Apply Citi Cards Under Old Terms Before August 28th

For those of you who aren’t quite familiar with Citi’s new Credit Card Rule which prioritizes approval based on when you opened or closed a Citi Credit Card and it’s categorized family. There’s a new language on their applications regarding limiting bonuses by product line.

Although, this is quite considerably, the worst news we’ve heard from Citi so far, it’s refreshing to say the least that we have confirmed that Citi’s new terms won’t come through until August 28, 2016. You will have until then to apply for a card that still applies under the Old Terms, otherwise, you’ll have to wait another 2 years or so to apply for the same card after the new term is integrated.

Editor’s Note: Citi does limit us to applying for one card per 8 days and two cards per 65-days!!!

Citi Card Limits Summary:

• New rule starts on August 28th
• Maximum of one Citi application per eight day period
• Cant have more than two applications per 65 day period
• Cant have more than one business application per 95 day period
• Opening OR Closing a credit card will result in resetting the Citi 24-month Clock Period

Citi’s New Terms:

Given the overall perspective of this Rule, it’d be best to prioritize all the better credit cards to apply for first.

The product lines that contain the new language are:

• Expedia+
• AAdvantage
• Hilton HHonors
• ThankYou
• AT&T

ThankYou Cards

• ThankYou Preferred – Currently no known Bonus
• ThankYou Premier – Currently no known Bonus
• Citi Prestige – 40K after $4K spend.

ThankYou Business Cards

CitiBusiness ThankYou Card – 20K after $3K Spend (can only open in-branch)

Editor’s Note: Considering that there’s currently no bonus for the ThankYou Preferred or Premier, this should be an easy decision. Of course, there will be some implemented changes to the Prestige occurring next July, but as of right now, you will still get all the attractive benefits and perks of the prestige. Note that business cards are based on a different approval system.

AAdvantage

• AAdvantage Executive – 60K after $5K spend
• AAdvantage Platinum – 50K after $3K spend
• AAdvantage Gold – 25K after $750 spend

AAdvantage Business

CitiBusiness / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® MasterCard® – 50K after $3K Spend

Editor’s Note:  Between the three, I recommend the AAdvantage Platinum considering the bearable annual fee and tons of rewards benefits, but if you’re a big spender and you enjoy the Admiral Club Membership benefits, then the Executive could be a better option for you. It’s funny mentioning this because this is the dreadful card family that many of us in the points and miles game are pointing to for all of these changes from Citi lately, but now could be the last time in a while that you can pick up a AAdvantage card. Note that business cards are based on a different approval system.

Hilton HHonors

• HHonors Visa Signature – 75K after $2K spend
• HHonors Reserve – 2 free weekend nights + $100 statement credit

Editor’s Note:  The 75,000 Bonus Points on a no annual fee card is all the more attractive. This is a good idea if you want to grab more points while you can. Now, the reserve on the other hand is a completely more useful card in my perspective considering that you’ll receive two free nights stays, an annual anniversary bonus, no foreign transaction fees, no points cap and more. The annual fee on the Reserve is $95, which could be detrimental regarding your decision between the two. I could imagine most individuals opening both the VISA Signature and the Reserve “Double Hilton Card Strategy,” but be sure to do that prior to the New Term’s Implementation Date.

Expedia+

• Expedia+ Voyager – 25K after $2K spend
• Expedia+ Card – 15K after $1K spend

Editor’s Note:  In all honesty, none of these cards really offer anything, even with both cards opened at the same time. You can always get one or the other of these cards after the new terms applies . I recommend that you shift your focus on other programs that will allow you to get rewarded for multiple cards within the same family.

AT&T ThankYou

• AT&T Access More – No known application
• AT&T Access – 10,000 bonus points after $1,000 spend

Editor’s Note:  Now, considering that there is no known application links for the AT&T Access More Credit Card, I still would recommend that you wait it out until there’s a valid application available. The lesser Access card is quite frankly not worth it if I have to wait a whopping 2 years to sign-up for the AT&T Access More.

Author’s Verdict:

Firstly, I want to point out that Citi does limit us to applying for one card per 8 days and two cards per 65-days. This could be quite the hindrance considering that Citi’s New Terms will be implemented in a given 15 days (August 28, 2016). The biggest advice I can offer is that you must prioritize your cards and their respective bonuses prior to applying for it.

I recommend that you only do what you are comfortable with and try to integrate your own values into making a decision regarding a card. 2 years is a dreadfully long time just to apply for a credit card in the same product line again, so all-in-all, we’re hoping that this list will help you plan prior to the new terms. Don’t forget to also check out our full list of Citi Card Promotions as well as other  Credit Card Promotions today!