Kiwibank Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Visa

Roland Bleyer

Credit Card Expert with over 15 years card experience and the founder of Creditcard.co.nz. Ask Roland a Question about this card.

The Kiwibank Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card

Allowing cardholders to earn Airpoints Dollars on both everyday spending and Air New Zealand purchases, the Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card offers a decent earn rate with no points expiry. Features on offer include two complimentary Air New Zealand lounge passes each year when you spend $30,000 on the card, access to an Airpoints Dollars Advance, up to 44 days interest free on purchases, and 1.99% p.a. on balance transfers for six months.

What we love...

Kiwibank currently has three Air New Zealand branded credit cards within its range, each earning Airpoints Dollars and offering tiered extras on the side. As the ‘standard’ card, the Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card sits comfortably in the middle, between the Low Fee card and the Platinum card.

With a slightly higher account fee than the Low Fee option, the Kiwibank Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card provides a higher earn rate, and a few nice extras on the side. As a cardholder, you will earn:

• 1 Airpoints Dollar for every $120 spent on eligible purchases, and
• 1 Airpoints Dollar for every $100 spent on Air New Zealand products bought directly from Air New Zealand.

A nice feature on all Kiwibank’s Airpoints earning cards, as long as you have a current credit card and you’re the primary cardholder, your Airpoints Dollars will never expire. That means you can take your time earning and accumulating points, until you have enough to get the reward you want – whether that’s a flight or upgrade, merchandise, gift card, or anything else on the expansive Airpoints rewards programme.

Need that reward now? You have access to up to 100 additional Airpoints Dollars thanks to this card’s Airpoints Dollars Advance feature. This works something like an overdraft, allowing you to spend a few extra Airpoints Dollars now, to then earn them back and make up the difference. Alternatively, you could buy more points using Airpoints Dollars top up.

Another handy feature on the Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card offers cardholders the opportunity to earn Air New Zealand Lounge access with their card spending. How does it work? As long as you spend $30,000 on eligible purchases on your card each year, you will get two complimentary Air New Zealand Lounge eVouchers so you can travel in style. These passes are limited to two per year.

What’s not so great...

Before you apply for the Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card, think about how you usually deal with your credit card payments. If you typically carry a balance – that is, if you don’t pay your balance in full each month – you may struggle to get much value from the rewards you earn on a card such as this.

Why? Like most rewards cards, this card has a high purchase rate and cash advance rate. So if you carry a balance, your interest charges will start to stack up. Instead, try to pay off your balance each month to avoid interest accruing, taking advantage of the card’s interest free feature, which offers up to 44 days interest free on purchases.

Why should you choose this card?

The Kiwibank Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card offers a step up in points earning compared to its Low Fee brother. This may make it a worthy option for cardholders who spend a bit more on their card each month, making that higher account fee worth paying. Its extra features could also offer value to the right cardholder, providing access to the Air New Zealand Lounge when travelling, and the opportunity to use an Airpoints Dollars Advance when needed.

Another feature that may appeal to some cardholders is the card’s balance transfer offer. This allows new cardholders to benefit from 1.99% p.a. on balance transfers for six months. If you have credit card debt that you want to pay down, this offer could let you transfer that balance to pay a much lower rate of interest, potentially helping you pay off what you owe much faster.

Overall Rating

Kiwibank’s Air New Zealand Airpoints Standard Credit Card offers a decent earn rate with no points expiry, plus features that include airport lounge access, Airpoints Dollars Advance, up to 44 days interest free on purchases and 1.99% p.a. on balance transfers for six months.