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What is a balance transfer?
When you move an existing credit card or store card balance, to a single credit card with a different provider, that’s a balance transfer.
For a quick run through, watch our short video.
Here's a simple example of how a balance transfer works
Imagine you’ve got a credit card offering 0% on balance transfers for 12 months, with no other balances on the card.
How to request a balance transfer
Frequently asked transfer questions
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Once approved, balance transfers should be complete by the next working day.
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The minimum transfer amount at Halifax is £100. The maximum is up to 93% of your credit limit.
Keep in mind that fees might apply to each transfer.
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To request a balance transfer with Halifax, you’ll need:
- The details of the credit card you want to transfer from, including the total balance.
- If you’re applying online, you’ll need your Online Banking sign in details.
- Your phone – we’ll contact you to complete a security check.
Before you transfer, it’s worth checking we’ve got the right contact details for you.
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At Halifax, you can transfer balances from most credit and store cards displaying the Mastercard®, American Express® or Visa® logo, but not from loan companies, bank accounts or other Halifax credit cards.
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Transferring a balance, in itself, won’t damage your credit score.
However, if you’ve taken out a new credit card with the intention of transferring balances, that in itself could affect your credit score, as you’ve increased the level of credit available to you.
New credit applications can damage your credit score in the short term too.
It’s a good idea, once you’ve transferred your balances, to close any accounts you don’t need anymore. That could help your credit score to recover.
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On the transactions pages of your PDF or paper statement there is a of breakdown your balance and the interest rates that apply. If you have a balance transfer that has a promotional or introductory interest rate the expiry dates will also be shown here.
A summary of balance transfers
With a balance transfer, you can move existing credit or store card balances to single credit card.
- With all of your borrowing in one place, your balances could be easier to manage.
- The minimum balance you can transfer is £100, the maximum depends on your credit limit.
- You could take advantage of an introductory or promotional interest rate for a set period of time.
- If you have more than one promotional offer, the one with the highest interest rate will be paid off first. If they have the same interest rates, they will be paid off in the order you took them out. They won’t be paid off based on which offer ends first. Find out more about balances and what your payments go towards
- Other ways to use a credit card include card purchases, money transfers and cash transactions.