Update #2: DEAD!
Update: This offer expires on Monday, 01/28 at 10:59am EST.
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Related posts:
-ANA Not Charging Fuel Surcharges For Award Travel On United Or USAirways!
-Is it Worth Transferring Membership Rewards Points To USAirways With A 16% Loss Of Points?
-4BM Success! (2 consumer card and 2 business card approvals with just 1 hard pull!) .
-Want To Boost Your Credit Score? Spend On Business Cards Instead Of Consumer Cards.
-Which Miles To Use To Fly To Israel?
-Flying Round-Trip To Israel On Air Berlin For 47K American Express Membership Rewards
-Credit Score FAQs: Opening And Closing Cards
-Credit Card Reconsideration: Don’t Give Up!
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Link removed-Offer is now dead!
Signup bonus:
75,000 bonus Membership Rewards points for spending $10,000 in 4 months.
Having consumer charge cards (Green, Gold, Platinum, etc) , consumer credit cards, or business credit cards will not stop you from earning this signup bonus.
If you have had a business charge card (Green, Gold, or Platinum) in the past 12 months the terms state that you will not receive the bonus. YMMV.
Limited Time Offer:
This will expire early next Monday morning, 01/28.
You will earn:
-3X points on airfare
-2x points on purchases in the U.S. for advertising in select media, gasoline at U.S. stand-alone gas stations, and shipping
-1X points on other purchases
-Points are earned only on eligible purchases. Bonus points limitations apply.
-$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $175
-Introductory annual fee for Additional Gold Cards in the first year is $0; then, $50 for the first Additional Gold Card and no fee for other Additional Cards
-Terms & Restrictions Apply.
-Offer expires January 28th, 2013.
Spending $10,000 in 4 months:
Spending $10K isn’t what it used to be.
I spent that much at CVS just 2 nights ago in a single shot (well, 10 shots)!
With options like Vanilla Reloads, Vanilla MVD cards, and prepaid gift cards sold at a discount there are lots of ways to help you meet thresholds.
And of course there’s trusty old Amazon Payments made even easier with free additional user cards.
No need to rehash everything, Here are articles I’ve written on this stuff:
-Another Flavor Of Vanilla: My Vanilla Debit Card
-Today’s Escapades
-Meeting A Spend Threshold In One Night.
-Need To Meet A Spending Threshold Deadline? Send And Receive $1,000/Month With No Fees Using Amazon Payments!
If you spend $1,000 at Fedex for example you’ll get a 5% automatic cash rebate and 2,000 points (double points for shipping as stated above). $1,000 at HP gets a 10% automatic cash rebate and 1,000 points plus their awesome extended warranty coverage as long as you have any open American Express card at the time of the claim.
What can you do with the points:
-You can wait for another Avios bonus. These come by every few months and usually range from 30%-50%. That means you get to Israel for as little as 20K points each way instead of the normal 30K points eacy way. Once you’re done with $10K in spending you’ll have at least 85K points.
-A flight from NYC to short-haul destinations (like Cleveland, Detroit, Montreal, Toronto, and many others) on American booked via Avios is just 4,500 each way with no fuel surcharges. With 85K points you’d have enough for about 19 short-haul flights. Or wait for the return of a transfer bonus and you’ll have enough for as many as 28 short-haul flights!
-A flight from NYC to medium-haul destinations (like Miami) on American booked via Avios is just 7,500 each way with no fuel surcharges. With 85K points you’d have enough for more than 11 medium-haul flights. Or wait for the return of a transfer bonus and you’ll have enough for as many as 17 medium-haul flights!
-A flight from NYC to resort destinations like Cancun or Puerto Rico on American booked via Avios is just 10,000 each way with no fuel surcharges. With 85K points you’d have enough for more than 8 of those flights. Or wait for the return of a transfer bonus and you’ll have enough for as many as 12 of those flights!
-A flight from NYC to stunning Costa Rica on American booked via Avios is just 12,500 each way with no fuel surcharges. Of you can fly from the West Coast to any Hawaiian Island for that rate. Or you can even fly from Boston to Ireland for the same rate with no fuel surcharges on Aer Lingus (you’ll have to call to book trips on airlines like Aer Lingus or Alaska). With 85K points you’d have enough for about 7 of those flights. Or wait for the return of a transfer bonus and you’ll have enough for as many as 10 of those flights!
-The only way to fly in Singapore’s First Class Suites, or in their great business or first class products, is with Singapore miles. Book on their website to save 15% of the miles needed. I flew to Europe last month in a couples suite with my wife for about 58K miles each.
-Air France/KLM Flying Blue charges only 25K miles round-trip to Israel during a Promo award or just 50K miles round-trip to Israel on Delta with no fuel surcharges. Plus there are occasionally bonuses to Flying Blue as well, dropping those rates even lower.
-The only way to fly in El Al First Class, which includes the best glatt kosher food in the sky, is with El Al points.
-Air Canada can book you on other Star Alliance carriers, like United and USAirways and many more, with no fue surcharges. Bonus: They also allow for 2 free stopovers, so you can checkout 3 different cities on 1 ticket.
What do you do with your points? Post a comment!
Getting a business card:
Getting a business card is quite simple. You don’t need to be a traditional “business owner” as you might think of one.
For example if Joe Smith sells items on Ebay or on Amazon, or has any other side business/hobby and wants a credit card to better keep track of business expenditures he can just open a business credit card for “Joe Smith Sole Proprietorship” as the business name. You don’t need to file any messy government paperwork to be allowed to do that.
Just be sure to select “Sole Proprietorship” as the business type and just use your social security number in the Tax Identification Number field as well as in the social security number field.
I’ve had business cards since I turned 18 as a Sole Proprietor and never had a problem getting approved with reconsideration if needed. You can reach reconsideration at 866-314-0237.
Charge card:
This is a charge card without a defined credit line, so even when you’re ready to close the account you won’t lose that line of credit.
Plus it’s not subject the limit of 4 American Express credit cards per person, as charge cards are not limited in the way credit cards with a credit line are limited.
If you make zero income:
Then why are you applying for credit cards? American Express has the right to ask to see you tax returns at any time. While people have reported passing the financial review as long as they make something (DDF’ers have reported as little as $5K/year) it’s not a good idea to apply for this card (or any American Express card for that matter) if you don’t have income on the books.
Membership Rewards points transfer to:
Transfers are at 1K:1K ratios or are otherwise listed.
Airlines:
–Aeromexico (Skyteam)
–Air Canada (Star Alliance)
–Alitalia (Skyteam)
–ANA (Star Alliance)
-Asia Miles, Cathay Pacific (OneWorld)
–Avios, British Airways and Iberia (OneWorld)
–Delta (Skyteam)
–El Al (1,000 MR:20 El Al ratio)
–Flying Blue, Air France/KLM (Skyteam)
–Frontier
–Hawaiian
–Jetblue (250 MR:200 Jetblue ratio)
–Singapore (Star Alliance)
–Virgin America (200 MR:100 Virgin ratio)
–Virgin Atlantic
Hotels:
–Best Western
–Choice
–Hilton: (1,000 MR:1,500 Hilton ratio, currently on special for 1,000:2,000)
–Starwood: (1,000 MR:333 Starwood ratio)
You can apply for both consumer and business American Express cards on the same day with just 1 credit pull. Other cards you may want to consider include:
Consumer cards:
-Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express
-TrueEarnings® Card from Costco and American Express
–American Express® Premier Rewards Gold Card
–The Platinum Card® from American Express
–Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express
-American Express® Gold Card
-Blue Cash Preferred Card® from American Express
-Blue Cash Everyday Card® from American Express
-Blue Sky from American Express®
Business cards:
-Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express OPEN
-Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card OPEN
-SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express OPEN
-The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN
hi to echo the last comment did anyone save proof of the 75000 point offer?
Did anyone save a .pdf of the web-page showing the 75,000 offer.
Dan I have been to 3 CVS stores in Brooklyn, and I am told that they can only allow a maximum of $100 gift card purchases to be made on credit cards. Is there something i’m missing?
tried to book award at aa, said 45k per trip, but then showed 180k for r/t +$995 on taxes.
cheaper to pay for a regular ticket. anyone had success going for pesach on miles w any airline?
have DL, CO, AA
Dan – any experience with green dot?
@Dan: Yes, I have heard of that too.. Any ideas on the Wells Fargo Prepaid Visa card?
@new1:
Paypal has been banning people for doing that.
@Avi:
As far as I know green dot works with a paypal account..they you can transfer them from paypal to your bank account and pay bills and other stuff..
Does the Visa Green Dot Debit card (https://www.greendot.com/greendot) work the same way as the Vanilla reload card when it comes to getting a cash advance from brick and mortar banks like chase and citi?
Dan I finally found a store Family Dollar that sells VR and accepts CC’s to buy’em..Huh some sort of relief… I was reading all your posts over the last month or so..many thanks to you for putting all those together in one place.
Dan one thing I am still not clear about; if my goal is to book a flight from Newark to Israel using Amex points is it better to transfer AMEX points to ANA and use those miles to book a United flight or to transfer the Amex miles to Air Canada and then try and book a United flight. Since in both scenarios they are united flights so no fuel surcharges right?, so which is the better option? any advantages of one over the other? or is there a better option i am missing
Hey Dan thnx a lot..I tried and succeeded..Got approved on the 2BM for Amex SPG Personal, and Business Gold Rewards. Now the hunting begins for stores around that accept cc’s for VRs.Got one question..can I buy VRs at CVS or other stores in calif when I travel there and would there be any prob or put hold on my card coz am making big purchases out of state?
@MAJ:
Call back.
A sole-proprietor uses his SSN as his Tax ID number, so as long as you applied as a sole-proprietor you are fine.
@Dan: applied (before dead line)was told that ssn is not valid for tax id, tried again and was told the same thing. what do i do?
@Josh:
Lol, just a misunderstanding then.
SW is an abbreviation for Southwest (Chase)
Starwood can be abbreviated as SPG.
You should call Recon now for the SPG cards.
@Mendy. The only thing that worked for me was to call. Got a pending review. Then approved a couple of hours later
@Josh:
“You can’t 3BM different banks.”
I apologize for the follow up but isn’t Starwood part of AMEX? I was referring to an earlier reply when someone asked what you recommend for additional cards to the AMEX Business Gold for the 3BM and the reponse was “Starwood consumer, Premier Gold Consumer, and Starwood business are all great cards that are free for a year”
I saw AMEX lists the Starwood when you click to view all cards. Am I missing something? Thanks for the timely response!
Thank you! approved on 3BM Amex PRG personal, Amex SPG Personal, and Business Gold Rewards……Thank you very much!
@new1:
Try gas stations.
@Josh:
You can’t 3BM different banks.
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028.0
If you open more AMEX cards today though you shouldn’t get more hard pulls from AMEX.
@malky:
Search AA.com for sAAver availability. Then call BA to book if you can’t figure out the website.
@NEWBIE:
Read the related posts.
I’m new at this, applied for the card and got accepted, can anyone direct me to the clearest information about using these points to get to israel? I’ve been searching this site and the DD forum but I am still confused!
@Chaya: Click on the purple “The American Express Business… not the top link about 11 lines down. It still works
tried with different browsers but the final application will not go through, just says problem with our system please call …
anyone else having any luck?
is there something im missing? every time i tried to book a flight with ba points there was never any availability even with the one world alliance wtvr dates or places i wanted to go never had anything. can u explain briefly how ppl get so many flights with points. thanks
Attempted using 3BM for SW Cons, SW Bus, and AMEX Bus Gold, I got instant approval for Starwood Consumer but other 2 showed error message and to call. I called up and got approval for AMEX Bus Gold but didn’t get a chance to setup SW Business.
If I attempt the last card now (within hour), will all applications be one hard pull? Thanks for posting this deal!
Just tried applying through your link incognito, but it’s not taking me anywhere, only back to your site?! Still before 10:59AM?
Thanks so much Dan. Based out of Boise,Idaho..we don’t have a CVS here..does office depot and office max accept credit cards to buy VR’s..also we don’t have most of the stores that were there in VR retailer locations..any suggestions would be greatly appreciated?
@david:
Call and ask.
@Bruce:
Call and ask.
@new1:
CVS and some gas stations.
If you don’t try you won’t know.
Hi Dan,
I just went to buy a VR from Walgreens and they said only cash will be accepted to buy VRs and not credit cards.. Any other ideas on how to get VRs to meet the threshhold…Also I don’t have lengthy credit history just 3 years but my FICO score is 744 and I donot have any business cards..do you think applying for Gold business and a SPG consumer would be a good idea?
@Dan: Dan I did a triple app for this business gold, the business spg and the business delta. Got approval on the gold, pending on the delta, and on the spg i got this ” Unfortunately, we cannot approve your application at this time. According to our records, you currently have the maximum number and type of American Express Card accounts that we allow.”
I dont understand because I do have other SPG cards with them but not any other business ones?
@Dan: dan see what amex says: Thank you for your interest in becoming an American Express Cardmember. According to our records, you submitted more than one application for the Starwood Business Card. We’re writing to let you know we’ve cancelled the duplicate request.
1. Your mileage may vary.
2. Better to enter manually.
1. what is YMMV
2. If you are a current AMex card holder, if gives you an option to sign up quickly but putting in your old CC info, do you still get the bonus sign up if you do it that way? Or do you have to put it in manually to get the bonus?
thanks
@Chanie:
Browse incognito.
See comment 11.
just tried to apply and the website said it not able to process, and to call back during business hours. What gives?
@Joshua:
You can always call Recon to push them through…YMMV as always.
@david:
Ask them.
@malki:
The 100K was a glitch, it won’t be returning anytime soon.
would u think next will come a better deal, like 100,000 bonus miles?
@Dan: What does the cancelled mean?what should i tell the recon?
@Dan: If I do an Amex 3bm and they all end up just pending, will each one ultimately cause a hard hit. Only way to get one hit is if all three are approved? Thanks!
@Sarah:
As long as you apply by 10:59am tomorrow you will qualify for the 75K.
@Dan: I recently I applied for the AMEX Starwood card but was declined. I called reconsideration but they said that they don’t talk to customers and they could review it again within 5-7 business days but it would be another hard hit. Should I opt not to do that and just apply for this Business Gold card? Also, would the 75,000 bonus still apply if I need to call to reconsider for this Gold Card, or would I need to get approved by tomorrow morning to get the promotional bonus?
@malky:
Yes.
@Jack:
http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=7986
@david:
Call Recon.
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028.0
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/16036
@Dan: dan i applied for 4 amex cards and 2 got approved straight away,and the consumer spg says declined while the business spg says canceled. what should i do?
Hi Dan,
I appreciate if you can please answer me while I still have internet access to do the 3bm.(I don’t have it at home)
I have 100000 from AA and 125000 from Amex and 100000 from chase
I want to go from NYC to Israel for suckos what’s the best option for me?
I need 7 tickets?
hi dan,
my husband did a 3bm successfully thanks! I want to do a 3bm under the same business (ein#) saying i’m a partner and want seperate cards? will it go? please answer I wanna do it asap.
Just signed up and got approved in a few min over the phone (online sight wasnt working)
@Dan: YOU ROCK AS ALWAYS!!!!!
@Goldie:
Browse incognito.
See comment 11.
The link for the 75,000 points for American Express points is not working… It says you have till tonight…
http://www.dansdeals.com/forums/index.php?topic=8028.0
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/16036
where can I find the number for recon?
my app status is pending.
@david:
The Starwood cards and premier gold are great cards that are free for a year.
You can do incognito in all browsers if needed.
@Mike:
There is no time limit, if you qualify you can still get this, tough it may take a phone call to Recon.
@sam:
Citi AMEX is not an AMEX.
@YouG:
Yes.
@Dave:
Not anymore than any other AMEX/Chase card.
@Joe:
Just leave the account open for the free year and use it as leverage to get approved for another account in the future in exchange for closing this one.
There is no fee to close it early though.
You need to transfer the points to an airline before closing.
@bb:
Office Depot.
@Mike:
Why downgrade? Just use it as leverage or close it.
@jysubs:
Find someone stateside to buy VRs for you 😀
@danny:
Try or download a different browser?
@danny:
Of course if your Experian is frozen then you won’t get cards!
Have them cancel out the apps, unfreeze your report, and then apply again may be the best bet.
@Mike:
Why not just transfer the points during the free year to an airline?
Or open another free card at the end of the year (Premier Gold, etc), get the points for it, and transfer your business gold points to the premier gold card.
@Jay jay:
There is no magic number.
And you can always call Recon to negotiate an approval.
What kind of credit do you need to get approved?
Dan,
Can you please explain what exactly to do if you get approved spend the 10 k and get the points but don’t want to pay the annual fee but need to keep your membership rewards points? Are there any non fee membership rewards cards? Do you open that and then close the fee card? Thanks for your help.
I just tried a 4BM with this card, MB plat, spg and delta. I got the same response for all 4 that they need to speak to me. I provided me with a ref # and number to call.
If i call back for each one separately will that trigger s pull for each app?
Also was this a result of my experian accont being frozen?
I tried applying a few time with clearing cookies and incognito and keep getting this message
We are sorry.
Currently, our systems are not responding. Please try again later or call us at 1-800-519-OPEN (6736) to apply for a Card. We apologize for any inconvenience.
any suggestions?
Any ideas besides on maxing out a $10k spend in 4 months FROM ISRAEL besides Amazon Payments? VR not available here; can’t pay mortgage with US card; other local payments are small. BB?
Dan, what card can you downgrade this to after a year to avoid annual fee?
anyone know how to get $200 travel card?
@YouG:
Yes.
Better off applying as a sole proprietor since they will anyways pull your personal credit report. If you apply as an LLC, amex may ask for business income verification docs which you don’t have – so not a good idea.
Hello, Please post where to get $500 Visa or MC GC’s with an Ink+. Staples only has up to $200 GC’s. Thanx for everything.
1)Can I open the card, spend the $10,000, get the points, close the card and still use the points after the card is closed? 2)it says no annual fee for the first year. Is there a closing fee if one closes before the first year is up OR is it better to just leave it open and not use the account?
Do I need good credit for this card?
If I gave real LLC ( didnt actually use it yet)will it still be a credit pull on my personal social
Hi dan is this card different then other amex cards if u don’t make money on the books. And if u have a Citi amex card is it considered as if u have a amex
I just signed up for the three business credit cards from chase in the beginning of jamcan I still get these amex deals.. Or is it too close in time
@Dan: the problem is that i want to open 3 cards so i would need all 3 browsers. can u also tellme which 3 cards should i do?
@esther12:
Lots of discussion on DDF about that.
@david:
Browse incognito.
See comment 11.
@esther12: dan u have tried since thursday, and it says system unavilable. what should i do/
hi. someone i know is 16 years old and wants to build his credit history so can apply for cards soon. whats the best way to start building credit history and at what age is it legal to apply for credit cards?
Thnx
@DanK:
You can.
As long as it’s on the books you have nothing to worry about at all.
I have more than one legit Business/es LLCs and I have 6 digit income on the books. Can I apply for 2-3 Gold business cards at the same time or am I asking for trouble?
@Jack:
No, as anyone can have a home business.
@tlnl:
See comment 11 for incognito instructions.
I’m trying to apply for the starwood and this business as a 2BM. The link for the starwood just asks me to add users with no where to apply. Do you have a different link?
Will they ask me to prove my business address?
@bubble347:
Yes.
@jalem:
Yes. But it will end sometime that day.
@Charles:
You were misinformed.
@milechazzer:
You may need to go incognito to see it, see comments 11 and 20.
Seems like the Premier Gold Rewards link doesn’t work anymore, and it’s now directing you to a new offer of just 15k MR points when you spend $30k in the first year.
I talked with Amex rep today. He said last day to sign up for this offer is tomorrow the 25th.
Anyone got points after they got in the past 12 months? Is it worth it working on spending the 10k if I closed business gold only a few months ago?
Do you interpret that ending on 1/28 means that applying that day will still qualify for the 75k?
@jacob:
Charge cards have no credit limit – you have to pay in full every month. Therefore, if you close it you do not have a lower available credit and it therefore will not lower your credit score.
1-what do you mean by, “its a charge card and if i close it i don’t loose the credit line?”
2-Does it effect my credit?
3-Does it go or stay on my record?
thanx!
Can I use the miles if I am an additional user on the card or only the primary cardholder?
@Dan: Thanks
Also, would an FR on a business card effect my personal cards?
@Buckaroo:
Yes.
I applied and got three AMEX cards (Plat, Gold, & Blue Preferred) two weeks ago. Do I have a shot at getting this card if I apply by the 28th?
@chase:
Keep calling. I had to call 3 or 4 times last month. 2 of them were rude and wouldn’t do anything, last was a very sweet woman/girl and was more than happy to close an account to open a new one
Dan got letter from chase after doing 2bm bus card saying too many requests and opened accts with us, got 4-5 new cards in past 3-4 months, so called them asked if can move around funds from other card or close out one and they said at this time nothing can be done need wait few months, hung up called a diff number to try again they came back saying i called already today abt this and the cant do anything at this time, should i just forget it?
Dan,
Did 3 BM amex last week causing 2 pulls (approved for 2, waiting on 3rd card). Is the 75K promo worth another credit pull (esp when they may not approve me – too many recent credit apps – also go 2 pulls for chase 3 BM in dec)? How often does amex run 75k+ promos for gold card?
Thanks for all the tips (here and on forum)!
@Dan:
Thanks.
I had tried that and it hadn’t worked. Then I redid the whole thing for the third time and it went through. Wierd.
Either way – just got a 3bm for my wife and a 3bm for myself!
Now I have to work out how to do the vanilla spending to make sure I get all the points. (-;
Thanks a million!
On the bright side, I see in my pending application messages that I got 3 consecutive (14-digit) “tracking numbers” for my 3 applications. I guess that’s a good sign that I didn’t leave enough time in between my applications for someone else to sneak one in 😉
Just did a 4BM, and I got 3x “Your application is pending further review. Please call us now” and 1 x “Your application is pending further review.”
When I check the status of the applications, they all show “In progress”, but the 3 say “We will notify you once your application is processed” and the 1 says “Please check back on this site in 24 hours”
Can anyone interpret all of this for me, and advise whether I should call Amex up (since it said “Please call us now” for 3 of them)?
thx
@realistic:
More cards=more people to use the card on their own Amazon account.
AUs are free for the first year.
@Yossi:
You may need to go incognito, see comments 11 and 20.
Hi,
I keep trying to apply for this card and it says systems not responding. I have tried from different browsers. What coudl it mean?
what do you mean by And of course there’s trusty old Amazon Payments made even easier with free additional user cards. How is it even easier and isn’t there a fee for additional cards with prg?
I always say I’m a new member.
Dan, when it asks if i am currently a card member, and i say yes, amex shuts me down and says site not working now. have 2 amex in husbands name, none in mine as primary. what to do?
@ln: Mix in some everyday spending so your pattern isn’t so visible (and odd, being $1000 per transaction at CVS). The PRG is 25k right now, as are both the biz and consumer SPG.
@ Dan on the application it asks are you a cardmember by Amex?
yes i am i have the platinum card bshould i click yes or the no? because i dont have the Business card??
If I purchase $1000 at a time but make 6-7 $1000 purchases at CVS for VR will that cause a F/R?
I closed a business gold a few months ago. Has anyone had success getting the points for two business gold in 12 months, recently?
I had platinum/mercedes plat and gold. I closed only a few months ago. What other AMEX offers are there to apply for in a 3 BM?
Thanks so much Dan
@Donald:
http://www.britishairways.com/travel/execenrol/public/en_us?source=about_the_club
When signing up for Avios on website, it doesn’t recognize U.S. postal code and phone number..am I missing something?
@chani:
Yes.
@Donald:
Absolutely not.
Dan,
I’ve seen you reference Avios several times. Isn’t Avios for United Kingdom only?
do i have to wait for bluebird card in mail to link card
@d90:
Yup, that’s a successful 3BM!
With a 5 figure income you’ll be fine even with an FR, but the best advice is take is slow. You don’t have to spend $10K on the card in 1 night.
@vanilla:
Look on vanillareload.com for locations.
Gas stations can be a good bet.
@elky:
You should generally apply for different cards from the same bank.
@chani:
http://www.vanillareload.com
@Martin:
Awesome!
There is a limit of 4 credit cards, but no limit on charge cards.
@Mike:
AMEX doesn’t know the difference if you buy prescriptions, toiletries, or prepaid cards.
You get the same points on all of them.
The application reads “Eligible purchases…do not include… purchases or reloading of reloadable pre-paid cards” So, appears that purchasing VR at CVS would not count as eligible purchase?
Dan,
I have been using your techniques for just the last year and am happy to tell you that I have secured 5 trips to Israel, $1500 cash back and other great rewards.
My question is: I applied for the business gold and got approved now. I also applied for two others and they told me that I have too many AMEX cards in my name. Is there a limit as I have 8 now?
thank you dan. i dont see online where to do it. is it by the place that says to refill with debit cards
what do you mean by a “consumer” card. I want to use the 5bm for the 75K promo… do you think I should apply for the same card, the one in your linky on top of this post.. or is that doomed?
having trouble to locate vanilla reload cards in CVS in my area any other options?
@Dan: Walmart can play a role however if using MVD, WF debit, or miles Debits (like SunTrust)!
Thanks for your help Dan, I just did my first 3BM (This gold biz + PRG + SPG consumer). I got 2 approvals but a pending further review for the SPG (oddly enough).
However, when I check the app status, all 3 say approved. I assume this means I’m good to go?
Finally, does anyone have any suggestions for avoiding FR? I have been putting $1-$2k in legit spending on my other AMEXes for years now. I assume doing the same thing plus adding $2-3k across 3 for the next few months (AP, VR, etc.) won’t raise any red flags, but I just want to make sure. For what it’s worth, I have 5 figures of real, personal wage income to show, but no biz income. However I did not lie on the app and said $0-$49,999 biz income…
@chani:
Online.
Walmart has nothing to do with it.
how do u fill up the bluebird with vanilla reloads? do u do it online or in walmart
@d90:
They will keep rolling.
@Gold:
BA books you on AA.
dan you said american goes direct but how do I get american points from amex ? you said transfer to avios BA
@yoknee:
Yes.
@d90:
It’s right in the post!
You may need to go incognito to see it, see comments 11 and 20.
@Colin:
Won’t matter.
If I applied for (and got) a Citi business card 2 months ago, is it too soon to apply for this AE business card? Or would that not matter since it is a different CC company?
@mottele: @Aryeh:
He’ll also get the $200 credit next year as well if he keeps it open…
@Dan: Dan, thanks again. I don’t see a current offer for the AMEX Premier Gold consumer with any bonus. The 25k seems to be expired. Am I missing it?
@jacob:
Just make sure you have somewhere to put or use the MR points or you’ll lose them without another card…
So will I get my 100k if I use vr on amex
@mike:
Don’t transfer Ultimate Rewards points into someone else’s Ultimate Rewards account besides for your wife’s.
And don’t spend close to your limits.
@Jwintim:
YMMV.
@mottele:
25K+$200 fee refund sounds worthwhile to me.
@mike:
Any apps from AMEX on the same day will be just 1 pull. Apply in different browsers at the same time to try to get automatic approval.
@BenTheMan:
Yes.
@jacob:
You can just cancel, it’s a charge card you don’t lose the credit line.
i wanna avoid the membership fee, to which card can i downgrade it with no membership now that amex doesnt carry the zync card?? what other options do i have??
if i have personal gold card can i still get gold biz offer?
I got this offer in september, and just got the points (thanks dan!!)
I got an email last night offering to upgrade to plat, 25k MR after first puurchase,w/$450 fee.Any thoughts on if its worth it?
I got the 50k open prg offer from back in october and have already meet the spending and still have the card open. What are the chances I get approved for this as well?
i hear that although chase doesnt do f/r like amex does but they will just shut down your account if they see fit to do so is this true? and if yes what should i do/not do to avoid this
@yoknee:
Yes. But those are minimal against a signup bonus worth some $1,200.
@Chaim with a capitol C:
Not necessary in my experience.
1 – If I apply for both the Business Delta Amex and the Personal Delta Amex, should I use two different FF numbers or is that not necessary since one is personal and one is business?
2 – Same question for Starwood business and personal; when I apply for both should I use two different numbers?
When I buy the vr do I pay for the fees ie: 500 to load and 4.95 fee total 504.95 on the amex
@montey:
Please post on DDF.
@Gold:
AA flies nonstop.
from ny to puerto rico u need to go with a stop on BA ?
@Dan:
Any suggestions for an SPG property in So. Cal where some rooms have private outdoor pools or spas? I’m planning on using HH points for the La Quinta Resort in Palm Springs area
@montey:
Hilton points stink, I’d take 1 Starwood over 4 Hilton any day. But otherwise I don’t see anything wrong with it.
@montey:
Yup.
One pull probably right?
@Dan:
There are a few Hilton properties that we frequent. Maybe I’ll change to SPG, but what do you think about the 4BM either way?
@Gold:
As long as you’re willing to stop you should find awards.
@montey:
Why Hilton over Starwood?
@Zev:
You’d have to transfer to Singapore.
@need to know:
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/16036
http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=8028.0
Dan, you said in your answer to call Recon. What is that?
Why am I rejected from Chase cards? I always pay in full. The reason they give is that the credit checks are too numerous and thus I am rejected. Any idea what to do?
Hi dan
Tnx for your Deals !!
We cant wait for the next one
But please advise whats the best way to fly with Points to Signapore with Buisness Class EWR-SIN
Tnx
Any thoughts on the chances of getting approved for MB Platinum and this PG Biz card at the same time?
@clueless:
That will only work for the platinum $200 credit. Unless the points have posted they will pull back the points if you return anything. Even if they have posted, i wouldn’t risk it.
Dan, I am thinking about doing an Amex 4BM: this PRG Biz, Plat MB, and the two Hiltons. I have a pretty good history with Amex. Is this a bad idea to attempt?
will the pggm work to meet the $10,000 spending threshhold?
hope its better then united cuz i wanted to book something by united and 90% it was not available the saver award so it totally did not pay to fly with united and i have points there they wanted 75,000 one way to isreal
I am planning 3BM with this, MB Plat and looking for a 3rd. Does anyone know the best Delta offer out there? I am going to Israel on Delta next month and would like to get upgraded to priority coach. Is there any card that offers that?
@Yossi:
It goes by calendar day, so if you want this card it would likely cost a pull.
@d90:
Starwood consumer, Premier Gold Consumer, and Starwood business are all great cards that are free for a year.
@Dan: Thanks for the reply. I only have a Blue Cash and a very old green AMEX. So am eligible for pretty much all bonuses out there. Any recommendations?
I did a 3bm for 3 consumer cards with amex 17 hours ago. 2 approved – one on hold. Could I apply for this card now under the same pull?
@Gold:
You should wait for a promotion when 50K points would earn 65K-75K points.
It’s good on BA and all of their OneWorld and non-alliance partners.
@d90:
Yes, people have passed with personal income, you don’t need business income to start an ebay business as a sole-proprietor.
Depends on what cards you have now.
Is personal income enough to pass an FR on a biz card? Or am I going to have to show biz income? If it’s enough, should I just put personal income as my sole proprietorship’s income?
Also, if I were going to do a 3BM or 4BM right now (long-time AMEX customer), what are the best AMEX bonuses going at the moment?
so if i transfer 50,000 points to avios then I get 50,000 avios miles? thats only good for british airways?
@sam the man:
Nope.
i dont know how i missed the 100k platinum anyway of still getting it i just snagged the gold business 75k ty
@need to know:
Call Recon and explain why I want each of the cards for their benefits provided and the differences between them.
@mike:
Chase doesn’t ask for tax returns like AMEX does occasionally.
it’s not a good idea to apply for this card (or any American Express card for that matter) if you don’t have income on the books. would you say someone with no income will have a easier time with chase cards
I have applied for different chase visa and MC and I am declined due to the numerous credit checks that occured. Any solution? I just applied for the AMEX business for 75 k miles and was told that they need to evaluate my credit.
How do you get so many cards from AMEX and Chase?
@Gold:
Highly unlikely.
@eli:
Nope.
http://www.britishairways.com/travel/execenrol/public/en_us?source=about_the_club
@abe:
This is the Business Gold.
If you have a Consumer Platinum then getting a Business Gold is not a problem.
how do i apply for the gold card?
but i already have the Platinum….
so its not going to be a problem to get the 75,000 Points?
seems like i have to live in united kingdom to sign up for avios?
dan just got mines less then 2 months ago any way shape or form them matching this 75,000 offer?
@eli:
BA.com
@usher:
Yes.
@abe:
Yes.
i already singned up for the Amex Platinum card for the 100K Points can i also apply for this card and get the Points??
@eli:
Google it!
also it says in the electronic letter, that it was cancelled because i submitted duplicate applications, should i still call? (and make up a reason why i want 2)
how do i sign up for avios?
thank you dan, just want to make sure i give them the app ID and dont mention anything about the other app?
@Yaakov:
Nope.
@usher:
Call Recon right away when that happens.
@tova:
What was the outcome of the FR?
Dan I signed up for this card in the summer and had a financial review. Should re-apply?
i tried the 2BM, on my wife’s name, one was approved and one is pending, if i go to app status the one that is pending says cancelled, is this a common experience?
i want to do a 2BM on my name now, did i do something wrong?
For a 2 or 3BM, do they all need to be business cards?
@Joey:
Yes.
Thanks Dan! the same method works with domestic flights? because i have had no luck there either
@Joey:
That’s peak season for Argentina.
You can look for sAAver award availability for a month at a time on AA.com and when you find something plugin the dates to BA.com
I was looking for a flight for February
I tried about a month ago to go to Argentina from NY
@d90:
Yes.
@d90:
People have passed with personal income as they are want to have a business card to keep track of expenses for their side ebay business they’re starting, etc.
@Joey:
I’ve had excellent luck, what route are you trying for?
in regards to the American flights using Avios points, is there usually availability. Because I have tried many times for different destinations and never find flights at all. It could be not searching right? or is there very limited flights?
…or is some legit business info required for the biz card? iE will showing $XX,XXX of personal-only income not cut it?
What is required to “show income on the books” for possible FR? A copy of last year’s tax return info?
@milechazzer:
I’m always a Starwood fan.
Premier Gold is a great free first year card as well.
Any recommendations for other Amex offers/cards with the best current promotions (to apply for at the same time)? thx
@Brian:
Incognito worked. Thanks!
@john:
Read the post.
@yitz:
Read the post.
@mr magoo:
That means you can’t take the card to a bank and ask for a cash advance.
@Thingywingy:
Some people have reported that. As I write in the post don’t apply if you have no income. Otherwise you should be fine.
@Max:
Vanilla Reload
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/24892
@Brian: Already tried 3 browsers. Will try other browsers.
@Sam: cleared my ink bold and plus bonuses with VR, just cleard MB Plat 1K over the weekened and bough 2K on SPG personal last week.
Is this app a trigger for FR?
http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=14451.msg396273#msg396273
Dan- it has to be 10k in “eligable purchases” do you know what they mean by that? like would they chap onto going to cvs and getting the gift cards…etc?
@Aryeh:
What does VR stand for?
is there a min spending amount to get the free points or is it automatic??
@Aryeh:
How many VRs have you bought?
@Aryeh:
“Having problems seeing card offers? Getting a “card not available†or other error message? Read this!
1. Try using another browser (IE, Firefox, or Chrome) to see the offer.
2. You can try deleting your browser’s cache and cookies to see the offers. To do so just hold down the Ctrl, Shift, and Delete buttons on your keyboard and then delete your cache and cookies.
3. You can also try browsing “incognito†or “in-private†to see the offers. In IE and Firefox you can access this mode by holding down Ctrl, Shift, and P buttons on your keyboard. In Chrome you can access this mode by holding down Ctrl, Shift, and N. Then just return to DansDeals.com and click on the card offer you want.
-Just fill out the standard application. Don’t click for the shorter existing cardmember application or you may not get the best offer.”
Can I sign up even without a business?
@yoknee:
As long as you don’t do crazy amounts at once, we’ve had good results with VR.
@Donald:
As long as you have another MR card you won’t lose them. If you do not you have 30-60 days to use the points or transfer them.
Getting an error when I click yes i have a card or when i go through process and hit apply – anyone else getting error?
“We are sorry.
Currently, our systems are not responding. Please try again later or call us at 1-800-519-OPEN (6736) to apply for a Card. We apologize for any inconvenience.
To learn more about other flexible solutions you can use to manage and grow your business, please return to American Express OPENSM”
@yitz1:
Might being the operative word. Seems to be YMMV: http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/27911
@yoknee:
I’m no prophet, it’s not like if you do X you will for sure be asked for your tax return. But it’s always good to have some level income on the books if possible. People have passed reviews with just $5K of income.
@Joel L.:
Nope, AMEX doesn’t match.
@Bob:
Sure there is, just look on the right-hand side.
Officially no, but YMMV.
@Donald:
If you have another AMEX charge card open you can move the points to that card.
Or else you can transfer them to an airline or sell them to anyone else.
Quick question, I’m new to this. What do you do when the year is up and you don’t want to pay the $175 fee? Can you cancel the card and still have those points earned? Thanks
Hi,
on the application there is no mention that you will get 75k, if i had the in the last 12 months will I get bonus points?
Signed up last month 50k 3 month spend 5,000
Can i have them match me to this offer?
Will I get shut down if I by vr with my amex
Good offer. I just signed up for the same thing last month but with a 5k in 3 month spend requirement.
If you had this card in the last 12 month you might not be eligible.