Credit Card Offers HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card: Fast-Track to Star Alliance Gold Status

Fast track to Star Alliance Gold status with the HSBC Star Alliance credit card!​

Learn more and apply for this card:

HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card Guide

The HSBC Star Alliance credit card is the first of its kind, allowing Australian cardholders to earn Star Alliance Points and Gold status.

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

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What are the main benefits of this card?

1. Signup bonus: Fast Track to Star Alliance Gold Status, when you spend $4,000 or more on eligible purchases in the first 90 days from account opening
2. Keep your Star Alliance Gold status each subsequent year that you spend at least $60,000 on your card
3. Earn 1 Star Alliance Point per $1 on eligible purchases, up to $3,000 per statement period and 0.5 Star Alliance Points per $1 spent on eligible purchases thereafter, uncapped
4. No annual fee in the first year and $450 p.a. thereafter

Why we like the HSBC Star Alliance credit card

Launched in 2022, the HSBC Star Alliance credit card is the first of its kind anywhere in the world. You'll earn Star Alliance Points which are transferable to a choice of seven Star Alliance member airlines at a time of your choosing. You can also earn Star Alliance Silver or Gold status just by spending on the card, with no flying required!

Once you qualify for the welcome offer and are fast tracked to Star Alliance Gold status with any of the seven participating carriers, you’ll soon be enjoying perks like airport priority lanes and lounge access when flying across the whole Star Alliance network. It is the largest airline alliance in the world with 25 member airlines, including Air New Zealand, Singapore Airlines, United and Turkish Airlines.

Please note that the welcome offer is not available to existing HSBC customers transferring from another HSBC credit card, or if you have previously held a HSBC Star Alliance credit card within the last 18 months. Refer to the full T&C’s for more information:

HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card Guide

The HSBC Star Alliance credit card is the first of its kind, allowing Australian cardholders to earn Star Alliance Points and Gold status.

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

AFF members are welcome to discuss this card in this thread.

 

[andye]

-Gift cards for groceries
-Prepaying utlitlies
-Paying friends/families bills +getting cash
-Refundable airfares/hotels
-iphone at apple store, return unopened a day later ( be careful of returns policy)
- deposit for car with cooling off
-pay rent/mortgage with those 3rd party payers eg sniip, (fees apply)

Good list. Can also prepay private health insurance (may save money if get in before premiums go up) and ATO can also be paid via sniip etc. I have read (never done it) that with some insurance companies, if you cancel in the cooling off period, you get a cheque in the post

 

[CaptainCurtis]

Fully refundable hotel booking on Expedia should do the trick, as long as you can afford to be out of the $12k for a month or so.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

How are you checking your total annual spend? Is it on the HSBC site or on the Star Alliance Rewards site somewhere? I can't recall seeing this ever

Star alliance rewards site.

 

[k_sheep]

How are you checking your total annual spend? Is it on the HSBC site or on the Star Alliance Rewards site somewhere? I can't recall seeing this ever

It's also on your statement

 

[SeatBackForward]

It's also on your statement

is it??? I'll have to look more closely. I usually stop after knowing how much the balance to be paid is.

 

[Quickstatus]

How are you checking your total annual spend?

Equal to the "closing balance" of last 12 statements

But only 36,000 points is 1:1 $:KF, 24,000 points is 1:0.5 $:KF

So avg 1:0.8 $:KF

 

[Mattg]

There's an additional offer on now if you apply by 31/5/25 and choose SAA Voyager as your status airline. You get 30,000 bonus Voyager miles and a companion Star Alliance Gold membership:

SAA Voyager Promotion

www.flysaa.com

Limited time offer: Earn 30,000 Voyager miles when you apply for a new HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card before 31 May 2025 and meet the following requirements:

• Spend $4,000 AUD or more on eligible purchases in your first 90 days from account opening (this will Fast Track you to Star Alliance Gold Status1).
• Log on to Star Alliance Rewards and select South African Airways Voyager as your preferred status airline. Not only will this fast track you to Voyager Gold Status, your companion will be upgraded to Voyager Gold Status# with you (companion Gold Status valid until 31 December 2026).
• After qualifying, please allow 4-6 weeks for the 30,000 Voyager Miles to be posted to your Voyager account.

This exclusive offer is valid for new approved HSBC Star Alliance Credit card applications until 31 May 2025.

Here's the fine print on the companion Gold status:

# Gold companion status can be requested once the HSBC credit card holder has received Star Alliance Gold status with South African Airways Voyager. Please be aware that this status is contingent upon meeting all necessary eligibility criteria and requirements set forth by both HSBC and South African Airways. The Gold companion status will be valid until 31 December 2026 as long as the primary cardholder maintains their Star Alliance Gold Status. The Gold companion status will be processed within 4 - 6 weeks from the receipt of companion details. Voyager Terms and Conditions apply. Send your Gold companion request to [email protected].

 

[SeatBackForward]

It's also on your statement

Ahh thank you! now this is a good laugh for the morning:



Looks like I might have to get the missus using this card a bit more now!

 

[k_sheep]

Ahh thank you! now this is a good laugh for the morning:



Looks like I might have to get the missus using this card a bit more now!

Tell her I'll meet her at the bar, her shout

 

[SAB]

Seems like no one is mentioning this promotion?

From 1 March 2025 to 31 March 2025, HSBC Star Alliance cardholders will receive 25% bonus miles when transferring Star Alliance points to KrisFlyer miles.

Thank you for the tip.

 

[SAB]

Ahh thank you! now this is a good laugh for the morning:

View attachment 437088

Looks like I might have to get the missus using this card a bit more now!

Note that the statement is not a reliable indicator of Star Alliance points. You need to check your Star Alliance account.

 

[aspro2]

I was approved for this card on 30 May 2024 and the first statement was generated on 6 June. Based on other users' cancellation experience, in order to avoid the second year's fee does this mean I need to cancel when:

1. the twelfth statement is issued (for me, on approx 6 May 2025), or
2. before 30 May (true anniversary date), or
3. before actual generation of the thirteenth statement (June)?

If (2) or (3), does that mean you can actually earn a 13 month's worth of points?

 

[cqtiger]

Wish I could get one of these cards.I get rejected before I am out of the blocks despite satisfying their advertised criteria. Of course they give no reason but I suspect I am too old but I cant prove that.

 

[Foreigner]

I applied for this card this week and just got sms and email of approval. Having *A gold tier in first year, free of card fee, is a no-brainer. But keeping status in following years for fee is, IMO, worth its weight in gold if benefits are received when taking flights. No need to do status runs and spending $$$ yet having the status to get decent benefits when travelling

 

[N860CR]

Has anyone had any experience trying to transfer money out of this card? Say I were to decide to blow $60K at the Waldorf Astoria in NY (so transfer 50K above my limit into the account) however then change my mind and cancel it, can I retrieve the funds?

 

[Mattg]

There's a 20% bonus miles offer on transfers from Star Alliance Rewards to United MilagePlus currently, ending 15 May 2025.

https://www.united.com/en-au/hsbc-star-alliance-20-promo

 

[NP282229]

I’ve got the star alliance gold card and have enjoyed the benefits. I am not a business owner just have a wife that enjoys shopping and my current spend on the card is $198k with 3 more “qualification months” to go. So would assume our spend will be circa $260k annually on the card. I am with Aeroplan atm, took advantage of the 50,000 free points but with some trips coming up have emailed to switch to krisflyer upon renewal date.. This is my first time with a rewards card and I paid no fee year one.

Has anyone had any luck getting the annual fee waived on the previso they don’t close the card, take banking elsewhere?

I will have a crack at this, I have a mortgage with hsbc and this card, am premier etc and it would be interesting to see what their position on it is over ~$500….

Also into Europe this year am I being silly transferring from Aeroplan to Kris? We are flying vis Singapore (economy) with 3 young children.

 

[levelnine]

I am not a business owner just have a wife that enjoys shopping and my current spend on the card is $198k with 3 more “qualification months” to go. So would assume our spend will be circa $260k annually on the card.

$260K of spend on this card offers an abysmally low return on spend. I'd look into churning credit cards if you and your wife can stomach swapping out cards once every month or two.

Even with $260K spend on this card, you're not going to have enough points to fly 5x pax return to Europe even in economy. You can use your points to buy a few award tickets and pay the rest in cash. You'll find it easier to redeem on SQ than AC for Europe.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

$260K of spend on this card offers an abysmally low return on spend. I'd look into churning credit cards if you and your wife can stomach swapping out cards once every month or two.

Even with $260K spend on this card, you're not going to have enough points to fly 5x pax return to Europe even in economy.

Yes. And the other thing to consider is that if the OP transfers to Krisflyer, there will be a hard expiry on points, compared to no expiry on Aeroplan provided they continue to earn.

Aeroplan gold gets you all the benefits of the same status on SQ… my only question is that with SQ gold, do you get more guests into the lounges (ie family) than via another program?

 

[NP282229]

Thanks for your feedback RE expiry on points- I wasn’t aware of this. Will do some searching regarding the lounge benefits on with kris as opposed to aero. Not huge with churning on cards purely for the impact it has on credit scores etc etc. but perhaps I should be. My wife isn’t working so I would say I am the only one that can get cards

Interested in suggestions on perhaps a “better” card for us though. The lounge benefits and status are a huge plus.