The Scotiabank Value Visa Card is a low interest, balance transfer credit card that is clearly aimed at people who are looking to reduce their debt or lower the amount they pay in interest.
Since this is a low interest credit card, you won’t get many additional perks, but that may not matter as your primary goal may be to reduce your debt. Read my Scotiabank Value Visa review now and find out why it’s one of the best balance transfer credit cards in Canada.
Scotiabank Value Visa Card
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$29 annual fee – First year free
0.99% interest rate on balance transfers for the first 9 months – 2% balance transfer fee applies
13.99% interest rate after the promotional period ends
Up to 25% off at participating Avis and Budget car rental locations
Welcome bonus and earn rate
There’s no traditional welcome bonus with this card. Instead, you get the option to balance transfer with a promotional interest rate of 0.99% interest for the first 9 months. Once that promotional period ends, your standard interest rate increases to 13.99%. Note that a 2% balance transfer applies with a $5 minimum. So, if you want to balance transfer $2,000, the fee would be $40. There’s also an annual fee of $29, but it’s often waived for the first year.
As for the earn rate, there is none. You don’t earn travel rewards, or cash back with this card. In other words, this card should only be used if you’re looking to pay down debt ASAP. Once you’ve paid off your debt, you’re better off switching to a card that earns you rewards.
Benefits and perks
Since this is a low interest credit card, your benefits are quite limited. The only perks you get are as follows:
Save money on interest
To be clear, the balance transfer option is a fantastic benefit. Most credit cards have an interest rate of 20%+. However, if you perform a balance transfer, you’ll pay 0% interest for 10 months. If you focused on debt repayment during this time, you could easily save hundreds of dollars. Alternatively, if you typically carry a balance, the standard interest rate of 12.99% is still reasonable.
Save on car rentals
When you rent a car at participating AVIS and Budget locations in Canada and the U.S., you’ll get up to 25% off the base rate. You must charge the full cost of the car rental to your Scotiabank Value Visa to get the discount.
Scotia Momentum VISA Infinite eligibility
You’re a Canadian citizen or permanent resident
You’re at least the age of majority in the province or territory where you live
You haven’t declared bankruptcy in the past 7 years
Your home address matches your credit report home address
You’ll notice that there’s no formal minimum income requirement to be considered for this card. In addition, no minimum credit score is listed, but I recommend having a credit score of at least 660 before applying.
How the Scotiabank Value Visa Card compares
The Scotiabank Value Visa has some tight competition with a few others card offering balance transfers or low interest.
Scotiabank Value Visa Card vs. MBNA True Line Mastercard
The MBNA True Line Mastercard offers a balance transfer of 0% interest for 12 months. Once your promotional period ends, the interest rate goes up to 12.99%. This is two months longer than what the Scotiabank card offers, but the balance transfer fee is 3% ($7.50 minimum). That said, the MBNA card has no annual fee. These cards are very similar, but if you think it’ll take longer to pay off your balance, having those two extra months with 0% interest could help a lot.
Scotiabank Value Visa Card vs. MBNA True Line Gold Mastercard
The MBNA True Line Gold Mastercard is supposed to be a better version of the MBNA True Line Mastercard, but that’s debatable. The card has an annual fee of $39, and the balance transfer interest rate is 8.99% (1% fee, $7.50 minimum applies). Although there’s no promotional interest rate, the 8.99% rate applies to all purchases and balance transfers, which is one of the lowest interest rates available.
Scotiabank Value Visa Card vs. Tangerine Money-Back Card
One other card with comparing is the Tangerine Money-Back Card. When performing a balance transfer, you get a promotional interest rate of 1.95% for six months. There’s no balance transfer fee, but your interest rate goes up to 19.95% once the promotional period ends. What makes this card good is that you can earn up to 2% in cash back on purchases made.
Final thoughts
My Scotiabank Value Visa Card review is positive. This card is ideal for people in the following situations:
You want to save money – The 0% interest balance transfer option is one of the best ways to reduce your debt. Not even your bank will offer you a rate that low.
You typically carry a balance – The regular interest rate of 12.99% is still lower than most credit cards in Canada.
You want to pay a low/no annual fee – The yearly fee for this card is just $29, and it’s usually waived for the first year.
It may not have the lowest rates compared to other low interest, balance transfer credit cards, but it’s pretty close. If you’re looking to reduce your debt, then this card will help you.
Apply now for the Scotiabank Value Visa