The Marriott Rewards Premier Visa Card Annual fee $120 in Canada vs. $85 in USA!

And both of the cards are issued by JPMorgan Chase! I understand that most products are cheaper in the US due to lower tariffs, larger market and competition, but to have a card annual fee (much) higher in Canada when the currencies are almost at par it is ludicrous.The image contains two text boxes comparing annual fees for Canada and the USA. 

- The text under "Canada" reads: "Annual Fee of $120 waived for the first year!⁴"
- The text under "USA" reads: "Introductory Annual Fee of $0 the first year, then $85†"

And now about the offer, that I received some time ago. It said that if I applied by October 31st I would earn 50,000 bonus points. It seemed tempting all these points plus a free night stay at any category 1-4 hotel.

However, the annual fee was $120 (waived for the first year) and maybe it’s me but I do not like paying annual fees.

What if I apply, get the points and then cancel the card? The offer did not say anything about a cancellation fee, anything about cancelling for that matter :).

So I called and the Customer Service Representative told me I could cancel after 6 months without paying any penalty. Then I said what if everyone did this and almost right away I knew what she would say “the free night stay at any Category 1-5 hotel after the account anniversary”.

The free night might be worth more than $120 plus all the other advantages. However, the free night must be redeemed within 6 months from date of issue and from past experiences I know I will have a hard time finding a location where I would like to go and all my travel plans would seem to revolve using the free night certificate.

And cancelling the card after 6 months somehow I did not feel good about it. One thing is to realize that I do not need the card after I use it for a few months, but it is different to start with the mindset that I would cancel the card immediately after I am allowed to.

So in the end I did not apply for the Marriott Rewards Premier Visa Card.

Alt text: Advertisement for the Marriott Rewards Premier Visa credit card, offering up to 5 free nights. The ad features an image of a luxurious hotel with outdoor seating and lanterns. There is a red banner with the text "Exclusive Canadian Offer!" and a small Canadian flag. The credit card image is shown in the top right corner. The text at the bottom right reads "Praia D'El Rey Marriott Golf & Beach Resort Marriott Rewards Category: 5."

3 Comments

  1. I’m Canadian

    Applied & approved last month, with “briefly available to public” 50K signup bonus link, haven’t posted it

    but I did use my Free Cat1-4 night already (retail rate was $145+tax at the Residence Inn)

    Will see how valuable it is on the no-FX-fee feature
    otherwise I may cancel as well before $120 kicks in because I don’t value Marriott free night that much (Radisson points are more useful/cheaper)

  2. It is possible that the cost to buy “points” is higher in Canada and reason for the cost, or they earn less as a % as well on each purchase. So it may or may not be ludicrous

  3. I don’t usually stay at Marriotts but I was considering the card simply because it’s the first CDN card with no fx and a rewards program that I’d see some value in (Chase’s other CDN no-fx cards don’t really appeal to me).

    If Chase was to start offering the Cdn version of their Hyatt version with no-fx or a Cdn Chase Sapphire Preferred, I’d be all over those cards like white on rice. Just a fantasy for now I suppose.

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