Read balance-specific terms
Check which transaction types receive a grace period and how the agreement restores it after a carried balance.
Read which transaction types receive a grace period and what payment is required to keep it. Purchases, balance transfers and cash advances can follow different interest and fee rules. Check the statement after any carried balance to see when purchase interest resumes.
Protect the grace period deliberately
| Situation | What to do next |
|---|---|
| Statement paid in full | Confirm purchase grace period continues. |
| Balance carried | Expect agreement-specific interest on new purchases. |
| Cash advance | Check immediate interest and separate fees. |
Use statement balance and due date
Minimum payment avoids neither ongoing balance nor all interest. Follow the statement and allow delivery time.
Use the statement balance and due date, not only the minimum payment. Allow time for payment delivery and confirm how the issuer restores a grace period after a balance has been carried.
Separate purchases from transfers
A promotional balance transfer can affect how new purchases accrue interest, so read the combined-balance rules.
A promotional transfer can affect new-purchase interest. Keep purchases separate until the payment-allocation and grace-period language is understood, and do not describe a zero-percent offer as covering every transaction.
Three boundaries to protect
A grace period is the time between a billing cycle's end and payment due date under the account terms.
Paying the statement balance in full and on time can preserve purchase grace periods when offered.
Cash advances and other balance types can accrue interest differently.
Check the downside, access and exit
Primary sources
- CFPB: Credit-card grace periodsOfficial reference ↗
- CFPB: Credit cardsOfficial reference ↗
Answers to check before you act
Are credit-card issuers required to offer a grace period?
No, though many offer one for purchases under stated conditions.
Does paying the minimum preserve the grace period?
Generally the full statement balance must be paid by the due date under an offered purchase grace period.