130,000 bonus Qantas Points with the new ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card

The new ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card is offering 130,000 bonus Qantas Points for new cardholders. The card earns uncapped Qantas Points on eligible spend and has a $300 ongoing annual fee.

A minimum spend of $6,000 on eligible purchases in the first three months from approval of your new card is required to receive the bonus. But on top of that, there are even more perks on the table for your business. Among them, upgrading to Level 2 for 12 months of the Qantas Business Rewards program. This unlocks greater discounts on eligible flights and Qantas Club memberships than afforded at Level 1. It also increases the rewards that businesses can earn when travelling with Qantas and eligible airline partners.

Here’s a closer look at the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card.

Digging into the details of the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card

Straight off the bat, the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card has a key advantage. As its name suggests, points accrue in your business’ Qantas Business Rewards account.

Personal Qantas Points can be used for yourself and family; points in Qantas Business Rewards can be spent on anybody. These could be redeemed when employees, clients or business partners need to travel. Alternatively, you can also transfer points from Qantas Business Rewards into the personal Qantas Frequent Flyer account of anybody you choose.

Think about that for a moment. Your business could slash its travel costs by using the business’ own points to book flights. Or use points to upgrade a traveller to a higher cabin – without paying the significantly higher cash cost of an equivalent premium cabin ticket. You might also offer points as performance incentives for staff. Just check with your accountant or tax advisor regarding any tax implications.

Earning Points with ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card

With the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card, businesses can earn uncapped Qantas Points on eligible purchases at the following rates:

• 0.75 Qantas Points for every $1 spent on eligible purchases, up to and including $15,000 per statement period.
• 0.5 Qantas Points for every $1 spent on eligible purchases above $15,000 per statement period, uncapped.
• Regardless of monthly spend volume, 0.5 Qantas Points per $1 spent on government payments, uncapped.
• Earn one bonus Qantas Point per $1 spent on selected Qantas products and services. (In total, this is 1.75 or 1.5 total Qantas Points per $1 spent on these transactions, depending on monthly spend, as above).

As for those ‘selected Qantas products and services’ for earning bonus points, these transactions include:

• Qantas flights purchased directly from Qantas in Australian dollars (with a QF flight number).
• Qantas Club membership joining and annual fees.
• Qantas Frequent Flyer joining fees (although there are many ways to join for free).

This makes the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card quite compelling.

Double dip with Qantas Business Rewards 

The ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card also comes with another terrific benefit. That’s an advance to Level 2 in the Qantas Business Rewards program for 12 months. This is currently available to businesses that apply and are approved for the card by 30 September 2024.

If you’re not familiar with the Qantas Business Rewards program, the levels are quite straightforward. There’s Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3. All members normally begin on Level 1, and by earning Qantas Points from the business’ flights, businesses can upgrade to Level 2 (the middle level) and Level 3 (the top level).

Here’s what Level 2 offers, over and above what all Qantas Business Rewards members get when beginning at Level 1.

• Discounts of up to 8% off ‘selected flights’ (versus a 6% saving at Level 1), excluding Red e-Deals.
• On Red e-Deals, up to 3% off (Level 1 members receive no discount on these fares).
• Earn 30 Qantas Points for your business for every 100 Qantas Points your travellers earn (50% more generous than at Level 1).
• Save 30% on Qantas Club memberships (versus 20% at Level 1).

For clarity, the extra Qantas Points earned above are provided directly to the business by Qantas, when somebody travels on behalf of the company. These points aren’t credited by ANZ. But the benefit of the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card is that advance to Level 2 in the Qantas Business Rewards program, which unlocks those higher earn rates and discounts.

This is also a double dip, in that businesses can earn points twice. Firstly, by purchasing these eligible flights using the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card. And then secondly, by earning these additional points once the passenger undertakes that travel.

The traveller still earns their personal Qantas Points and Status Credits as normal, based on the fare type. These rewards are in addition to those personal rewards, so everybody’s happy. In fact, by attaching the business’ Qantas Business Rewards number to each reservation, the traveller gets a 250 bonus Qantas Points per booking. It’s a nice incentive to make sure they’re getting rewarded – and that the business is, too.

Eligibility criteria for the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card

It takes about 20 minutes to apply online for the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card. Through the ANZ GoBiz platform, you’ll be able to lodge an application – and potentially, get a decision within minutes – if your business:

• Uses Xero, MYOB or Inuit QuickBooks, and gives ANZ one-off access to the business’ financial data.
• Has at least 6 months of reconciled financial data in Australian dollars.
• Has operated under its current ABN or ACN for 6 months or more.
• Is registered for GST if its annual turnover is $75,000 or more.
• Has an annual turnover of less than $10 million.

If you can’t use the ANZ GoBiz channel, don’t fret, there are other options. Through the online application process, you can instead request a call back from ANZ to request a manual application. This could be handy if the business uses an accounting program other than those above.

ANZ doesn’t list a minimum business turnover to apply for this product. There’s also no prohibition on sole traders applying.

Other benefits of the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card

Along with the ability to earn points, the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card offers a collection of other key perks. Here’s a brief overview.

• Domestic and international travel insurance (eligibility, T&Cs, exclusions and limits apply).
• Unauthorised Transaction Insurance of up to $37,500 per cardholder and $200,000 maximum for the account in any 12-month period.
• Set monthly spending caps, per-transaction limits and merchant category controls for each cardholder.
• A low minimum credit limit of just $5,000, which may appeal to smaller businesses.
• Transaction data feeds into Xero, MYOB, Intuit QuickBooks Online and more.
• Access to the ANZ Global Business Concierge.

Some businesses may find great appeal in the ability to set limits per cardholder. For instance, setting a monthly spending cap could help ensure credit card transactions remain within an allocated budget. A per-transaction limit can help avoid any unauthorised large purchases too.

Adding to that, being able to set merchant category restrictions could add further peace of mind. For instance, one employee may be issued a card strictly for meal expenses on business trips. Their card could be set to only allow purchases at restaurants, cafes and take-away stores. Thus, even trying to sneak a Chanel handbag onto an expense report just wouldn’t happen, because the card simply wouldn’t work at a luxury retailer.

Alternatively, the business might issue a card to be used exclusively for an employee’s travel expenses. Transactions with airlines, hotels, car hire companies and taxis could be given the green light. Purchases at hardware stores, on the other hand, could be restricted. Chances are, if an employee is following the business’ expense policies, they wouldn’t even notice that the card has restrictions.

Mobile wallet integration

The ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card supports all the major mobile wallets available in Australia. This allows cardholders to use their phone or smartwatch to pay for goods and services in lieu of the physical credit card.

Like many banks, ANZ offers Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. But adding to those staples, ANZ supports Fitbit Pay and Garmin Pay too. Combined, this allows cardholders to make digital wallet payments on compatible smartphones and smartwatches. ‘Forgetting’ to carry the business’ credit card can be a thing of the past.

There’s another key advantage of mobile wallets as well. If a physical card ever needs to be cancelled and replaced, the card in the digital wallet keeps working. For instance, if an employee loses their card, it can be disabled and reissued to prevent unauthorised transactions. But while they’re waiting for their new card to arrive, they can continue using the card in their mobile wallet to make payments. It’s a handy backup.

Eligibility for bonus points

To recap, the ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card is currently offering 130,000 bonus Qantas Points. To qualify, you’ll need to begin by applying and being approved for a new ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card. Then, spending $6,000 on eligible purchases in the first three months from approval of your new card.

Cardholders must activate the account and reach that spending threshold within the time allocated. For this offer, ‘eligible purchases’ means purchases which are eligible to earn Qantas Points. Meet the criteria and the bonus Qantas Points will arrive within three months.

You must be a Qantas Business Rewards member to earn Qantas Points. Your Qantas Business Rewards membership number must be provided to ANZ in order for Qantas Points to be credited to your account. If you’re not a Qantas Business Rewards member, you can join for free here.

ANZ notes that this offer will only apply once per new ANZ Qantas Business Rewards account. Customers won’t qualify for bonus points if transferring from an existing ANZ Business credit card account. Nor will they qualify by adding an additional account to an existing ANZ Business credit card contract. You are also not eligible for this offer if you currently hold or have held an ANZ Qantas Business Rewards and/or ANZ Business Black account in the last 12 months.

If you cancel or transfer your ANZ Qantas Business Rewards account before receiving the bonus points, you may become ineligible for the offer. ANZ may also withhold the bonus points if any repayments are overdue before the points arrive in your account. If that’s the case, points may be awarded once you pay any overdue amounts – and any other amounts showing as ‘payable immediately’ on your statement.

Summing up

The ANZ Qantas Business Rewards card could be a practical and cost-effective way to earn points on everyday business expenses. Not only are the card’s earning rates uncapped, but the ability to accrue Qantas Points on direct government payments is also a plus.

With the global acceptance of Visa and no limit on the number of cards issued to employees, purchases made at home and abroad can be earning points for your business. Being able to set spending controls for each cardholder could also help reduce any unwanted purchases made by staff, for peace of mind.

Of course, once your business has even a modest stash of Qantas Points, there are plenty of things to do with them. For one, you could reduce the business’ travel bills by booking flights using points – rather than buying a ticket. You could also purchase a flight as normal but then use Qantas Points to upgrade, getting a better experience for the traveller while keeping those travel spends in check.

Flight rewards and upgrades are always subject to availability. But if you’re a little flexible and can plan ahead, you’ll have a greater chance of securing the flight you want using Qantas Points.