Like most Visa credit cards, the Absa Student Card can be used anywhere in the world. Plus, while you’re out of the country, you don’t have to worry about international transaction fees and all your online or in-store spending outside South Africa will also earn you cashback in the Absa Rewards rewards program.

To earn this type of reward, you must complete challenges. Every three weeks a new challenge is released and you have to complete it in a timely manner. Each completed challenge entitles you to a meal ticket at restaurants associated with the Absa bank partner network. You may be challenged to add extra information to complete your profile on the bank’s app (like adding a profile picture) or to make a certain number of purchases at the bank’s partner stores, for example.

Normally, Absa bank will migrate your student account to a regular account. In effect, this means that your card will be terminated and you will be issued with a new card that matches your current status. This way, you will likely miss out on some perks like R0 monthly fee and lower interest rate. However, you will be able to access services that are more compatible with the new moment in your life.