Earn air miles on your rent and bills

The idea of earning air miles and reward points on all your regular monthly expenses that are normally paid via cash, GIRO or cheque is, I think, brilliant. Paying expenses from rent to school fees to tax and even electricity bills through a digital payment service using your credit card also means your finances are all in one place. It sounds perfect for personal home finances too.

Most banks don’t offer this feature but now you can do it through Citi PayAll, with a Citi Credit Card via the Citi Mobile® App. You earn miles or reward points with the same earn rates as the existing spend, for just a fee.

Basically, you are rewarded for paying for all the things you really don’t enjoy paying for. Plus, after a while, you get yourself a shopping spree or a dream vacation that will cost you very little – depending on your taste in wine, of course! Say you pay $6,530 worth of bills per month through City PayAll; the miles that you earn in a year gives you the equivalent of a return Business Class ticket to Japan.¹ More details on the example can be found here.

Planning ahead

Coming back to the financial management part of it, as well as having everything in one place, you can schedule expenses from an annual payment to recurring monthly ones. Scheduling ahead means you don’t miss deadlines (which can mean fees) or overstep credit limits. The bank will send notifications of payments and you can easily track payments too.

I know most internet banking apps these days have some functionality for household budgeting, but having all your costs on one statement is really helpful. It would be especially useful if you’re paying a lot of your overheads, rents and school fees yourself. Having it all in one place takes a bit of the pressure out of having to balance not only your bank account, but your credit card statements and cheque books. And there are other functions in the Citi Mobile® App that can help you plan better too. You can keep track of your balance and transactions in just three simple steps, view and download your e-Statements anytime and anywhere, or even make payments and transfers on the go with the Citi Mobile® App.

Getting the benefit of air miles on things like tax and electricity is a no-brainer. Here’s what you can pay for and earn miles in the process:

• Rent
• School fees
• Tax
• Condo management fees
• Electricity bills

Personally, I think if we have to pay the bills anyway, let’s get some kick-back from it. Worth having a look at!

Accelerate your air miles

#1 From now until 31 December 2019, earn 1.5 miles for every dollar spent on Citi PremierMiles Visa Card (PayAll transactions included) with a minimum spend of $3,000 per month. Click here for more details.

#2 From now until 31 January 2019, earn 3X Rewards (1.2 miles) for every dollar spent on PayAll transactions on Citi Rewards Card. No minimum spend. Click here for more details.

If you don’t already have a Citi Credit Card, apply here.

For more information, click here or download the Citi Mobile®App. Click here for more details and terms and conditions.

¹Disclaimer: Miles stated is calculated based on Citi Miles earned on spend of S$6,530 on Citi PremierMiles Visa Card, calculated based on the prevailing earn rate, which is subject to change. Actual Citi Miles may differ with other Citi Credit Cards. Miles redemption calculation and business class air ticket fare are based on publicly available information as of 8th April 2019. Estimated fees payable based on a fee of 2%. The actual fee charged may vary. Customers will be notified of the applicable fee before they decide to make a payment via Citi PayAll.

This article is brought to you in collaboration with Citibank.

Rebecca Bisset

Heading up Expat Living, Rebecca's the oldest but not necessarily the wisest of the crew! Her original career was in photography and video. A bit of a nomad before Singapore, she loves looking at properties, fashion and home décor.