How To Calculate Interest After Promotional Period - Business Finance (2024)

Charges

ByD Laidler

Promotional Period Meaning

Table Of Contents Open The Table Of Contents

The promotional period is the segment of time when the cardholder receives an offer from the issuer that normally is zero or very low APR on unpaid balances.

It can be 0% APR (OFFER 04 code), a very low APR, or a promotion on a specific merchant (OFFER 05 code, OFFER 15 code, and many more).

Federal law requires that promotional periods must last at least six months. Despite the minimum requirement, many of the best credit cards have promotional rates that are longer, even as long as 21 months 1.

Once the promotional period finishes, the unpaid balances will go at the standard APR and you will notice the different entries in your credit card statement to acknowledge this status. The entries are OFFER 04 PROMOTIONAL APR ENDED and OFFER 04 MOVED TO STANDARD PURCH.

How To Calculate Interest After The Promotional Period

It is important to know how to calculate interest after the promotional period if you have an unpaid balance, or if you usually have unpaid balances.

Calculating the interest after the promotional period can be done in three easy steps:

  1. Find your current APR and current balance in your credit card statement.
  2. Divide your current APR by 12 (for the twelve months of the year) to find your monthly periodic rate.
  3. Multiply that number by the amount of your current balance.

For example, if you currently owe $500 on your credit card throughout the month and your current APR is 17.99%, you can calculate your monthly interest rate by dividing the 17.99% by 12, which is approximately 1.49%. Then multiply $500 x 0.0149 for an amount of $7.45 each month. Therefore, you should have been charged $7.45 in interest charges based on your $500 balance.

How to calculate your daily interest on a credit card after the promotional period

Your credit card company may calculate your interest with a daily periodic rate.

Calculate your daily APR in three easy steps:

  1. Find your current APR and current balance in your credit card statement.
  2. Divide your APR rate by 365 (for the 365 days in the year) to find your daily periodic rate.
  3. Multiply your current balance by your daily periodic rate.

For example, let´s suppose that our promotional period has just ended and we have 500 dollars of unpaid balance:

So if the current balance is $500 for the entire month, and the APR rate is 17.99%, you can find your daily periodic rate by dividing your current APR by 365. In this case, your daily APR would be approximately 0.0492%.

By multiplying $500 by 0.00049, you’ll find your daily periodic rate is $0.25. In order to calculate the monthly interest charges to your balance you simply need to multiply this daily periodic rate by the number of days in your billing cycle which is 30 days in almost all cases.

How To Calculate Interest After Promotional Period - Business Finance (1)

D Laidler

I am David, economist, originally from Britain, and studied in Germany and Canada. I am now living in the United States. I have a house in Ontario, but I actually never go. I wrote some books about sovereign debt, and mortgage loans. I am currently retired and dedicate most of my time to fishing. There were many topics in personal finances that have currently changed and other that I have never published before. So now in Business Finance, I found the opportunity to do so. Please let me know in the comments section which are your thoughts. Thank you and have a happy reading.

Related Charges

Consumers who received this charge as a line item in their statement, usually also received the following ones, which might be related:

FID BKG SVC LLC

DDA CLOSURE PAYMENT HISTORY Meaning

PRIME VIDEO 888-802-3080 WA Charge

ONLINE PAYMENT WEST DES MOIN

ADJ REDIST PURCHASE BAL

INTEREST CHARGED TO STANDARD PURCH

OFFER 04 PROMOTIONAL APR ENDED

K1xl AMEX

AMERICAN EXPRESS INTERNAL TRANSACTION

DR ADJ REDIST CADV PRIN

CAPITAL ONE Ref N° 10016.8040

PYMTMONYHOLD

OFFER 04 MOVED TO STANDARD PURCH

CENTCREDSERV.

NATIONAL CREDIT CARDS AIRLINES.

NATL FIN SVC LLC.

DISP INVG COMP RPT BY GRNTR.

LOW LEVEL OF AUTHENTICATION INDICATIVE OF ID FRAUD.

We explain, first of all, how to calculate interest after the promotional period, after a debate between readers in the comments section.

We have analyzed the most common charges that our readers are receiving. The majority of them coming from Fidelity.

How To Calculate Interest After Promotional Period - Business Finance (2024)

FAQs

How To Calculate Interest After Promotional Period - Business Finance? ›

To calculate deferred interest, you divide the APR by 12 to get the monthly interest rate, then multiply that amount by the monthly balance to get the total monthly interest. You then add up the interest for each month of the promotional period to get your total deferred interest.

What is interest on promotional balances? ›

A credit card promotional interest rate is an interest rate that is offered for a limited amount of time, as a promotion. During the promotional period, you'll be charged a lower interest rate than your typical interest rate.

What happens when my promotional APR ends? ›

But when that window closes, the card's "normal" ongoing APR goes into effect. This interest rate will apply to all new purchases (and potentially balance transfers) that you don't pay off in full every month, as well as any unpaid balance from the intro period — and it will be a much higher rate than 0%.

What is promotional annual interest rate? ›

Promotional introductory pricing on credit cards is a widely used marketing tool among U.S. credit card companies. To attract customers, these companies offer zero or low annual percentage rates (APRs) for temporary periods, which could last up to a year or more. 1.

What does 6 months promotional financing mean? ›

PROMOTIONAL FINANCING EXAMPLES

Cardholder A makes six monthly payments, each equal to the total promotional purchase amount divided by six, paying off the full balance within the promotional period. Result: Cardholder A pays $1,200 for the promotional purchase over 6 months.

How to calculate interest after promotional period? ›

To calculate deferred interest, you divide the APR by 12 to get the monthly interest rate, then multiply that amount by the monthly balance to get the total monthly interest. You then add up the interest for each month of the promotional period to get your total deferred interest.

What is a promotional period? ›

Promotional Period means the period we tell the Accountholder before a Special Transaction can be made during which preferential terms will apply.

How to find out when interest free period ends? ›

You can check when any of your promotional or interest-free periods end by looking at your statement. Look for the line that shows interest on your promotional spending or interest on your promotional balance.

How do promotional balances work? ›

Interest is deferred until the end of the promotional period. If you don't pay off your promotional balance before the end of the period, you'll owe all the interest that was deferred—on top of the remaining balance. Introductory interest rates are required by law to last for at least six months.

What does 0.00% promotional APR mean? ›

A 0% APR on a credit card means that you won't be charged interest on purchases, balance transfers or both, for a fixed period of time. Once the card's promotional period ends, you'll be charged interest on any remaining balance.

How to calculate annual interest? ›

The formula for calculating simple interest is: Interest = P * R * T. P = Principal amount (the beginning balance). R = Interest rate (usually per year, expressed as a decimal). T = Number of time periods (generally one-year time periods).

How to calculate percentage of interest? ›

Formula: Simple Interest (SI) = Principal (P) x Rate (R) x Time (T) / 100. Example: If you invest $1,000 with a 5% annual interest rate for 3 years, you'd earn $150 in simple interest.

Why am I getting charged interest when my balance is zero? ›

Have you ever paid your credit card balance down and then found an unexpected interest charge on the next bill? That may be residual interest. Residual interest, also known as trailing interest is, in the most basic terms, the interest that's carried over billing cycles.

How do I know when my promotional APR ends? ›

You can find your credit card's standard interest rate by reviewing your credit card statement. You can also find out when your intro APR ends by checking your most recent credit card statement. It should include your current APR as well as the length of any promotional APR.

What is a promotional rate in finance? ›

Promotional Rate means a special interest rate that is offered at the discretion of the offering party for certain transactions. These could include specific purchases, cash advances or balance transfers. This special rate will apply solely to said transactions and for the predetermined timeframe of the offer.

What is a deferred interest promotional financing? ›

Deferred interest offers allow consumers to make purchases and avoid interest charges during a promotional period, which usually lasts about six to 12 months. Consumers who pay off their entire balance during the promo period will avoid paying interest charges.

How to avoid Amex interest charge on promotional balances? ›

In a deferred interest deal, there's a promotional period during which you don't have to pay interest – but interest still accrues on the loan during that time. To avoid being charged all accrued interest, you must pay off the balance in full before the promo period expires.

What does promotional balance mean? ›

Promotional Balance means the balance of your Account relating to a particularPromotional Credit Plan, as indicated on your Account Statement. For greatercertainty, your Account will contain multiple Promotional Balances where you have made Purchases under more than one Promotional Credit Plan. Sample 1.

What happens if you don't pay off your promotional balance? ›

Even if you still have an unpaid balance when the promotional period is over, you will start to pay interest on that remaining balance only from the date the promotional period ends. This promotion may also require you to meet other terms as well, such as making your minimum monthly payments on time.

Are promotional balance transfers good? ›

If a balance transfer saves you money in the long run, it's a good move. Balance transfers are best for debt that would otherwise take several months (or more) to pay off. If you'd only need a couple of months to pay off your balance even without a transfer, you'll probably be better off leaving it on the current card.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Dr. Pierre Goyette

Last Updated:

Views: 5964

Rating: 5 / 5 (50 voted)

Reviews: 89% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Dr. Pierre Goyette

Birthday: 1998-01-29

Address: Apt. 611 3357 Yong Plain, West Audra, IL 70053

Phone: +5819954278378

Job: Construction Director

Hobby: Embroidery, Creative writing, Shopping, Driving, Stand-up comedy, Coffee roasting, Scrapbooking

Introduction: My name is Dr. Pierre Goyette, I am a enchanting, powerful, jolly, rich, graceful, colorful, zany person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.