank and Woolworths also offer cards directly linked to Qantas points. You can check them out on our Qantas cards page.

This card is meant for . . .

. . . Qantas Frequent Flyer points collectors who prefer the global acceptance of a Visa card, in contrast to the lower acceptance rate and higher surcharges attracted by an American Express card. The substantial bonus points and cashback make the card particularly attractive in the first year, while regular travellers are likely to consider that the lounge passes and complimentary insurance more than offset the annual fee in subsequent years.