Strategy to obtain US Amex

[levelnine]

Has anyone worked out the pattern as to what airfares appear on Amex's International Airline Program page?

For example, for SYD-LHR on Qantas, it will show airfares via PER & SIN on QF metal as well as EK codeshares. However, for MEL-LHR on Qantas, it almost always only shows EK codeshares — the appearance of QF metal is fairly rare.

 

[Tiki]

I was buying Activ gift cards at Officeworks with my Chase Ink Cash for 5x and using those to pay my bills but I stopped this for now while the AUD is crashing. I would only do it for making the minimum spend.

 

[djchuckles]

I was buying Activ gift cards at Officeworks with my Chase Ink Cash for 5x and using those to pay my bills but I stopped this for now while the AUD is crashing. I would only do it for making the minimum spend.

The $500 ones I assume? Are they usually in good supply?

 

[blacksultan]

The $500 ones I assume? Are they usually in good supply?

Good supply and actually you get $1000 ones . Approx $10 fee .

 

[nthd_nthd]

Good supply and actually you get $1000 ones . Approx $10 fee .

Other Than Chase, any of Amex Biz got multiply with Officeworks? I just have Amex Biz Gold and biz Platinum. Still learning on how best to utilize my Amex cards and Chase Preferred.

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 5:25 PM

Great DP for me.

I pay quote a range of bills using post billpay via paypal pay in 4, as this counts as an "online" transaction and I get double points on a Citi Premier CC in Australia. (all paypal pay in4 counts as "online" for Citi Premier)

Paypal says that I am paying "Australian Postal Corporation" each time I do this.

I've noticed that award wallet says "Australian Postal Corpo Melbourne" codes as shipping and gives 3x points on Chase Ink Business Preferred.

Anyone want to give this a go? Potential 3x points back on literally every bill.

 

[cathalm8]

Hi guys. Will be applying for my first chase card shortly and doing my research first. Have searched upthread for comments already.

I am currently on 3/24 with 13 months credit history, but average age of credit history is just 10 months. Fico score around 730. I have a chase checking account since February 2024. I have a SSN.

Assume I am close to being able to try an application? Is there any negative to trying and being denied?

Few questions I have:

1. Should I use a VPN whilst applying?
2. I should use a referral link. Where can I find these?
3. Ive read it is important to have a copy of credit report, county of address etc for answering questions during assessment. Where can I get my credit report?
4. Does the card come activated? I will get the physical card sent to a friend in US. Can I simply add it to google pay and start using for tapping in Aus? Can i start using it straight away for online purchases in Aus? Or do I need the card forwarded before I can activate it use it?
5. Read conflicting DP's on getting 1st card expedited to Aus, unsure if I should try this or even need to considering I can get the card details remotely?
6. Read conflicting DP's on whether Tello will work for the ID verification during assessment but hoping it works for me.
7. I haven’t settled on best strategy to maximise my 5/24 slots. I am thinking of potentially going for a personal chase card first followed by a business card. Is it better to go for a personal card before a chase business card? Unsure on what the best cards are yet which suit my needs as well so more research to do.
8. If applying for business card have details of what I submitted in the application ready.

Thanks in advance for any comments or advice.

 

[blacksultan]

hi ,

Will answer some of your questions online .

Hi guys. Will be applying for my first chase card shortly and doing my research first. Have searched upthread for comments already.

I am currently on 3/24 with 13 months credit history, but average age of credit history is just 10 months. Fico score around 730. I have a chase checking account since February 2024.

Assume I am close to being able to try an application? Is there any negative to trying and being denied?

Few questions I have:

1. Should I use a VPN whilst applying?

Didn’t need to use . Haven’t heard of it being helpful .

1. I should use a referral link. Where can I find these

I can DM you the same .

1. Ive read it is important to have a copy of credit report, county of address etc for answering questions during assessment. Where can I get my credit report?

Try core credit by Equifax .

1. Does the card come activated? I will get the physical card sent to a friend in US. Can I simply add it to google pay and start using for tapping in Aus? Can i start using it straight away for online purchases in Aus? Or do I need the card forwarded before I can activate it use it?

advisable to use physical card and not phone wallets for first transaction to avoid fraud blockages .

1. Read conflicting DP's on getting 1st card expedited to Aus, unsure if I should try this or even need to considering I can get the card details remotely?

Again may not be possible and if it is will likely cause fraud alert .

1. Read conflicting DP's on whether Tello will work for the ID verification during assessment but hoping it works for me.
2. I haven’t settled on best strategy to maximise my 5/24 slots. I am thinking of potentially going for a personal chase card first followed by a business card. Is it better to go for a personal card before a chase business card? Unsure on what the best cards are yet which suit my needs as well so more research to do.

Possibly personal first . Business cards do not take up a 5/24 slot .you do need to be below 5/24 to apply for one though .

1. If applying for business card have details of what I submitted in the application ready.

Thanks in advance for any comments or advice.

A lot of the verification questions are irrelevant questions to which the answer will be no .

 

[djchuckles]

hi ,

Will answer some of your questions online .

Didn’t need to use . Haven’t heard of it being helpful .

I can DM you the same .

Try core credit by Equifax .


advisable to use physical card and not phone wallets for first transaction to avoid fraud blockages .

Again may not be possible and if it is will likely cause fraud alert .


Possibly personal first . Business cards do not take up a 5/24 slot .you do need to be below 5/24 to apply for one though .


A lot of the verification questions are irrelevant questions to which the answer will be no .

Interesting on the Biz Card front. So if your first Chase personal card is your 5/24, you can’t apply for subsequent business? (I have HSBC, Amex Gold, Hilton Surpass and Aspire so was planing on CSP next and then one of the Ink business cards - but sounds like i might need to rethink)

 

[blacksultan]

Interesting on the Biz Card front. So if your first Chase personal card is your 5/24, you can’t apply for subsequent business? (I have HSBC, Amex Gold, Hilton Surpass and Aspire so was planing on CSP next and then one of the Ink business cards - but sounds like i might need to rethink)

Yes . Until you drop below 5/24 .

Post automatically merged: Today at 11:35 AM

Yes . Until you drop below 5/24 .

Maybe give it a try for a biz card first . Can’t hurt I suppose .

 

[djchuckles]

Yes . Until you drop below 5/24 .

Post automatically merged: Today at 11:35 AM

Maybe give it a try for a biz card first . Can’t hurt I suppose .

Good idea - didn’t think of that!!

 

[_TheTraveller_]

Hi guys. Will be applying for my first chase card shortly and doing my research first. Have searched upthread for comments already.

I am currently on 3/24 with 13 months credit history, but average age of credit history is just 10 months. Fico score around 730. I have a chase checking account since February 2024. I have a SSN.

Assume I am close to being able to try an application? Is there any negative to trying and being denied?

Few questions I have:

1. Should I use a VPN whilst applying?
2. I should use a referral link. Where can I find these?
3. Ive read it is important to have a copy of credit report, county of address etc for answering questions during assessment. Where can I get my credit report?
4. Does the card come activated? I will get the physical card sent to a friend in US. Can I simply add it to google pay and start using for tapping in Aus? Can i start using it straight away for online purchases in Aus? Or do I need the card forwarded before I can activate it use it?
5. Read conflicting DP's on getting 1st card expedited to Aus, unsure if I should try this or even need to considering I can get the card details remotely?
6. Read conflicting DP's on whether Tello will work for the ID verification during assessment but hoping it works for me.
7. I haven’t settled on best strategy to maximise my 5/24 slots. I am thinking of potentially going for a personal chase card first followed by a business card. Is it better to go for a personal card before a chase business card? Unsure on what the best cards are yet which suit my needs as well so more research to do.
8. If applying for business card have details of what I submitted in the application ready.

Thanks in advance for any comments or advice.

1. Hit and Miss. I prefer to use a VPN but some others not. I would say go without a VPN.
   
   
2. I can DM you.
   
   
3. Equifax but not necessarily required. Most of the time they will ask you questions that are not relevant to your credit file. I would find out the county you current address and have a good idea of the cards you have and when you opened them. If you have changed addresses, then keep a note of where they were before and the county for them as well. Most of time they will ask you whether you had XYZ Loan and most of the time it will be no.
   
   
4. The card will not come activated. You will need to have the physical card first.
   
   
5. I would not recommend having your 1st card from Chase sent overseas. There is a chance that you could be flagged for fraud and secondary checks. Once you have received your card you can use the following link to create an account to activate. If it fails then you will need to call Chase to create an account and activate your card.
   
   

   Chase Account Setup with ITIN

   docs.google.com
6. YMMV. I think it works for 2FA but not for security checks by the team? I'm not sure. Never used Tello.
   
   
7. I would recommend personal -> business.
   
   
8. Yes but once you have a personal card, from my experiences, I haven't been asked in too much detail about my business etc.

 

[Boeyn]

Have spent many hours working my way through this thread over the last 12 months. It is an incredible resource, but one that you do need to put the hard yards in to read and fully comprehend. That is a good thing. Having seen TikTok finfluencers ruin countless loyalty program loopholes/edge cases in the last couple of years, I am very happy that the community has opted not to prepare an abridged guide to this thread (and that the occasional person who requested one up-thread was politely told to start reading from page 1).

I am travelling to the US next month, so am starting to put things into motion ahead of getting stateside. I've applied for a Green Card (via Amex GT) but, unsurprisingly, got the "Can we speak with you on the phone?" email and was asked to provide proof of residential address when I did.

Thankfully, I have family over in the US, so the typical address issues are practically much more straightforward for me. Unfortunately, I think I have left things too late to go down the HSBC route, so had to get a bit more creative. I provided copies of my US phone service invoice and a month -to-month renters/personal liability insurance policy I took out, which each list the address on them. I suspect neither would be enough by themselves, but am hoping the combination passes muster.

I got the idea of an insurance policy from looking at what BofA will accept as a 'utility bill' (so I think it should work for them when I open an account in a branch next month). I will update the thread when I hear back, but if it doesn't work, I'll fall back on a bank statement from HSBC/BofA.

To that end, I opened my AU HSBC account today and got HSBC Premier status straight away. Noting there have been some inconsistent DPs up-thread (from people who could apply for a US HSBC account instantly once becoming Premier vs having to wait 30 days), how does one actually go about opening a US HSBC account as an AU HSBC Premier customer? Do you do it through the AU online banking portal somehow? Or do you just go through the US HSBC website as if you were a new customer and they'll work it out in the background?

 

[sudoer]

month -to-month renters/personal liability insurance policy

Great idea. Might need to insure my MyUS suite

 

[pyramidforce]

Great idea. Might need to insure my MyUS suite

I looked into this (not too deeply) and found that you need a SSN to buy insurance? Or am I just completely off the mark

 

[georgie23]

They told me that too but in practice it took a few days.

I did one Dec 21 - It arrived in US Dec 28 - not bad over XMAS period

 

[cathalm8]

Have spent many hours working my way through this thread over the last 12 months. It is an incredible resource, but one that you do need to put the hard yards in to read and fully comprehend. That is a good thing. Having seen TikTok finfluencers ruin countless loyalty program loopholes/edge cases in the last couple of years, I am very happy that the community has opted not to prepare an abridged guide to this thread (and that the occasional person who requested one up-thread was politely told to start reading from page 1).

I am travelling to the US next month, so am starting to put things into motion ahead of getting stateside. I've applied for a Green Card (via Amex GT) but, unsurprisingly, got the "Can we speak with you on the phone?" email and was asked to provide proof of residential address when I did.

Thankfully, I have family over in the US, so the typical address issues are practically much more straightforward for me. Unfortunately, I think I have left things too late to go down the HSBC route, so had to get a bit more creative. I provided copies of my US phone service invoice and a month -to-month renters/personal liability insurance policy I took out, which each list the address on them. I suspect neither would be enough by themselves, but am hoping the combination passes muster.

I got the idea of an insurance policy from looking at what BofA will accept as a 'utility bill' (so I think it should work for them when I open an account in a branch next month). I will update the thread when I hear back, but if it doesn't work, I'll fall back on a bank statement from HSBC/BofA.

To that end, I opened my AU HSBC account today and got HSBC Premier status straight away. Noting there have been some inconsistent DPs up-thread (from people who could apply for a US HSBC account instantly once becoming Premier vs having to wait 30 days), how does one actually go about opening a US HSBC account as an AU HSBC Premier customer? Do you do it through the AU online banking portal somehow? Or do you just go through the US HSBC website as if you were a new customer and they'll work it out in the background?

I believe I contacted my relationship manager for HSBC Aus and they relayed the information on how to contact / apply for the USA HSBC account. It was a fiddly enough process from memory.

 

[Boeyn]

I looked into this (not too deeply) and found that you need a SSN to buy insurance? Or am I just completely off the mark

The first insurer I tried asked for a SSN before they would give me a quote, but the second one didn't (and has taken payment/issued the policy, so I suspect they won't ask about it now). Perhaps it's not a strict requirement, or depends on where they are domiciled? BTW, happy to update the thread with who I used once I hear back from AMEX (and/or if anyone wants to know now, happy to answer by PM).

I believe I contacted my relationship manager for HSBC Aus and they relayed the information on how to contact / apply for the USA HSBC account. It was a fiddly enough process from memory.

Thanks for this. I think HSBC has enhanced the Relationship Manager offering to the point where their identity is anonymous these days; but I might give the Premier number a call tomorrow and ask.

 

[blacksultan]

The first insurer I tried asked for a SSN before they would give me a quote, but the second one didn't (and has taken payment/issued the policy, so I suspect they won't ask about it now). Perhaps it's not a strict requirement, or depends on where they are domiciled? BTW, happy to update the thread with who I used once I hear back from AMEX (and/or if anyone wants to know now, happy to answer by PM).



Thanks for this. I think HSBC has enhanced the Relationship Manager offering to the point where their identity is anonymous these days; but I might give the Premier number a call tomorrow and ask.

Pls PM me details including minimum costs . Thanks .

 

[blacksultan]

The first insurer I tried asked for a SSN before they would give me a quote, but the second one didn't (and has taken payment/issued the policy, so I suspect they won't ask about it now). Perhaps it's not a strict requirement, or depends on where they are domiciled? BTW, happy to update the thread with who I used once I hear back from AMEX (and/or if anyone wants to know now, happy to answer by PM).



Thanks for this. I think HSBC has enhanced the Relationship Manager offering to the point where their identity is anonymous these days; but I might give the Premier number a call tomorrow and ask.

You can apply online thrpugh hsbc us website .