What Should I Do With My U.S. Credit Cards After Moving Back to China? (Including Recommended Cards to Keep)

Quite a few people around me decided to move back to China for the long term after graduation or after working for a few years. So what should you do with the credit cards you opened in the US? Today I’ll share my thoughts.

Is It Necessary to Keep Your US Credit Cards?

From what I’ve seen among friends who decided to return to China long-term, most people’s immediate choice is to close all of their US credit cards and all of their US bank accounts. On the one hand, US credit cards are not nearly as widely accepted in China, where Alipay and WeChat Pay are everywhere, so their usefulness may seem limited. On the other hand, US credit cards have to be paid in US dollars, and the money left in a US bank account may no longer be enough to support ongoing spending.

That said, some people still keep their US credit cards for various reasons. For example, some cards have no annual fee, so there is little downside to simply keeping them open. Others weigh the benefits against the annual fee and decide to keep certain annual-fee cards, while leaving some money in a bank account to cover those fees.

In my view, whether to keep your US credit cards depends on whether you can still get value from them. Even while living in China, there are still some good reasons to keep US credit cards. The main ones are probably these:

• Credit history: If you may return to the US in the future, keeping a US credit card helps extend your credit history and payment history. Your credit score can also stay at a decent level. If you go back to the US later, this can give you an advantage when applying for loans or new credit cards.
• Built-in benefits: If you’ve compared US and Chinese credit cards, you’ve probably noticed that US credit cards often come with far more perks. Some cards offer Free Night certificates, elite hotel status, Priority Pass, and more. You may find it worthwhile to pay an annual fee just for those benefits.
• Cash back on spending: US credit cards often offer strong cash back rates. If your card’s bonus categories work internationally and it has no foreign transaction fee, it can still be worth using. If you frequently spend with certain US merchants, you may also want to keep that card for those purchases.
• Convenient for cross-border online shopping: If you’ve ever shopped from overseas merchants, you probably know that using a Chinese credit card can sometimes cause all kinds of strange issues, especially with smaller US merchants. Using a US credit card usually avoids those problems. Some cards also offer bonus rewards on online shopping, which makes them especially useful.
• High credit limits: US credit cards usually come with fairly high credit limits, and having access to that available credit can also help with short-term cash flow.

Of course, not every US credit card is worth keeping long-term while living in China. If the benefits you get do not outweigh the annual fee, just close it. Below, I’ll also go over which credit cards may still be worth keeping after you move back to China.

What to Do Before Closing Your US Credit Cards

If you opened a lot of cards in the US, there’s no way you’ll keep all of them. So what should you pay attention to when closing cards? Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Pay off your balance

This is extremely important. If you still have a balance on the card, that debt does not disappear just because you successfully closed the card. If you decide not to pay, once the bank stops receiving payments, it may sell your debt to a collection agency and report the delinquency to the credit bureaus. Your credit score would then drop sharply, and if you ever return to the US, getting a loan or a new credit card will likely be out of the question. In addition, if you intentionally refuse to pay and it rises to the level of criminal conduct, you could run into serious trouble when entering the US in the future.

Paying it off is simple: just do it through online banking before you close the card. If you accidentally close the card first, you can still pay by phone or by mailing a check.

Also, make sure you know exactly how much you need to pay, and do not overpay. If you are no longer in the US and a refund check for the overpayment gets mailed out, it can become a hassle if nobody is there to receive it.

• What to Do If Your Credit Card Has a Negative Balance

Handle your points

Many banks tie their points balances to your credit card accounts, so if you decide to close a card, you should deal with your points in advance. Common flexible points programs include Ultimate Rewards (UR), ThankYou Points (TYP), and Membership Rewards (MR).

• Downgrade to a no-annual-fee card: You can keep a no-annual-fee points card, such as Chase Freedom to preserve UR or AMEX EveryDay to preserve MR. Citi points, however, are tracked separately for expiration after an account is closed, so this method does not work the same way.
• Cash out: Of course, you can also redeem points for cash, for example 100 UR=$1, 100 TYP=$1. MR does not have a redemption option like that.
• Transfer to miles: If you have upcoming travel plans, you can transfer to the airline miles program you need. However, all three of these points currencies generally require a premium card in order to transfer to travel partners, so if you still have such a card, transfer the points before closing it.

Watch out for mileage expiration

Miles and points earned from airline and hotel co-branded cards do not stay with the credit card itself; they sit in your individual loyalty accounts, so you generally do not need to worry about losing them just because you close the card. However, you still need to pay attention to each loyalty program’s expiration rules. After closing the card, the expiration policy will usually follow the frequent flyer or loyalty account instead.

• Summary of Miles and Points Expiration Rules and Ways to Extend Them

What to Do If You Keep Your US Credit Cards

Go paperless and prepare a new address

Since you are no longer in the US, the best way to receive statements is by email or through online access. Set up paperless statements so paper bills do not get sent to your old address and expose your personal information.

Also, even if your statements are paperless, some bank documents may still not be sent electronically, such as annual tax forms or replacement/new credit cards. So I strongly recommend finding a trusted friend who is regularly in the US and changing both your billing and contact address to that person’s home, so they can receive mail for you when needed. Note that you should not only update your address with the bank, but also with USPS, so all mail can be forwarded to the new address.

• How to Change Your Address Through USPS

Checking account and cash reserves

If your credit card will still be used or still charges an annual fee, you should definitely keep a checking account to pay the bill. Of course, you should estimate how much money you’ll need over the next few years so you do not end up unable to pay.

If you do not have enough money in the account, you can ask a friend to pay your credit card through Bill Pay, and then reimburse that person in RMB.

• Summary of Ways to Pay a Credit Card Bill

Downgrade unnecessary annual-fee cards

Credit cards can often be converted to other products. If you no longer want to keep an annual-fee card, you can consider changing it to a no-annual-fee version or another no-annual-fee card.

• Introduction to Product Change for Credit Cards

Which Credit Cards Are Worth Keeping?

Credit history

If you want to continue building and preserving your credit history, the best choice is to keep one or two no-annual-fee US credit cards. How should you choose among no-annual-fee cards? Personally, I think cards from large banks are better. If something goes wrong—such as fraud, a missed payment, or a locked account—it is much easier to work with customer service from a major bank remotely. Also, if you may move back to the US in the future, it makes sense to keep a few genuinely useful cards so you do not have to apply again later. Discover, Chase, BofA, and AMEX all have fairly good customer service.

Keep the benefits

Most credit card benefits are more useful in the US, but some do work globally. The most notable category is hotel co-branded credit cards. Quite a few US credit cards offer an annual Free Night, and that benefit is usually worth more than the annual fee. Some cards also come with elite status in a hotel program, and hotel elite status can still be useful in China, with perks like room upgrades and breakfast. In addition, Priority Pass has some value too, since most airports in China have lounges that participate in Priority Pass. Even just getting a free drink or a cup of instant noodles can be nice.

As for airline co-branded cards, they mostly provide benefits for US airlines, so personally I do not think they are very meaningful here. Cards like the AMEX Platinum, Chase Sapphire Reserve, and Chase Ritz Carlton can make sense if you are able to use the credits remotely and make sure the effective annual fee is outweighed by the benefits. Otherwise, it is probably not worth it. AMEX is now very strict about credits, and if you are not careful, you may end up getting clawed back.

Overall, I would recommend the following cards:

AMEX Aspire

Just by holding the card, you get Hilton top-tier Diamond status, an annual $250 Resort Credit, one Free Night every year, and Priority Pass. That is enough to justify the annual fee. If you can maximize the credits, even better, but even if not, it can still be fine.

Chase Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott has a very broad footprint in China and across Asia. The 35,000-point free night certificate can usually book one of the best Marriott hotels in the local market, and it is generally worth more than 800rmb. This card also has no FTF, so it is not bad for spending at Marriott hotels. Although the complimentary Marriott Gold status is not especially valuable, having Gold status in China at least gives you a little more leverage when asking for perks.

Chase IHG

IHG also has a very broad footprint in China and across Asia. The 40,000-point free night certificate can usually book one of the best IHG hotels in the local market, and it is generally worth more than 800rmb. This card also has no FTF, and earning 10x at IHG hotels is pretty nice. Although complimentary IHG Platinum is not very useful in the US, the odds of getting a room upgrade in China are still fairly good. If you have the old version with the $49 annual fee, definitely keep it.

Chase Hyatt

This one is similar to IHG and Marriott, though Hyatt has a smaller footprint. The hotel quality is still pretty good. Choose based on the cities you visit most often.

Advantages of using US credit cards

If you shop internationally online or want to use cards in China, US cards can still be useful. In particular, WeChat Pay and Alipay are gradually starting to support foreign cards, which could become a major opportunity in the future. In addition, restaurant, hotel, and travel purchases in China may still code correctly for bonus categories, though we will need more DP from readers to confirm that.

• Complete Guide to WeChat Pay + US Credit Cards
• Complete Guide to Alipay + US Credit Cards

Chase Sapphire Reserve

This card’s $300 travel credit can be triggered automatically by WeChat Pay, and WeChat Pay also counts as 3x spending on this card, which is quite nice. This card also comes with the practical benefit of Priority Pass. Travel purchases should also code as 3x, though that still needs more testing.

Citi Prestige

This card’s credit is relatively easy to use, since travel purchases qualify, so a few hotel stays should usually take care of it. WeChat Pay also codes as dining, which earns 5x. Likewise, this card also comes with the practical benefit of Priority Pass. Earning 5x on hotels and 3x on travel also makes it a good fit for frequent travelers.

Discover it

Among no-annual-fee cards, Discover it is still a pretty good fit. Based on past experience, it can be used in person through the UnionPay network, and it has no foreign transaction fee. If there happens to be a 5% dining category, you can also test whether restaurants in China trigger it. If you shop on Amazon internationally, this card has offered Amazon 5% back in Q4 in recent years, so you can stock up on Amazon gift cards in the fourth quarter and use them later.

BofA Cash Rewards

This card has a foreign transaction fee, so it is not suitable for direct spending in China. However, you can choose online shopping as the 3% cash back category, which makes it a better fit for international online shopping.