Credit Card in Singapore

[Almost_In_Singapore]

I am moving with my husband to Singapore in October...

Just curious.. in India, some credit cards do not charge a rental fee as they are lifetime free cards.

When I move, can I use my Citibank (VISA) india card in Singapore or should I apply for a new credit card? Do credit cards come for free or does one have to pay a fee annually....

[Splatted]

I am moving with my husband to Singapore in October...

Just curious.. in India, some credit cards do not charge a rental fee as they are lifetime free cards.

When I move, can I use my Citibank (VISA) india card in Singapore or should I apply for a new credit card? Do credit cards come for free or does one have to pay a fee annually....

Most cards charge an annual fee in Singapore. They may wave it for the first year (some cards for first 2).

Actually most savings bank accounts as well will charge a fee in Singapore if your balance is below $500.

One exception I found and signed up for was the NTUC/Fairprice account (through OCBC bank). No minimum balance, and has visa debit.

The other thing you need to keep in mind are the terms and conditions if you are adamant you still want a credit card. I think a read somewhere that you become liable for all the purchases if your card is lost or stolen, whereas my card which I applied for outside Singapore protects me from unauthorized transactions.

You can use your Indian visa card, but check what the exchange rates are like, as banks usually like to rip you off by a few percent of what the rate should be.

[MblSH]

You can get yourself a basic DBS or POSB (that's banks) card; there are some that are free for the first five years; later on you can always change for a similar deal from another bank. In addition to that, almost everybody waives the fee for the certain amount spent

Btw, do you need a credit card or just a local visa/mastercard? All the banks here will offer you a free debit visa or mastercard. Imo credit card is not the best way to get credit anyway, although it's none of my business really

Cheers,
Max

[ScoobyDoes]

Imo credit card is not the best way to get credit anyway, although it's none of my business really

Credit Cards are safer, especially around Asia.

If somebody clones your card, with a debit card the criminal has full access to all funds in your account until you stop the card. With a credit card he/she only has access to your available credit limit. I do know of friends who have had their credit card cloned in Malaysia and within hours used in Australia.

Generally also, purchases made from a stolen credit card are covered by the card issuer not the holder. The credit card company needs to prove the sales "chit" was signed by the holder. This is not the case for a debit card because let's face it, your money has already disappeared.

[MblSH]

With most singaporean shops still printing the full card number, expiration date and cardholder name on receipt, I wonder how people aren't being ripped off without going anywhere from Singapore.

As for refunds - can't speak for Asian banks, but US banks will reimburse fraudulent charges against a debit card - it happened to me personally couple of times. And it's not so easy to empty a debit card account with strict withdrawal and daily transaction limits imposed by a bank; in fact, it's easier to max out a credit card.

Anyway, I think I got past the point of original post

[ching]

Hi, you may be better off getting a local card because you'll likely be charged currency exchange fees if you use your overseas card here for SGD purchases.

As previous posters have mentioned, most local card issuers will waive your fees for at least the first two years. If your bank won't waive fees after that, you can always cancel your card and switch to a different one!

Plus, most credit cards offer some sort of dining discount or other promotional discounts and rebates. For example, the UOB Ladies' Card gets you two free gym passes at California Fitness each month, in addition to the usual dining discounts, etc offered by UOB.

Take a look at the offers from the different banks, shop around a bit and pick a credit card that gives you a good deal for the types of expenses you normally have (shopping, dining, travel, etc).

[Splatted]

Do also take into consideration that the mimimum income required for applying for a credit card in Singapore for expats - I think it's around $60,000 Singapore dollars.

This is much higher than applying for the same cards back home in a lot of countries.

Of course, you might not have that problem if you were enticed here on a generous package. Most 'expats' earn much less.

[Asian_Geekette]

If you're going to use your credit card which was issued back home, check about the currency exchange rates. Whenever I charge using the Visa card issued from my home country, the exchange rate used by Visa is way above the market exchange rate.

But if you get a credit card here, read the fine print carefully. Aside from what Splatted pointed out regarding your responsibility regarding fraudulent transactions made on your card, the credit card company will also charge a service fee of 1.5% or something whenever you use the card overseas.