Highlights

  • Eligible travel spending earns 5 BMO Rewards points per $1. Dining, entertainment, and automatic recurring charges earn 3 points per $1.
  • Mastercard Travel Pass (DragonPass) membership and 4 complimentary lounge visits each year.
  • Cardholders 64 or under have out-of-province/country emergency medical coverage for the first 21 days of each trip, up to $5,000,000 per person.
  • The annual fee is $150. The product page lists an annual fee rebate if you hold an eligible BMO Premium Chequing Account.
BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard

Issuer: BMO
Network: Mastercard World Elite
Card type: Credit card
Annual fee: $150 for the primary card; $50 per additional card
Foreign transaction fee: 2.50%

This card earns BMO Rewards points. Eligible travel purchases can be redeemed within 90 days at 150 points = $1. Other eligible purchases redeem at 200 points = $1. Other redemption channels have different rules and values.

Related reading: 🇨🇦 BMO Rewards Points: How to Earn and Use Them

Welcome offer

[August 29, 2026 update] The current official offer is up to 100,000 BMO Rewards welcome bonus points (apply by October 31, 2026) + an extra $120 cash back:

  • Complete at least $5,000 in eligible net purchases within the first 110 days: 45,000 BMO Rewards points.
  • Complete at least $10,000 in eligible net purchases within the first 180 days: another 20,000 BMO Rewards points.
  • Complete at least $20,000 in eligible net purchases within the first 365 days: another 35,000 BMO Rewards points.
  • In the first year, a NEXUS application fee charged to the primary card while the account is in good standing can receive one statement credit of up to $200. NEXUS approval is not required.
  • The first-year $150 primary annual fee, and the $50 fee for each additional card added with the primary application, are rebated on the first statement as a charge and a matching credit.
  • Apply through the blog’s partner cash-back site for an extra $120 rebate.

Eligible net purchases exclude refunds, cash advances, cash-like transactions, interest, fees, and account adjustments. Points can take up to eight weeks to post after each condition, and the account must be open and in good standing when they are issued. The offer does not apply to current or former cardholders who reopen an account during the offer period, or to existing BMO credit-card holders who switch into this card. If you cancel within 365 days of opening, bonus points already earned may be cancelled.

Eligibility: Personal annual income of at least $80,000, or household annual income of at least $150,000. You must also be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, have had no bankruptcy in the past 7 years, and have reached the age of majority in your province or territory.

Apply through the referral link 🔗 (This partner link supports the blog.)

Everyday spending

5x: Travel spending that the Mastercard network codes correctly as an airline, rental-car company, hotel/resort, cruise, passenger rail, tour operator, timeshare, or travel agency earns 5 BMO Rewards points per $1. The first $15,000 in combined eligible travel spend each calendar year (January 1–December 31) per BMO Rewards collector account qualifies; after that, those purchases earn 1x.

3x: Spending that the Mastercard network codes correctly as dining or entertainment earns 3 BMO Rewards points per $1. Dining and entertainment each have their own annual cap of $10,000 in eligible spend; after each cap, that category earns 1x. Dining includes restaurants, drinking places, and quick service. Entertainment includes movie theatres, theatre productions, ticketing, orchestras, attractions, amusement parks, zoos, and similar merchants. Mastercard’s MCC decides the actual category.

3x: Automatic recurring charges earn 3 BMO Rewards points per $1 on the first $10,000 in eligible spend each year; after that, they earn 1x. The merchant must charge this Card automatically on a regular schedule. If the same charge is also coded as travel, dining, or entertainment, the terms do not give extra bonus points twice.

1x: Other eligible purchases earn 1 BMO Rewards point per $1. Spending over the annual category caps, or spending Mastercard does not code correctly, also earns this rate. Cash advances (including foreign currency or traveller’s cheques), interest, fees, refunds/adjustments, and other non-purchase transactions do not earn points.

Benefits and insurance

  • Mastercard Travel Pass provided by DragonPass

The primary cardholder must register in the Mastercard Travel Pass app or website with an eligible Canada-issued BMO World Elite Mastercard. You get 4 complimentary lounge visits each calendar year, which the primary cardholder or a travelling companion can use. After those visits, each visit is US$32 per person. Participating lounges and usage rules follow DragonPass’s current information.

  • Instacart+ Membership & Monthly Credit

The product page lists 6 months of Instacart+ and a $10 monthly Instacart credit. You must enrol with an eligible Canadian BMO credit card. Activation, eligibility, auto-renewal choices, and the then-current terms are set by BMO and Instacart.

  • Car rental discounts

Prepaid Avis rentals booked with this Card can be up to 30% off the base rate, and non-prepaid bookings at least 10% off. Budget is up to 35% prepaid and at least 10% non-prepaid. BMO’s product page also lists up to 20% off National/Alamo and up to 5% off Enterprise through its booking tool. Discounts usually apply only to the base rate and do not include taxes, surcharges, optional coverage, or other services.

Travel insurance

Official insurance certificate 🔗

  • Out-of-Province/Country Emergency Medical Insurance

Canadian residents under 65 on the departure date, covered by a Canadian government health plan for the entire trip, and with an account in good standing can receive sudden, unforeseeable emergency medical coverage after leaving their home province or territory. The trip does not have to be charged to this Card. Coverage is up to $5,000,000 per person per trip for the first 21 consecutive days. In a medical emergency or hospitalization, contact the Operations Centre within 24 hours or as soon as reasonably possible. Pre-existing or unstable conditions, high-risk activities, and situations related to a Government of Canada travel advisory may not be covered.

  • Trip Cancellation / Trip Interruption / Trip Delay Insurance

Canadian residents must charge all or part of the trip cost, including taxes, to this Card when they book, and the account must be in good standing. Cancellation for a covered reason listed in the certificate can reimburse non-refundable, non-transferable prepaid arrangements up to $1,500 per person per trip and $5,000 combined for all insured people. Interruption or a delayed return after departure is up to $2,000 per person per trip and $10,000 combined. If the full prepaid cost is charged to this Card, an eligible interruption can also cover a changed one-way economy ticket, unused prepaid arrangements, and accommodation and meals (up to $200 a day for up to 10 days). If only part of the cost is charged, reimbursement for unused arrangements is also limited to the amount charged to this Card. Covered reasons, pre-existing conditions, travel advisories, and activity limits follow the certificate.

  • Car Rental – Collision/Loss Damage Insurance

A Canadian-resident primary cardholder must sign a non-renewable agreement with a commercial rental company for no more than 48 consecutive days, charge the full rental including taxes to this Card, and decline the rental company’s CDW/LDW unless the law prohibits declining it. Coverage can include theft or damage to a rental with a model-year MSRP of no more than $65,000, eligible towing, and loss-of-use. It does not provide third-party liability, property-damage, or personal-injury liability coverage. Contact the Operations Centre immediately after an accident, theft, or damage.

  • Common Carrier Insurance

After the common-carrier fare including taxes is charged in full to this Card, an accidental injury while boarding, riding on, or leaving a licensed common carrier that causes death or a specified loss of limb, sight, hearing, or speech listed in the certificate is covered up to $500,000 per person. The combined maximum for all insured people in the same accident is $1,500,000. Only the single highest applicable benefit is paid.

  • Flight Delay Insurance

Canadian residents who charge the full scheduled commercial-airline fare including taxes to this Card can be reimbursed for reasonable extra accommodation and transportation costs if arrival or departure is delayed more than 4 hours, up to $500 combined for all insured people per trip. Prepaid costs are not covered. Contact the Operations Centre immediately after you learn of the delay. Airline or travel-supplier bankruptcy, war/terrorism, and other situations listed in the certificate are excluded.

  • Baggage Insurance

After the common-carrier fare including taxes is charged in full to this Card, checked or carry-on baggage that is lost, stolen, or damaged during the trip is covered up to $500 per person and $1,000 combined for all insured people, with a $500 per-item cap. If outbound checked baggage is delayed more than 6 hours, you can buy essentials within 36 hours of arriving at the destination, up to $500 per person and $1,000 combined. Delay coverage does not apply on the return to your home province or territory. Contact the Operations Centre immediately after you discover the incident.

  • Hotel Burglary Insurance

Canadian residents who charge the full travel-accommodation cost including taxes to this Card, and who are registered as guests, can be reimbursed for personal property lost or damaged in a burglary at the accommodation, at the applicable actual replacement value, like-kind replacement cost, or repair cost. The combined maximum for all insured people is $1,000 per burglary. Cash, tickets, perishables, unexplained disappearance, and failure to reasonably protect items or the accommodation are not covered. Contact the Operations Centre immediately after you discover the incident.

Purchase insurance

  • Purchase Security Insurance

Canadian residents who charge the full purchase price of a personal item or gift to this Card, with an account in good standing, have worldwide coverage for theft or damage for the first 90 days from the purchase date. The insurer may repair, replace, or reimburse the purchase price. Purchase security and extended warranty share a lifetime maximum of $60,000 per account. Cash, tickets, animals and plants, consumables/perishables, online purchases not delivered and accepted, jewellery/furs in baggage not in your personal care, and items left behind are not covered.

  • Extended Warranty Insurance

The payment rules are the same as purchase security, and the original manufacturer’s warranty must be valid in Canada. Coverage doubles the original warranty, up to one extra year, and pays the lower of repair or replacement cost for items the original warranty covers. If the original warranty is longer than five years, you must register with the Operations Centre within one year of purchase. Lifetime warranties and extended warranties sold separately by the manufacturer or another party are not covered. This benefit shares the $60,000 lifetime account maximum with purchase security.

For all insurance claims, you should generally give the Operations Centre written notice within 30 days of the incident and submit sufficient proof within 90 days. If you truly cannot meet those timelines, complete them as soon as reasonably possible, and no later than one year after the incident.