The Travel Rewards Visa Signature from NIH Federal Credit Union is a no-fee card which earns decent cash back rates for travel and restaurants. It’s good for both domestic and international trips. The only big quirk is a spending limit on gas purchases, so you may want to consider other cards for that category.
FEATURES AT A GLANCE
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fee
- 3% cash back on travel (airlines, hotels, trains, buses, car or boat rentals, tours, tolls, rideshare, taxis, etc)
- 3% cash back on gas ($6,000 annual spending limit) and EV charging
- 3% cash back on dining
- 1% cash back on everything else
SIGN UP BONUS
You can earn 20,000 points ($200) after spending $1,500 in 90 days. This is a 13% RoS (Return on Spend) which is a little on the low side but fine overall. Not great, not terrible.
The card also has 0% APR for 15 months. This is best for purchases, since balance transfers incur a 2% fee (or $10, whichever is greater).
OTHER BENEFITS OF THE TRAVEL REWARDS CARD
Visa Signature benefits, including:
- Travel accident insurance
- Lost luggage insurance
- Extended warranty protection
- 24/7 Visa Concierge
The card may have Visa Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (Secondary Coverage) according to an old online reference. We weren’t able to immediately find out the details of this card’s full Visa Signature benefits.
RESTRICTIONS AND CREDIT SCORE
Recommended credit score: 670+
Membership to this DC-based credit union is required to apply for their cards. Anyone can join, however, with a small donation of $1 to $15 (depending on the route you take). Their website states “Membership is now available nationwide and beyond just those in the healthcare/biomedical industries.”
It isn’t worthwhile to use their savings account, given the low rates. 0.01% APY (as of November 2022) is terrible, especially considering how many institutions offer close to 3% APY now.
The credit union also has some poor consumer reviews.
MAXIMIZING REWARDS WITH THE TRAVEL REWARDS CARD
Points are unlimited and worth $0.01 each. We aren’t aware at this time of any particular strategy to maximize points for higher redemption options. There are multiple options though: cash, travel, gift cards, etc.
Restrictions when redeeming points for travel: “Unless otherwise noted, airline reservations must originate from the contiguous 48 United States, must be made 21 days in advance of travel, require a Saturday night stay and may have restrictions, blackout dates and exclusions.”
Unused points expire after 4 years.
“Travel” is a broad category here. NIH takes the unusual step of listing eligible categories by Visa MCC instead of name, but it’s easy to find out what each code means. Categories of “travel” include airlines, airports, car rental agencies, hotels, motels, resorts, railroads, ferries, buses, cruise lines, travel agencies, tour operators, tolls, campgrounds and more. The only thing it doesn’t specifically mention is parking.
ALTERNATIVES TO THE TRAVEL REWARDS
If you spend at least $300-400 annually on travel, the Capital One Venture X is effectively a no-fee card for airline/hotel expenses and “other” purchases. It has more travel protections too.
There aren’t many decent no-fee travel cards. The Penfed Pathfinder Rewards is the number one choice. Otherwise, the best options usually have annual fees attached. This includes the Chase Sapphire Reserve, American Express Platinum, and U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve.
Same deal with restaurants. Most no-fee dining cards have 3% back, so there isn’t anything significantly better than NIH’s cards. The U.S. Bank Altitude Go gets 4% back and the Citi Custom Cash gets up to 5%. That’s about it.
For gas expenses, a few options do better than 3% back, including the Abound Credit Union Visa Platinum and Citi Custom Cash. If EV charging matters to you, then PenFed Platinum Rewards is likely best.
With all other purchases, you’ll want to get at least 2% cash back. There are dozens of cards which do this now, so NIH getting 1% back for “other” transactions isn’t a good deal. Our top picks include the Venture X as mentioned above, Alliant Cashback Visa, Penfed Power Rewards, and SoFi Mastercard. None of these cards have foreign transaction fees.
CONCLUSION
The NIH Federal Credit Union Travel Rewards Visa Signature is a great no-fee card for earning cash back in multiple categories. This covers basically all aspects of traveling except picking up souvenirs. One tidy package in a single card makes this attractive.
Cards with high annual fees may be better. Run the numbers and see what makes sense for your wallet. This card may get outclassed by other options and it depends on your personal situation. Overall though, NIH appears to have strong offerings.
We rate the NIH Travel Rewards card 4 out of 5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Note: This review was last updated in November 2022. Details may have changed since then. Please do your own research where applicable, to ensure you’re getting the best deal. Or contact us directly to benefit from our personalized consulting services!