CIBC Product Switching: Definitive Guide

CIBC is a strong banking institution in Canada with a solid lineup of credit cards, including a partnership with Aeroplan on many of their co-branded cards such as the CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite card, as well as a recent partnership with Costco for the CIBC Costco World Mastercard.

Like most big banks, CIBC also has its own in-house rewards program, CIBC Rewards, which uses a points currency called CIBC Aventura. While less useful and flexible than other bank points, Aventura still presents lucrative opportunities from time to time. Ignoring them would be leaving money on the table, so to speak. 

As with RBC and many other banks, you can switch products between various CIBC credit cards. For example, you may no longer want your CIBC Aeroplan card and instead want to try an Aventura credit card. 

As we’ll discuss, you can sometimes even receive welcome bonuses for product switching CIBC credit cards. 

What is Product Switching?

A product switch or ‘product change’, as the name implies, keeps the same credit line but changes the actual product or credit card associated with it. 

There are a number of advantages to doing a product change instead of the alternative of canceling and applying for a new card. For one, you will maintain the initial open date of the account, which helps the average age of accounts on your credit profile. As well, you won’t receive a hard inquiry, which can also lower your score (albeit temporarily). 

Product changes are generally almost guaranteed to go through. There is no worry that you might be declined for the new product. 

Furthermore, and as we will see with CIBC, product changes can often grant you welcome bonuses the same as a new credit application does. 

How Can I Switch My CIBC Credit Card?

Call CIBC Customer Service

The tried and tested method for switching a CIBC credit card is to call customer service and request they make the change. They can be reached via the 1-800 number on the back of your credit card: +1 (800) 465-4653.

When you call, you will be prompted to enter your card number followed by the # key. Next, ignore the options and dial 0. The automated voice prompt will ask you to state a few keywords related to your request. Simply state ‘product change’ or ‘product switch’.

You will then be queued up to speak with a live agent. When they come on the line, just state that you’d like to change your [current credit card] to the [desired credit card]. They will know what to do from there.

Expect to be asked to listen and acknowledge several dry disclosures for the next 10 minutes, before finalizing the change request with the agent.

Self-Serve Product Switching

A new addition to CIBC online banking is that cardholders can now self-serve a product switch without needing to speak to customer service.

To start, log into your CIBC online banking account and click the three dots beside the card you want to switch. In the dropdown menu that pops up, select “Credit Card Switch”.

The next few screens you will navigate are very similar to the RBC product switching process, including verifying personal details including address, email, and income. Once you navigate through these details you will be able to select a card category and the card that you want to switch your existing credit card to.

Once you have selected the credit card you want to product switch to, there are a few more screens to click through. However, once you submit the product change, it will have been successfully completed and all you need to do is wait for your new card in the mail.

Additional Details About CIBC Product Switching

After Product Switching

After completing the product switch request with CIBC, it will take 4-10 business days to receive the new card in the mail. 

You can expect to wait several business days for the change to be reflected in your online banking as well. However, your old card will continue to work until activating the new card. 

Furthermore, if you changed the rewards program (ex. Aventura to Aeroplan), then any purchases on the old card’s program will immediately begin accruing points on the new card’s program.

Related: Everything You Need to Know About CIBC Aventura

If you are changing to a new family of cards (Aventura to Aeroplan or vice versa), then you will receive a new card number. If staying within the same family of cards (Aventura Visa Infinite to Aventura Visa Infinite Privilege), then the card number will stay the same.

Your new card may also have a new cycle date and the payment due date may also change. 

In the case of switching Aventura to Aeroplan, you will have 60 days to redeem any residual Aventura points on the old card, which can be done via the CIBC Rewards center. In the other direction, Aeroplan to Aventura, your Aeroplan points will remain tied to your Aeroplan account.

Minimum Credit Limit Amount

If you are going to switch to a new CIBC credit card, be aware that some tiers of cards have minimum credit limits. This minimum credit limit amounts are consistent across all financial issuers in Canada:

What the minimum credit limit means is that in the case of VI and VIP cards, your approval must be for $5,000/$10,000 of credit, or the bank will be unable to issue you the credit card. If the bank’s algorithm deems that you are only worthy of $4,000, you will not be granted a Visa Infinite card, even though you would have been approved had you applied for a Visa Platinum card. This makes these cards slightly more difficult to get approved for (but still very feasible for most people).

Will I Receive a Welcome Bonus Upon Switching?

It’s tough to give a definitive answer to this one. Sometimes you will get a bonus upon switching, but not always.

I’ve found it tough to gauge what determines whether you will receive a bonus. You can sometimes inquire with the agent at the time of the request whether you qualify for a bonus or for an ‘upgrade offer’.  

If you are interested in switching your CIBC credit card, be aware that you will typically only receive the publicly available welcome offer, if at all. You will not receive elevated or special promo offers for a product switch. 

I also anecdotally find that I’ll be less likely to receive a bonus if I’ve previously held that specific card on that tradeline, and am more likely to receive a bonus if moving from a lower-tier card to a higher-tier (for example from a Visa Infinite to a Visa Infinite Privilege). 

Bottom line, you are not entitled to a welcome bonus on a product switch. It’s just that, a bonus.

Public Offers for CIBC Credit Cards

If you are switching CIBC credit cards and are fortunate to be eligible for a welcome bonus or upgrade offer, you can expect to receive the following public bonuses:

It’s once again a YMMV on whether you would receive the bonus for meeting any applicable minimum spend requirements. However, I have never been inclined to spend $2,000-$3,000 on a card for a ‘maybe bonus’, so I can’t comment.

Will I Be Charged Annual Fees When Switching CIBC Credit Cards?

If the card you are switching to has an annual fee, you will generally be charged the full annual fee which will appear on the next statement. This is regardless of whether or not there is a promotion on the card for ‘first year free’.   

However, if the card you are switching from has an annual fee that you have already paid, you will also receive a prorated amount of the fee back, based on the number of statements that have passed since the fee was charged. 

Conclusion

CIBC product switching is a straightforward way to move between different CIBC credit cards while sometimes receiving a welcome bonus, or simply switching your card to one that is more suited for your personal finance and travel needs. Since you can now switch online, this makes it even easier for customers to change their credit card to one that will add value to their wallet.