TIPS for obtaining more cc points/QFF points

[akumaslair]

Let's get a little thread started so others (including myself) can make full use of the system.

Let's post methods/techniques on how to earn more!!

This is what I do:
i) Buy absolutely everything on credit cards, even in places you least expect
ii) Pay all bills on credit cards
iii) Buy train tickets over the phone on with credit card
iv) Paid for my deposit for the car with the cc
v) if friends who pay bills with cash (+$100), pay for them and get them to pay you back
vi) sometimes when going out to group dinner functions, put the whole lot onto the cc
vii) Shop at those partners that offer double or triple points

Anybody else got any suggestions!!!

 

[NM]

One of my kids schools takes Amex for payment of school fees. They offer a discount for paying the full year's fees up front. So that was almost 10,000 points through the Amex rewards Maximiser card.

Many tax-deductible donations can also be made via Credit Card, such as Baptist World Aid Australia for their Support an Orphan child sponsorship program (similar to World Vision's child sponsorship). The more you donate/sponsor the more points you earn, so don't hold back (and its tax deductible too.

Using PayPal linked to my Amex card for overseas purchases through things like E-Bay. Simple transactions and earns Amex MR points.

My company offers a salary sacrifice for portable and hand-held computing devices that meet the ATO definition for being exempt of FBT. The process involves buying the device yourself, completing and submitting the appropriate paperwork and having the full amount reimbursed through the payroll system and then sacrificing the purchase over a number of pay periods. So once a year I could buy such a device (I have only done this twice in 6 years though) and have the payroll reimbursement before any interest is paid and collect the Amex MR points.

 

[danielh]

I guess I should contribute to this thread since I'm very fanatical about getting points.

1. Get a card that provides 1.5 or 2x points per $. This includes the AmEx one and the odd 'offer' you can get via places such as Diners Card

2. If you are an existing member of a card such as DC then consider calling them up and let them know you want to drop them. They will offer you a series of things such as free second card, discounted annual fee, free annual fee, 1.5x points and then 2x

3. Maximise any credit card transfers. Save up as much money as you have and be prepared to close an account and get points balance transfers (eg. CitiBank)

4. Keep track of any special offers such as the odd Double points on spending $$ on Supermarkets and Petrol Cards

5. Stay in hotels which offer good points bonuses. Marriott is good for everyone-5x points but can be pricey (remember to join via web) and places like Rydges give 3x points per $ but this offer is usually reserved for corporate accounts

6. When you are about to go on holidays, always consider which card to use to buy things like holiday packages, car rental, flights (etc) to maximise points

7. Put as many business purchases on card as possible as you can claim this back so it is essentially free points

8. Monitor exactly how many points you expect to see as you mamy discover that points can go 'missing' from the CC providers. Right now I 'discussing' my missing 14k points as I did an audit of all my DC expenses for the last 12 months and compared them to what was put into my QFF account and found it did not match.

9. Always trawl around this site for more offers.

Regards
Daniel

 

[dvmcl54]

tips for obtaining ff points from cc/QFF

I posted a cryptic message (not a good way in such a open forum) the other day to see if anyone could see a flaw in process of paying my accountants bill and tax payments via myob by credit card.
He agreed to to pay merchant fee and it is a reliable service because it is run by aust post. In case you were not aware all other bill paying systems wont allow you to pay your tax by cc.
that includes bas/gst and payg and annual tax bill.
the accountant does a good job distributing profits via my trust but eventually my hard work has produced a profit I can get qff for the privilge of paying the tax i owe

dvmcl :?:

 

[eddie eagle]

My company offers a salary sacrifice for portable and hand-held computing devices that meet the ATO definition for being exempt of FBT. The process involves buying the device yourself, completing and submitting the appropriate paperwork and having the full amount reimbursed through the payroll system and then sacrificing the purchase over a number of pay periods. So once a year I could buy such a device (I have only done this twice in 6 years though) and have the payroll reimbursement before any interest is paid and collect the Amex MR points.

If you are a member of CPA australia you can get an amex with reqards maximiser with no annual fees. 1.5 points per dollar spent after first $5000 i believe.

Hey NM your purchase/salary sacrifice this is highly recommended, my company does same. You can time your purchase just after statement date on amex and get up to 55 days interest free.

My question would be though, why don't you get a notebook & pda every year - and either give/sell to friends or other people.

I have a marginflyer margin loan with Leveraged Equities - you pay a "premium" of 0.295% on the interest rate, which is tax deductible compared to their normal loan rate. But if your loan is over $150K you are better off with the points which are not assessable for tax purposes.

I'm just about to prepay interest for next year and will get 105000 points, plus a nice tax deduction this year.

 

[bambbbam2]

Be careful with Australia Post.. some bills you pay with your CC at the Post Office are treated as 'cash advances' and start accruing Interest from Day 0.

If you pay them with Bpay or over the phone then this generally won't be the case.

 

[NM]

Hey NM your purchase/salary sacrifice this is highly recommended, my company does same. You can time your purchase just after statement date on amex and get up to 55 days interest free.

My question would be though, why don't you get a notebook & pda every year - and either give/sell to friends or other people.

I certainly could do that, and I know people who do. There is a limit of one per year and according to the ATO ruling for it to be FBT exempt, it has to be for my personal use and not for resale to someone else. I guess I am just a stickler for abiding by the rules and staying under the radar when it comes to tax issues. So I have only used this to buy a Palm IIIXe about 6 years back, and when that died earlier this year I bought a Dell Axim X50v.

I also assume my kids are going to need a new PC for school use soon, so want to be able to buy a laptop for them when needed. So I need to keep my "one per year" up my sleeve in case I need to use it at short notice. They currently use a very old laptop (PII, 300MHz) that could die any time and the logical replacement method is this salary sacrifice. Especially since it can then sacrificed over a period of up to 12 months!

 

[straitman]

There is a limit of one per year and according to the ATO ruling for it to be FBT exempt, it has to be for my personal use and not for resale to someone else. I guess I am just a stickler for abiding by the rules and staying under the radar when it comes to tax issues.

Agree entirely about the low profile, however I'm led to believe that using the Laptop for yourself for one year and then selling and purchasing another for yourself still fits within the rules.

Also remember when working your years out that the FBT year is from 1 Apr until 31 Mar. 8)

 

[NM]

Agree entirely about the low profile, however I'm led to believe that using the Laptop for yourself for one year and then selling and purchasing another for yourself still fits within the rules.

Also remember when working your years out that the FBT year is from 1 Apr until 31 Mar. 8)

Absolutely correct on both counts. But I am provided with a company laptop so can't really justify one for myself. The PDAs are no issue at all, not that any real justification is required. Any laptop I purchase for the family use will be kept for more than 1 year anyway! The kids are currently using a 6-7 year old machine!

 

[straitman]

Agree entirely about the low profile, however I'm led to believe that using the Laptop for yourself for one year and then selling and purchasing another for yourself still fits within the rules.

Also remember when working your years out that the FBT year is from 1 Apr until 31 Mar. 8)

Absolutely correct on both counts. But I am provided with a company laptop so can't really justify one for myself. The PDAs are no issue at all, not that any real justification is required. Any laptop I purchase for the family use will be kept for more than 1 year anyway! The kids are currently using a 6-7 year old machine!

I understand.

I just choose to roll mine over each year so that I remain in a cost neutral situation.

 

[morbo]

There are other professional organisations that provide Amex cards. AFAIK there's the CA, and the NSW Law Society.

Heres my tip - although you can purchase a season ticket from any cityrail station with a mc, vc or bc, you have to waddle off to Wynyard to be able to puchase them with AMEX.

 

[bambbbam2]

Heres my tip - although you can purchase a season ticket from any cityrail station with a mc, vc or bc, you have to waddle off to Wynyard to be able to puchase them with AMEX.

I have used an Amex at other stations, including Gosford. But gee they moan about it! I just tell them, "sorry that's all I have".

I do find the Cityrail charges sometimes take several weeks (!) to come through on the statement.