Montreal-based Laurentian Bank has unveiled a refreshed lineup of credit cards in conjunction with Brim Financial. The suite of cards includes a modest selection of options for travel rewards and cash back, as well as low-interest and no-fee cards.

As part of the refresh, there is a new welcome offer on the Laurentian Bank Visa Infinite Card for $600+ in points and First Year Free. Furthermore, the Laurentian Bank Visa Cashback has an offer worth $500+ cash back and First Year Free.

The offers are available until May 15, 2023.

Laurentian Bank Visa Infinite: $600+ in Points

The flagship Visa Infinite product on Laurentian Bank’s lineup of credit cards comes with a flashy design and a healthy welcome bonus worth upwards of $600. 

The welcome offer accelerates the regular earn rates by for the first three months and up to $5,000 spent, structured as follows:

• 12 points per dollar spent (equivalent to 12% cash back) on gas, groceries, travel, transportation, and recurring payments
• 3 points per dollar spent (equivalent to 3% cash back) on everything else

After that, the card’s regular earn rates are as follows:

• 2 points per dollar spent (equivalent to 2% cash back) on gas, groceries, travel, transportation, and recurring bills
• 1 point per dollar spent (equivalent to 1% cash back) on everything else

Crunching the numbers, if you were to max out the the 12% on gas, groceries, travel, transportation, and/or recurring payments, you’d earn a total of 60,000 points in the first three months, which is equivalent to $600 as a statement credit.

To boot, the card comes with a First Year Free offer, as well as a rebate on adding two authorized users (worth $50 each). After the first year, the card’s annual fee is $130, and authorized users cost $50 each. 

You can also earn up to 17,000 more points (worth $170) by completing the following actions:

• Earn 10,000 bonus points (worth $100) when you set up a pre-authorized payment within the first three months
• Earn 5,000 bonus points (worth $50) when you set up an installment plan for an eligible purchase within the first three months
• Earn 2,000 bonus points (worth $20) when you refer a friend or family member to the card

In total, if you were to max out the welcome bonus through spending and earn the additional 17,000 bonus points, you’d have netted a total of $770 of value in the first year, without incurring an annual fee. 

When it comes time to redeem, the points are worth 1 cent each, and can be used to offset purchases as a statement credit at a rate of 100 points = $1 statement credit. 

The card’s other features are fairly standard for a Visa Infinite product, including access to the Visa Infinite Concierge service and the Visa Infinite Luxury Hotel Collection.

The insurance coverage on the card is OK, but not great, and includes the following:

• Up to $5,000,000 in out-of-province coverage for you and your family for 31 days (aged 65 and under) or for 15 days (aged 66–75)
• Up to $2,000 per person in case of trip cancellation and $5,000 in case of trip interruption
• Up to $2,500 per family for delayed baggage
• Up to 48 days for car rental coverage

Noticeably absent from the insurance inclusions is flight delay insurance, lost/stolen baggage insurance, and hotel/motel burglary insurance, which is odd for a travel rewards card.

In terms of Brim-related features, if you’re approved for the card, you’ll immediately have access to a virtual credit card. This way, you can start chugging away at the minimum spending requirement without having to wait for the card to arrive in the mail. 

As with any other Brim-backed card, you can earn up to 30% extra points when you use Laurentian Bank’s eShop portal. 

As a Visa Infinite product, you’ll have to have a minimum personal income of $60,000 or a household income of at least $100,000 to qualify. 

Laurentian Bank Visa Cashback Card: $500+ Cash Back

A second offer currently available from Laurentian Bank is for its Visa Cashback Card, which has a very similar structure to the Visa Infinite. 

For the first three months as a cardholder, you’ll enjoy increased cash back on the first $5,000 spent, structured as follows:

• 6% cash back on gas, groceries, and recurring bill payments
• 2% cash back on everything else

After that, the card’s regular earn rates are as follows:

• 1.5% cash back on gas, groceries, and recurring bill payments
• 1% cash back on everything else

As part of the welcome offer, you can also earn up to $220 more cash back by completing the following actions:

• Earn $100 cash back when you set up a pre-authorized payment within the first three months
• Earn $50 cash back when you set up an installment plan for at least one eligible purchase within the first three months
• Earn $50 cash back when you add an authorized user
• Earn $20 cash back when you refer a friend or family member

You’ll benefit from First Year Free as part of this offer, and can add authorized users at no extra cost.

If you were to max out this offer, including the bonus cash back requirements, you can earn up to $520 in the first year without paying an annual fee.

The card also comes with the same Brim-related features as the Visa Infinite, including accelerated cash back at specific vendors and inCard offers.

The insurance coverage on this card isn’t as robust as the Visa Infinite, and includes the following:

• 90-day coverage against theft or accidental damage to merchandise paid for with the card
• One year extension to the manufacturer’s warranty

There’s no minimum income requirement to apply for this card, which means that it’s accessible no matter what your income is.

Should You Apply for One of These Cards?

With a fairly hefty minimum spending requirement for the Laurentian Bank Visa Infinite Card, this offer falls just outside the low-hanging-fruit category. In order to squeeze the most value out of the offer, it requires a decent amount of legwork.

However, with no annual fee for the first year and the possibility of earning up to 12% back in points for the first three months, it represents an easy way to rack up points that you can use to offset the cost of travel expenses (or anything else, for that matter).

If you have purchases coming up that would qualify for the 12% return, then consider adding this credit card to your portfolio, at least for the short term. $5,000 isn’t an unreasonable amount to spend over the course of three months, especially since it includes household staples such as gas, groceries, and recurring payments. 

Once you’ve maxed out the offer, the card doesn’t present a strong argument to keep around for the long term, since its earn rates of 1–2% aren’t competitive with other cards that are currently available. 

For example, you can earn at least 5% back on food and drinks with the American Express Cobalt Card, or 6% back in Scene+ points at Sobeys grocery stores with the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card.

Outside of American Express cards, you can also earn 5% back on groceries with the National Bank World Elite Mastercard on an ongoing basis. 

As for the Laurentian Bank Visa Cashback Card, with no annual fee for the first year and up to $520 cash back at stake on a $5,000 minimum spend, it’s worth considering given the solid return on your spending. 

Its base earn rates of 1–2% cash back aren’t very competitive for the long term, so it becomes much less exciting once three months have passed or you have fulfilled the minimum spending requirement.

Conclusion

Laurentian Bank has released a revamped lineup of credit cards, and its flagship Laurentian Bank Visa Infinite Card has a welcome offer worth $600+ and a First Year Free to mark the occasion. 

You can earn up to 12% cash back on eligible purchases for up to $5,000 spent in the first three months as a cardholder, which is worth a cool $600. If you complete a few more tasks, you stand to earn an extra $170 in points, which can be redeemed as a statement credit.

The Laurentian Bank Visa Cashback Card has an offer worth upwards of $500 cash back and no annual fee for the first year. The card has the same $5,000 minimum spending requirement as the Visa Infinite card, but this is a good option if your income doesn’t qualify for the higher offer.

The long-term value proposition of these credit cards isn’t great, so outside of maximizing the welcome bonus to offset some of your expenses, they’re not worth keeping around year-after-year.