Iberia Visa Signature Card Review

Link: Apply now for the Iberia Visa Signature^® Card

In this post, I wanted to review the Iberia Visa Signature^® Card, which is one of Chase’s lesser-known travel rewards credit cards. This card has only been in the US market for a few years. Since it’s a card that many people haven’t had before, I do think it should at least be on your radar, assuming you’re eligible, in particular with the solid welcome bonus that’s available now.

Let’s talk about everything you need to know about this card.

Iberia Credit Card Basics For March 2024

If you’re familiar with the British Airways Visa Signature® Card (review) or Aer Lingus Visa Signature^® Card (review), then some aspects of the Iberia Visa Card may sound familiar.

The cards have a lot of overlapping benefits, with a key difference being that each card offers perks on the respective airline. Furthermore, while all three cards earn Avios, they each earn points in different “flavors” of the Avios currency.

Earn 75,000 Avios With the Iberia Card

The Iberia Visa Card offers a welcome bonus of 75,000 Iberia Avios. You’ll earn 75,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.

Personally, I value Avios at ~1.3 cents each, so to me 75,000 Avios are worth ~$975.

Iberia Card $95 Annual Fee

The Iberia Visa Card has a $95 annual fee. This is not waived for the first year, and there’s no additional fee to add authorized users.

Card Eligibility

The welcome bonus on the Iberia Visa Card isn’t available to those who currently have the card, or those who have received a new cardmember bonus on the card in the past 24 months. However, you are eligible for this card if you’ve had one of the other cards earning Avios (including the British Airways or Aer Lingus cards), so this is a great complement.

All Chase cards are also subjected to the 5/24 rule, whereby you won’t be approved if you’ve opened five or more new card accounts in the past 24 months. It’s also worth being aware of Chase’s other general policies on card approvals.

Earning Avios With The Iberia Credit Card

The Iberia Visa Card has no foreign transaction fees and offers contactless payment, but does the rewards structure actually warrant putting spending on the card? Generally I’d say no, but it does depend, as I’ll get into below.

3x Avios Per Dollar Spent On Flights

You’ll earn 3x Avios per dollar spent on purchases with Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, and LEVEL.

2x Avios Per Dollar Spent On Hotels

You’ll earn 2x Avios per dollar spent on hotel accommodations, but there are better credit cards for hotel purchases.

1x Avios Per Dollar Spent On Other Purchases

For everyday spending the Iberia Card offers 1x Avios per dollar spent, which isn’t much to get excited about, as there are better credit cards for everyday spending. The exception is if you’re trying to reach $30,000 of spending, for reasons I’ll get into below.

No Foreign Transaction Fees

The Iberia Card has no foreign transaction fees, so it’s potentially a great card to use for purchases abroad.

Contactless Payment

The Iberia Card features contactless pay technology. This means you can pay using your card without even swiping it whenever you see the contactless pay symbol.

Iberia Credit Card Purchase Protection

The Iberia Visa Card offers some solid purchase protection, as do many Visa Signature products. As always, make sure you check your cardmember agreement for all of the details, since there are terms & conditions. What should you expect?

Secondary Car Rental Coverage

The Iberia Card offers auto rental collision damage waiver coverage. Decline the rental company’s collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card.

Coverage is provided for theft and collision damage for most cars in the United States and abroad. Do note that in the US the coverage is secondary to your personal insurance, though.

Purchase & Extended Warranty Protection

The Iberia Card offers some useful protection:

• Purchase protection on new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft, up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account
• Extended warranty protection, extending US manufacturer’s warranty by an additional year, on eligible warranties of three years or less

Baggage Delay & Lost Luggage Reimbursement

The Iberia Card offers baggage protection:

• Baggage delay insurance reimburses you up to $100 per day for three days for essential purchases when your bag is delayed by over six hours
• Lost luggage reimbursement reimburses you for up to $3,000 per passenger when you or your immediate family members’ checked or carry-on bags are damaged or lost by an airline

Iberia Credit Card Benefits

In addition to the excellent welcome bonus, the main reason I would consider the Iberia Visa Card is because of the great perks that it offers. There are two main perks — one you get just for having the card, and the other you get by spending $30,000 on the card. Here’s how those benefits work.

10% Discount On Iberia Flights

One of the best benefits of the Iberia Card is that it offers a 10% discount on Iberia flights. To take advantage of this, just book through iberia.com/chase10, and use your card to pay.

As far as the terms of this offer go:

• Travel can commence from any Iberia destination
• Discount is valid on the flight fare only, and not on taxes and fees
• Valid for travel on Iberia only, and not for travel on partner airlines
• The discount doesn’t apply to excess baggage fees, seat assignment fees, purchasing Avios, etc.
• Discount applies for up to nine passengers traveling on the same reservations

If you fly Iberia Airways with any frequency, this could cover the annual fee over and over.

Iberia $1,000 Flight Discount Voucher

There’s one major incentive to spend money on this card — the Iberia Card offers a $1,000 flight discount voucher when you spend $30,000 on the card in a calendar year.

How does this discount voucher work?

• You earn the discount voucher based on spending $30,000 in a calendar year (eligible spending must post to the billing cycle before December 31)
• You will receive the discount code by email within four to six weeks of the billing cycle where you complete eligible spending
• The discount voucher can be applied for a discount of $1,000 when purchasing two tickets for the same flight in the same class of service
• Cardmembers can only earn one voucher per calendar year
• You must redeem the discount at iberia.com/chase10
• Flights must be taken within 12 months of when the voucher was issued
• The primary cardmember must be one of the travelers, so the discount voucher is not transferable or extendable

If you fly Iberia with any frequency, this could absolutely be worth it:

• A $1,000 discount voucher on $30,000 of spending is the equivalent of 3.3% back, not even factoring in the minimum of one Avios per dollar spent that you earn, so this is potentially an exceptional return
• It’s especially worthwhile in the first year, if you’ll spend the $20,000 required for the full welcome bonus

How To Redeem Iberia Avios

While a lot of people might be familiar with the British Airways Executive Club program, not as many people are probably familiar with the Iberia Plus program. What are the best uses of Iberia Plus Avios?

Transfer Iberia Avios To British Airways Avios

While there are some good uses of Iberia Avios, you can also transfer Avios between British Airways and Iberia, assuming you’ve had both accounts open for at least 90 days, and the accounts have some activity.

In other words, all the Avios you earn with this credit card could potentially be transferred to British Airways, which opens up a lot of great redemption opportunities.

How Should You Redeem Iberia Plus Avios?

Aside from the opportunities available through British Airways Executive Club, there are also some benefits to booking directly through Iberia Plus. The most significant is the ability to redeem on Iberia, as carrier imposed surcharges are significantly lower through Iberia Plus than through British Airways Executive Club.

See this post for more on redeeming Iberia Plus Avios.

Is The Iberia Credit Card Worth It?

The Iberia Visa Card has a great welcome bonus, so this is a card that many people should consider. Personally, this isn’t a card I would use for everyday spending, since you can earn Iberia Plus Avios at a better rate with other American Express or Chase cards.

That being said, there’s potentially value to be had beyond the incredible welcome bonus:

• If you fly Iberia with any frequency, then the 10% discount should cover the annual fee over and over
• If you fly Iberia frequently then it’s almost certainly worth trying to spend $30,000 on the card per year, given the $1,000 Iberia discount voucher; that alone is the equivalent of 3.3% back, not factoring in the Avios you earn

Showdown: British Airways Visa Vs. Iberia Visa

There’s a lot of overlap between the Iberia Visa Card and the British Airways Visa Card, so which is better? The cards have a lot in common:

• You are eligible for both of these cards, so you can pick up one if you’ve had the other (or just get them both if you’ve had neither)
• They have the same annual fees and spending bonus categories
• You can transfer Avios between British Airways and Iberia, so for all practical purposes the points currencies are the same

Then there are a few differences:

• The Iberia Card offers a 10% discount on Iberia flights, while the British Airways Card offers a 10% discount on British Airways flights
• The Iberia Card offers a $1,000 flight discount voucher after spending $30,000, while the British Airways Card offers a Travel Together Ticket after spending $30,000
• The British Airways Card offers an award surcharge rebate, which the Iberia Card doesn’t, though in fairness Iberia has significantly lower surcharges to begin with

See here for a full comparison of cards earning Avios.

Bottom Line

The Iberia Credit Card may not have been on your radar, but it probably should be. The card has a great welcome bonus, for small and big spenders alike. You’re eligible for the Iberia Card even if you’ve had the British Airways Card before.

On top of that, the card can be worth holding onto long-term if you fly Iberia with any frequency — the 10% discount on Iberia tickets is an awesome perk, and it can be worth spending $30,000 on the card per year to receive a $1,000 Iberia flight discount voucher.

While there are lots of great uses of Iberia Plus Avios, when it comes to earning them I’d personally prefer to do so through Amex or Chase, given the greater flexibility that offers. That assumes you’re not spending toward the $30,000 requirement to earn the flight discount voucher.

If you want to learn more about the Iberia Visa Signature Card or want to apply, follow this link.