Westpac Low Rate Credit Card

Offers a 0% interest rate for a long 28 months on balance transfers, but charges a 1% fee to do so.

When you apply by 30 June 2022, you'll get a $0 annual fee for the first year and 0% p.a. on balance transfers for the first 28 months. However, unlike some of the other offers on the market, you'll have to pay a 1% balance transfer fee to take advantage.

This no-frills card charges a 13.74% p.a. rate on purchases and a modest $59 annual fee after the first year. If you're looking for a buy now pay later alternative, the Westpac Low Rate also comes with SmartPlan instalment options.

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Sally McMullen

Last Updated Mar 30, 2021

0% p.a.

Balance transfer rate

for 28 months with 1% balance transfer fee

13.74% p.a.

Purchase rate

$0 p.a.

Annual fee

for the first year ($59 p.a. thereafter)

55 days

Interest free period

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Details

Product Name	Westpac Low Rate Card
Balance transfer rate p.a.	0% for 28 months with 1% balance transfer fee
Balance transfer revert rate	Cash Advance Rate (21.49% p.a.)
Balance transfer limit	80% of available limit
Purchase rate p.a.	13.74%
Annual fee	$0 for the first year ($59 thereafter)
Interest-free period	Up to 55 days on purchases
Cash advance rate	21.49% p.a.
Min credit limit	$500
Max credit limit	$25,000
Card type	Mastercard
Foreign currency conversion fee	3%

Minimum income	$30,000
Available to temporary residents	No
Joint application	No

Pros

$0 annual fee for the first year
0% p.a. for up to 28 months on balance transfers
Low 13.74% p.a. interest rate on purchases

Cons

Balance transfer reverts to the high cash advance rate of 21.49% p.a. after the introductory period
Charges a one-time 1% balance transfer fee

Bonus points	N/A

Annual fee	$0 for the first year ($59 thereafter)
Minimum monthly repayment	2% of the closing balance or $10, whichever is greater
Late payment fee	$15
Foreign currency conversion fee	3%
Cash advance fee	3%
Overseas cash advance fee	2%
Additional cardholder fee	$0
Number of additional cardholders	1

Review by

Sally McMullen

sally.mcmullen@finder.com.au

Sally McMullen is a creative content producer at Finder. Sally has written about credit cards for almost 5 years, authoring almost 900 articles on Finder alone. She has also been published in Yahoo Finance, Dynamic Business, Financy and Mamamia, as well as Music Feeds and Rolling Stone. Sally has a Bachelor of Communication and Media Studies majoring in Journalism (Hons) from the University of Wollongong.

Expert review

If you want to pay off your existing credit card, the current offer on the Westpac Low Rate can help you save with its long-term balance transfer offer. It charges a 1% balance transfer fee, but the 28-month introductory period means you’ll have lots of breathing room from your interest payments. You'll want to pay off the full amount in that time before the 21.49% p.a. revert rate kicks in.

The $0 first year annual fee offer also means you’ll save on other card costs when you first get it. However, after the first year the annual fee jumps to $59.

This no-frills card doesn’t offer extra bells and whistles like insurance or points, but charges a relatively low variable interest rate of 13.74% p.a. for purchases. It also offers Smartplan, which allows you to set up instalment plans to repay eligible balances.

How to apply

You can apply for the Westpac Low Rate credit card online in 10 minutes and receive a response in 60 seconds. Check that you meet the eligibility criteria and have the necessary information to complete the application first.

Eligibility criteria

Eligible balance transfer debt. If you plan use the balance transfer, you can transfer from $200 up to 80% of your available credit limit from up to 3 non-Westpac Australian issued credit, charge or store cards.
Cardholder status. In order to be eligible for the $0 first year annual fee and balance transfer offers, you must be a new Westpac Low Rate cardholder.

Age. You must be at least 18 years of age to apply.
Residency. In order to apply online, you must be a permanent resident of Australia, currently in Australia.

Required documents

Personal details. Including your full name, date of birth, residential address, contact information, marital status and number of financial dependents.
Proof of identification. You'll need to provide some form of identification such as Australian driver's licence, Medicare card or Australian passport.
Finances. You'll need to confirm your annual income with recent payslips or bank statements. You'll also be asked to list your assets, liabilities and expenses.
Employment. Confirm your current place of employment and provide your employer's contact information.
Balance transfer information. If you are transferring a balance(s) to the Westpac Low Rate, you will need to provide details of that account(s).

Card benefits

First-year annual fee waiver. Save with a $0 annual fee for the first year ($59 thereafter). This offer is only available when you apply and get approved by 30 June 2022.
0% balance transfer offer. You can consolidate other card debts and save with 0% p.a. interest for the first 28 months when you apply by 30 June 2022 (a one-time 1% balance transfer fee applies). At the end of the introductory period, any remaining balance will revert to the variable cash advance rate, currently 21.49% p.a. The balance transfer will be processed when the card is activated.

Smartplan. You can use the Smartplan repayment planner to pay off your card balance in monthly instalments. You can set up a plan for either a single purchase of at least $500 or more made within the last 30 days, or for any credit card balance that's worth $200 or more.
Additional cardholders. You can request 1 additional cardholder at no extra cost.
Mobile payment technology. You can link your Westpac credit card with Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or Google Pay to make contactless payments with your smartphone. Plus, you can also pay with your eligible fitness tracker with Fitbit Pay and Garmin Pay.

Rates & fees

Annual fee. Outside of any promotions, this card charges an annual fee of $59.
Purchase rate. This card charges a variable purchase interest rate of 13.74% p.a.

Interest-free days. When you pay your monthly payment balance in full, which excludes current balance transfers, listed on your statement by the payment due date, you will receive up to 55 days interest-free on new purchases. Note that interest-free days are separate from any longer-term interest rate promotions.
Cash advances. If you use your card to make a cash advance, such as an ATM withdrawal, you'll be charged an interest rate of 21.49% p.a. and will be charged a fee of 3% of each cash advance amount.
Currency conversion rate. When you use your card to make a transaction in a foreign currency overseas or online, you'll be charged a fee of 3% of the transaction value.

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693 Comments

Adrian
August 20, 2019

Is a pensioner’s Centrelink income accepted in assessing an application for a Westpac Low Rate Credit Card?

Reply
- finder Customer Care
  
  Charisse
  August 21, 2019
  
  Hi Adrian,
  
  Yes, Westpac can consider your pension when applying for their Low Rate Credit Card.
  
  On their application form, under ‘Income and Savings’, there is a portion which says income/salary/pension where you can put in the amount you receive either monthly, fortnightly, weekly or annually.
  
  Reply
Susan
May 17, 2019

Does this card attract Qantas frequent flyer points?

Cheers,
Susan

Reply
- finder Customer Care
  
  Jeni
  May 18, 2019
  
  Hi Susan,
  
  It doesn’t earn Qantas Points or any reward points. If you’re considering getting a Westpac credit card that earns Qantas Points, you may want to check out their Altitude Black Card. If you’re looking for other Qantas options, check out our guide to Qantas Frequent Flyer Credit Cards.
  
  Reply
Milan
April 3, 2019

Hi there
Just I want ask before applying credit card
My credit score in equifax is 632
And in Dun and Bradstreet 462
Can I apply for credit card?

Reply
- Nikki
  April 3, 2019
  
  Hi Milan,
  
  There are more requirements than just credit score that you have to meet when applying for a credit card. You can check out ‘Eligibility Criteria’ section in our review above to see the specific guidelines for this card.
  
  Reply
Guy
March 23, 2019

Hi! I am wanting to transfer my Commonwealth card to Westpac. My commonwealth card credit limit is $15,000 and I am currently maxed out. Should I pay three grand off this card before applying for a balance transfer – or is that unnecessary?

Reply
- finder Customer Care
  
  Mai
  March 24, 2019
  
  Hi Guy,
  
  It will depend on the credit limit that will be approved to you by Westpac. This card will only allow 80% of the available balance to be used for balance transfer. So if you are planning to transfer full $15,000 from Commonwealth, you need to be approved for at least $18,750 by Westpac for the full balance to be covered. Otherwise, you may need to pay Commonwealth the amount that will not be covered by the balance transfer in full to avoid being charged interest.
  
  Reply
sasha
December 1, 2018

If I apply today and get accepted how long does it take to get the credit card as I leave for overseas shortly. Thanks

Reply
- finder Customer Care
  
  John
  December 6, 2018
  
  Hi Sasha,
  
  If approved, it will take approximately 10 days from the day you applied to received your credit card in the mail.
  
  Reply

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Westpac Low Rate Credit Card