Latitude 28 Degree Card Review

Latitude 28 Degree Card Review

The 28 Degree Card is the card people remember by name and can no longer open. Latitude closed it to new applicants, and the card that replaced it in the Latitude lineup is Gem Visa — a very different product. If you are searching for a low-rate card today, that distinction matters more than any feature comparison.

We mention it up front because a lot of what you will read about the 28 Degree Card is written as though it is still on the shelf. It is not. So this guide does two things. It explains what happened to the 28 Degree Card and why it was well regarded, and it shows you what a low-rate card actually costs in New Zealand right now, using figures we pulled from the providers themselves.

The surprise is how wide the gap is. A genuine low-rate card sits near 12 per cent, while a store card can run past 29 per cent — more than double, for the same groceries or appliance.

How We Researched This Guide

We started with the providers. Rates, fees and interest-free terms in this guide come from the issuers' own published pages — TSB, SBS Bank, ANZ, Westpac, Air New Zealand's own card comparison page, and Latitude's Gem Visa documents, including the changes FAQ dated 11 February 2026. The consumer credit rules behind all of it are set out in full on legislation.govt.nz under the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003.

Two things caught us out. First, the 28 Degree Card is simply gone from the market, so we had to rebuild the low-rate comparison around the cards you can still get. Second, Latitude's own Gem Visa terms say paying the minimum monthly repayment is not enough to clear a purchase inside its interest-free window.

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The Quick Summary (60-Second Version)

If you only have a minute, here is what matters:

• The Latitude 28 Degree Card is closed to new applicants. It is not a card you can apply for today.
• Latitude's current card is Gem Visa, at a 29.49% p.a. purchase rate, with a $65 annual fee and a $55 establishment fee.
• Gem's six months interest free on purchases of $250 or more is no longer automatic — you must select each purchase in the app within 30 days.
• If you want a genuinely low rate, TSB's Low Rate Mastercard is 11.95% p.a. on both purchases and cash advances, with a $20 annual fee.
• SBS Bank charges no annual fee at all, with a 19.65% p.a. purchase rate and a 22.65% p.a. cash advance rate.
• Interest-free days run up to 55 days at TSB, Westpac and SBS, but only up to 44 days at ANZ — and only if you clear the statement balance.

What Happened to the 28 Degree Card

The 28 Degree Card was Latitude's low-rate, no-frills option. It had a simple pitch: a lower ongoing interest rate than the big banks, no rewards programme to fund, and no foreign transaction fees. For anyone who carried a balance or shopped overseas, that combination was genuinely hard to beat.

Latitude has since stopped offering it. If you hold an existing 28 Degree account, your terms are governed by the contract you signed — but nobody new is getting one. Latitude's consumer card in the New Zealand market is now Gem Visa, and it plays a completely different game.

Gem Visa Is Not a Low-Rate Card

Gem Visa's prevailing purchase rate is 29.49% p.a. once any interest-free term ends, and its cash advance rate is 29.95% p.a. plus a $2 fee. There is a $55 one-off establishment fee and a $65 annual fee, charged as $32.50 half-yearly.

The pitch is interest-free deals rather than a low ongoing rate. That works beautifully if you clear the purchase inside the promotional window. It works badly if you do not, because you land on a rate higher than almost anything else in the market.

The Low-Rate Cards You Can Actually Get

Here is where the market sits now, using the issuers' own published figures.

For context, standard rewards cards in New Zealand typically sit between about 19.95% and 22.49% p.a. Low-rate cards run roughly 11.95% to 13.99% p.a., and cash advances typically cost somewhere between 22% and 25% p.a. TSB's Low Rate Mastercard sits at the very bottom of that low-rate band, and unusually, its cash advance rate is the same 11.95%.

SBS Bank's $0 annual fee is the other standout. A 19.65% purchase rate is not the cheapest borrowing in the market, but if you clear your balance every month you pay nothing at all to hold the card.

Interest-Free Days, Balance Transfers and the Fine Print

How interest-free days actually work

Interest-free periods typically run 44 to 55 days on purchases, but only if you pay the statement balance in full by the due date. Miss it once and the clock resets — you lose the free window on new spending until you clear the balance again. Cash advances get no interest-free days at all, on any card.

Interest in New Zealand is calculated daily on the outstanding balance, using the annual rate divided by 365. So a card at 29.49% p.a. costs roughly 0.08% of the balance every single day. On a $3,000 balance that is a couple of dollars a day, quietly, until it is paid.

Balance transfers are not the escape hatch they look like

A balance transfer moves an existing card balance onto a new card at a low or 0% promotional rate. The traps are consistent across the market. The promotional rate usually applies only to the transferred balance, not new purchases. New spending often sits at the standard rate from day one, and if you pay that off first, the transfer balance never shrinks. The promotional period ends on a fixed date, not when you clear the balance, and the annual fee still applies throughout.

Latitude's 30-day rule

Since 11 February 2026, Gem Visa's six months interest free is no longer automatic. You have to select the eligible purchase in the Latitude App or Service Centre within 30 days of it being posted. If you miss that window, the transaction can no longer be selected and the interest-free term is gone. Foreign remittances are no longer eligible for selection at all.

Questions You Might Have

Can I still apply for a Latitude 28 Degree Card?

No. Latitude has closed the 28 Degree Card to new applicants, so it is not available to apply for. If you already hold one, your existing terms and conditions continue to apply.

Is Gem Visa a good replacement for the 28 Degree Card?

Not really, because they solve different problems. The 28 Degree Card was built around a low ongoing rate, while Gem Visa is built around interest-free promotional periods, with a 29.49% p.a. rate waiting if you do not clear the purchase in time.

What is the cheapest low-rate card in New Zealand right now?

On the figures we checked, TSB's Low Rate Mastercard has the lowest purchase rate at 11.95% p.a., with a $20 annual fee and a $500 minimum credit limit. SBS Bank's card has no annual fee at all, which makes it cheaper if you always clear your balance.

Should I use a personal loan instead of a credit card?

If you are borrowing a set amount for a set purpose, a personal loan is usually cheaper per dollar. A card only wins if you clear the statement balance every month, because then it costs you nothing.

Will applying for a card hurt my credit score?

Every application creates a credit enquiry, and lenders look at how many you have made. New Zealand has three credit reporting agencies — Equifax, Centrix and illion — and you can request your own report without affecting it.

What Matters Most

The 28 Degree Card earned its reputation honestly. A low ongoing rate, no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees was a genuinely good combination, and its disappearance leaves a real gap in the market. But you cannot apply for a card that no longer exists, and no amount of comparison shopping will change that.

What you can do is match the card to how you actually use it. If you carry a balance, the rate is the only number that matters, and TSB's 11.95% p.a. is the one to beat. If you clear your balance every month, the rate is irrelevant — chase the $0 annual fee instead. And if you are tempted by an interest-free deal, read the selection rules before you tap, because Latitude's 30-day window has caught plenty of people out.

One rule applies to all of them. Pay the statement balance in full by the due date and none of these rates ever touch you.