How to Pay off ATO HELP Debt Using a Credit Card?

noted on 18/04/2023 - 20:25
Last edited 19/04/2023 - 21:48

Hello Ozbargainers,

I am looking to pay off my student loan HELP debt as it will increase by ~7% this year due to inflation on the 1st of June. I also want to accumulate frequent flyer points with a credit card.

Do you know how I can make a BPAY payment to pay off HELP debt using a credit card? I tried Beem It multiple times but it is just so painful and won't accept my existing credit card. Are there any alternatives to this?

Furthermore, do you also have a recommendation on a frequent flyer credit card to use? I am thinking of getting this one: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/751763
Any thoughts on this?

Thanks!

Education & Work Credit Card HECS-HELP

Comments

  • sumyungguy on 18/04/2023 - 20:38

    Time to pick a tribe - assume you've resolved to go KrisFlyer and not Qantas Oneworld?

    • noted on 18/04/2023 - 22:22

      I’m open to either, what do you recommend?

      • sumyungguy on 18/04/2023 - 22:59
        -1

        If you want to travel the world, I’d suggest Qantas. If you’re mainly going to redeem on domestic flights go Velocity

  • Nutrino on 18/04/2023 - 20:38
    +13

    Paying off debt with a credit card. The irony.

  • seannami on 18/04/2023 - 20:38
    +6

    Being that the interest rate is significantly higher than 7%, are you sure that's your best option? The rewards points are "eligible purchases", so bill payments (like HECS/HELP) may not apply, nor would cash advance and paying that way, so you'd have to check that as well. Some banks allow BPAY through credit for some things, while with some banks you need to transfer cash out of the CC into a normal account to BPAY and other won't allow you to do that either, so that might be another thing to check.

    Spose if you have a BPAYing CC you could take a personal loan and pay that through the CC (if it's allowed), but it brings the interest problem right back again.

  • USER DC on 18/04/2023 - 20:51

    depends on how much debt you have, I have way too much that I cannot afford to pay it all this year.

    There are ways to dodge the credit card fees, the alternatives as you call (you want to do that at very least)

    Zip is easiest way IMO, (credit limit >$1K)
    Plus directly spending money from CC to ATO website will not likely earn you any points.

    • noted on 18/04/2023 - 22:21

      Thanks, I’ll try using Zip and see whether I can make BPAY payments via credit card that way.

      • moar bargains on 25/04/2023 - 16:03
        +1

        BPay payments don't usually accrue credit card points. For that matter, many cards exclude ATO transactions too.

        • USER DC on 26/04/2023 - 11:25

          Welcome to world of CC, read the earlier comment first then comment this.

          Its Bpay via Zip, not Bpay via CC

  • wei13 on 18/04/2023 - 21:27
    +1

    I'm currently paying mine off using Beem It to get points. There' s a daily limit so need to split into lots of payments.

    • noted on 12/05/2023 - 15:15

      May I know what is the daily limit for Beem It?

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 18/04/2023 - 22:08

    I assume you’re planning something like pay off / pay a chunk just before indexing, then pay back the credit card after indexing? But get some points out of it too?

    • noted on 18/04/2023 - 22:20
      +1

      Yes, that’s exactly right. I have enough cash to pay off my remaining debt but I want to pay it off via credit card to get the frequent flyer points as well.

  • Benoffie on 18/04/2023 - 22:32

    I was looking at this exact same thing today with the idea of a balance transfer to NAB for 0% for 32 months.

    However, you have to bear in mind the minimum monthly repayments which are 30%/12 of the sum you're transferring.

    Sure, itll force you to pay it off and avoid the incoming bump but if you cant pay down $250-300 a week, it'll become a debt that will cripple

  • POSITIVEVIBESONLY on 18/04/2023 - 23:35

    There's a card payment fee for different types of cards which usually makes it not worth it for using a credit card.
    https://www.ato.gov.au/general/paying-the-ato/how-to-pay/oth…

    I usually just BPAY my Tax bills at the end of the year since 1% of tens of thousands is heaps.

    You can't BPAY with credit cards.

    Also you might want to double check min spend on credit cards, usually they don't include gov bills.

  • SmiTTy on 19/04/2023 - 00:00
    +2

    Sniip (with cc fee)

    Get a referral from here

  • Jake17 on 19/04/2023 - 04:17

    Wait til itune gift cards are on sale. Get a discount and earn points at the same time…. 🤔

  • prisonerzero on 19/04/2023 - 09:48

    I've been using Beem with a few different credit cards lately to pay down by HELP debt. St George Signature, ANZ Platinum, Coles Mastercard, it is unfortunately that it is not working with yours.

    • noted on 12/05/2023 - 15:18

      Is there any credit card surcharge when paying BPAY debt with Beem It? I am hoping there isn't any.

      • tim9800 on 15/05/2023 - 11:42

        If your credit card is supported on Beem, then no. Check out this post on the QFF points fb group

  • leiiv on 19/04/2023 - 12:51

    Not a frequent flyer card, but Citibank payall is currently the best way.

  • avoidfullprice on 22/04/2023 - 12:39
    +1

    Typically log into your credit card bank account, and then under Bpay View

  • rekke on 25/04/2023 - 10:57
    +1

    The Qantas Points Collectors group on FB has covered this a few times I think

  • Nimble07 on 26/04/2023 - 15:34

    This is me too! No way I'll be paying 7% on HELP debt.

    I got the Sniip app and I get full reward points for paying my HELP via the BPay code and reference details. When you pay the ATO directly it's half the points but on my AMEX credit card im entitled to get 2.25 points per $ so thats why i always opt to use sniip to get full points.

    In the app I've just set-up a recurring payment that aligns with my pay cycle. I haven't got a lot left on my HELP personally so I've just set it up to ensure it's paid off mostly by June with their recurring schedule option.

    They have the cheapest processing fees I've come across too and they're all based in QLD. I've called their office a few times and they sent me a points calculator on their website here https://sniip.com/personal-payments/ which was really helpful to work out how many points I will earn and the processing fee amount on different transactions with a specific credit card.

    It's also included in my minimum spend for credit card points bonus too.

  • tim9800 on 12/05/2023 - 13:57

    Have an outstanding HECS debt as well and was thinking about the same thing. Found this pointhacks article, which does an awesome job explaining your options with examples, and the fees involved.

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