Strategy to obtain US Amex

[Tiki]

Thanks for the tip. It seems like you need a salary, pension etc paid in. Any idea of a transfer from another bank counts? It doesn't read that way.

My transfers from Wise count as ACH to keep my B of A account fee free. I think other banks would be the same.

 

[maverick1]

Thanks for the tip. It seems like you need a salary, pension etc paid in. Any idea of a transfer from another bank counts? It doesn't read that way.

Lot of people on DOC comment section have indicated that they got the bonus even after doing regular transfers from other banks. I transferred 250 once from my HSBC US checkin account which coded as web transfer on my statement and did the 2nd 250 from IBKR which coded as Direct Deposit. Even though the offer conditions state 2 X 250 of DD, it seems bank transfers just work fine. The bonus usually gets credited within a week's time.

 

[maverick1]

Adding a DP - Amex Biz Hilton which earns 6X points on airline spend, also coded 6X points for spends at Qantas Wine.
Also, taxes paid on reward flights on Sing, Qantas & Virgin coded at 6X, which was expected but adding here just incase someone had a question.

 

[jbmemories]

There are some airlines that don't utilise 'points.com' to distribute their loyalty points - but rather an in-house system. Some companies like Qantas or Virgin just keep everything in-house, so the Amex cataloging will viewpoints and wine purchases as 'flight purchase from airline' instead

Those who are currently on the BA's avios subscription - if the Avios subscription is being issued by BA themselves, they could possibly double dip getting the Avios points and Amex MR points as bonus as well!

 

[timmy1234]

Well the staple diet for a US churner is the following.

One Chase Ink every three months: 110K UR per SUB with P2

One NLL Amex Biz Plat every three months: 125-200K MR per SUB

One NLL Amex Biz Gold every three months: 90-130K MR per SUB

Intersperse with Citi/Barclays AA cards, BoA AS cards, C1 Venture/VX & any particularly attractive Amex/Chase personal cards. Main aim is to remain under 5/24 & not push beyond these velocity limits.

Did you call the Amex Biz line to get the 200K MR offer (Plat) or the 130K MR (Gold). Wow you can spend at frequency, u could earn a ton of points

 

[levelnine]

Did you call the Amex Biz line to get the 200K MR offer (Plat) or the 130K MR (Gold). Wow you can spend at frequency, u could earn a ton of points

Yes, calling up the Amex Small Biz phone line is the best way for your first Biz Plat/Gold card. After that, you have to hunt for NLL offers. They appear pretty regularly in the online banking portal.

 

[larrymull]

What do people use as a mailing address for Capital One CC? When I put my address in on the application it comes back with 'We can't accept a P.O. Box, P.O. Box Street Address (PBSA), Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA) address, or other similar addresses where mail is delivered for periodic pick-up on a credit card application. Please try again using your physical address.'

 

[jbmemories]

Yes, calling up the Amex Small Biz phone line is the best way for your first Biz Plat/Gold card. After that, you have to hunt for NLL offers. They appear pretty regularly in the online banking portal.

Are you calling and keeping the card for a year? (I.e., paying for SUB purchase + AF X 4?, if every 3 months)

The US cards tend to claw back if you cancel if less than 1 year of having the card.

I am assuming you're setting up 'multiple businesses' to qualify for these multiple SUB as well?

 

[levelnine]

Are you calling and keeping the card for a year? (I.e., paying for SUB purchase + AF X 4?, if every 3 months)

The US cards tend to claw back if you cancel if less than 1 year of having the card.

I am assuming you're setting up 'multiple businesses' to qualify for these multiple SUB as well?

Always keep the card open for a year. No way to avoid the AF with US cards. For every card I sign up for, I calculate how much it is costing me to buy the points (ie AF + exchange rate loss) and I work out whether that's good value or not. For the Biz Plats, the cost is generally low because you can offset the AF with the credits (ie cash out the Dell and airline credits). Not so with the Biz Gold, which means I only churn it when I'm hitting velocity limits with other cards.

That's why I prefer Chase over Amex. For the Ink Preferred, $USD95 for 140,000UR +1% exchange rate loss on the min spend of $USD8K = $AUD275/140,000 = $AUD0.002 per point. Absolutely incredible value. Even if you cash them out for $USD1c per point, you're making over $AUD1,800 per card. But obviously the real value lies in transferring to partners where you can easily get 2-5x as much value as that.

It also helps that Chase is Visa (accepted everywhere) and has way better customer support.

No, all done with the same sole proprietorship. No need to set up multiple businesses with US cards.

 

[Tiki]

I agree, Chase has by far the best credit cards so it's good to stay under 5/24 so you can get a couple of them each year. My only Amex right now is the HH Surpass mostly for the Priority Pass. And if I get a Cap 1 Venture X next year, I can downgrade the Amex to the free HH card and wait to be targetted for an upgrade. I am just worried if I can get approved for Cap 1 as their pre-approval page only offers me secured cards. This with almost 40 years of perfect credit history in the USA! As long as the $300 travel credit can be used efficiently, it and other benefits negate the $395 annual fee plus it gives Priority Pass.

 

[Tiki]

I just found a Venture X specific Pre-approval page. This is different from the generic Cap 1 Pre-approval. Get Pre-Approved for a Capital One Credit Card | Capital One

I was not pre-approved but at least I know why and can make decisions based on this.

So with no good Amex cards on offer and probably still in pop-up jail and being 5/24 for Chase I may be stuck until next year when I drop below 5/24.

Citi is still a mystery, their pre-approval tool has been down for weeks (that I know of, maybe longer). Citibank Online

After scrolling down the report, there are more details. My CSP is at 18% utilization, I last opened an account with Barclays AAviator in May and have 2 inquires in the last year.

Time since most recent account opening is too short
Lack of recent installment loan information
Too many inquiries last 12 months
Proportion of balances to credit limits on bank/national revolving or other revolving accounts is too high

Rest assured, the form you submitted was not a credit card application and your credit score was not affected.

Here are the reasons why we couldn't match you with an offer:​

• Based on your credit report from one or more of the agencies below, there are too many revolving accounts

Please make sure to save and/or print this notice for your records as it may not be available after this page expires or if you navigate to another page. For your security, this page will expire after 20 minutes of no activity.

We know this isn't the answer you were hoping for, but we hope there is an opportunity to provide you with new products and services in the future.

Creditor: Capital One, N.A. P.O. Box 30280, Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0230

 

[levelnine]

Citi

If you're looking for a card, the Citi AA Biz apparently is fairly easy to get (though no guarantees). And doesn't add to your 5/24 count. I'm going to be applying for it for the first time in a few weeks because I really want some AA miles (for EY given Aeroplan no longer has access to them and there's no indication when they'll be coming back).

 

[georgie23]

No, all done with the same sole proprietorship. No need to set up multiple businesses with US cards.

I am in process of applying for ITIN - can this be used for business cards as a sole prop?

 

[DC3]

What do people use as a mailing address for Capital One CC? When I put my address in on the application it comes back with 'We can't accept a P.O. Box, P.O. Box Street Address (PBSA), Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA) address, or other similar addresses where mail is delivered for periodic pick-up on a credit card application. Please try again using your physical address.'

Can you let us know what sort of address it is that you are trying to use? Is it MyUS? Is it different to your Capital One checking account address?

 

[Tiki]

If you're looking for a card, the Citi AA Biz apparently is fairly easy to get (though no guarantees). And doesn't add to your 5/24 count. I'm going to be applying for it for the first time in a few weeks because I really want some AA miles (for EY given Aeroplan no longer has access to them and there's no indication when they'll be coming back).

I'm good with AA for now. What I need are TK and Avios. Avios are only 42,500 economy to Istanbul. AA doesn't partner with Latam since they joined up with DL so I can't use them for a future trip to South America either.

 

[timmy1234]

If you're looking for a card, the Citi AA Biz apparently is fairly easy to get (though no guarantees). And doesn't add to your 5/24 count. I'm going to be applying for it for the first time in a few weeks because I really want some AA miles (for EY given Aeroplan no longer has access to them and there's no indication when they'll be coming back).

Interesting to know as a data point on what info they ask for your application.

 

[Sora]

What do people use as a mailing address for Capital One CC? When I put my address in on the application it comes back with 'We can't accept a P.O. Box, P.O. Box Street Address (PBSA), Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA) address, or other similar addresses where mail is delivered for periodic pick-up on a credit card application. Please try again using your physical address.'

I use my brothers for anything, since he lives in LA

 

[DC3]

I use my brothers for anything, since he lives in LA

So, you’re good.

 

[maverick1]

I just found a Venture X specific Pre-approval page. This is different from the generic Cap 1 Pre-approval. Get Pre-Approved for a Capital One Credit Card | Capital One

I was not pre-approved but at least I know why and can make decisions based on this.

So with no good Amex cards on offer and probably still in pop-up jail and being 5/24 for Chase I may be stuck until next year when I drop below 5/24.

Citi is still a mystery, their pre-approval tool has been down for weeks (that I know of, maybe longer). Citibank Online

After scrolling down the report, there are more details. My CSP is at 18% utilization, I last opened an account with Barclays AAviator in May and have 2 inquires in the last year.

I tried using the pre approval link for C1 both with US VPN and non VPN but it keeps saying site can't be reached.

 

[blacksultan]

I am in process of applying for ITIN - can this be used for business cards as a sole prop?

Yes