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Citi AA credit cards, except Executive. (2013-2014)

Old Jun 13, 2013, 2:57 pm
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This wiki is no longer being maintained/updated.

See the new thread & wiki at http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/citi-...24-months.html.

* * *


SEE NEW THREAD - 50K AA Cards


As of Sunday August 25, 2013:
Reports indicate personal cards can no longer be rapidly churned.

Click HERE to review the previous thread on this topic.

Recommended Application Procedure:
Clear cache and cookies prior to applying or use an incognito or private browsing session to apply. Opening multiple different apps in different windows or tabs or failing to clear cookies/cache has resulted in people receiving a lesser offer.

For information on the Executive version of this card, with $450 annual fee, not waived, see: Up to 100k miles Citi Executive AAdvantage offers

MOST CURRENT 50K LINKS:

Citi Personal and Business:50K miles & two Admirals Club one-day passes after $3000 spend in 3 months, $95 fee waived first year.

Citi AA Platinum Personal Mastercard, 50,000 miles after $3k spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. Landing page available here. This is a CHIP and Signature card.

Landing page for 50K Business and Personal MC requires $3K spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. This page leads to the following application pages:
Landing page for 50K Business and Personal MC after $3K spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. This page leads to the following application pages:
Landing page for 50K Business and Personal MC after $3K spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. This page leads to the following application pages:
Landing page for 50K Business MC after $3K spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. This page leads to this application page.

OTHER PERSONAL CARDS

Citi Platinum Select Mastercard. 30,000 miles after $1k spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. Up to $100 statement credit for AA purchases. Landing page available here.

Citi Platinum Select Mastercard. 30,000 miles after $1k spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year.

Citi Gold Mastercard. 25,000 miles after $750 spend in 3 months. $50 annual fee, waived first year. Landing page available here

If you are already a Citigold customer, read this post from the Miles Professor about another 50K offer from your branch office for the American Airlines credit card.

OTHER BUSINESS CARDS

Citi Business MasterCard. 40,000 miles after $3k spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. Landing page available here.

Citi Business Mastercard. 35,000 miles after $1.5k spend in 3 months.

Citi Business Mastercard. 30,000 miles after $1k spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. Landing page available here.

Citi Business Mastercard. 30,000 miles after $1k spend in 3 months. $95 annual fee, waived first year. Up to $100 statement credit for AA purchases. Landing page available here.


Citibank Contacts/Resources (Please add the others that you know)
  • Application status: https://www.accountonline.com/cards/...?screenID=3187
  • (800) 695-5171 Personal Application Status and Reconsideration Line with live rep
  • (800) 763-9795 General Personal Application Inquiries with live rep
  • (800) 645-7240 Business Application Status and Reconsideration Line, dial option 3 then option 1 for application status
  • (800) 288-4653 Business Application Status and Reconsideration Line, dial option 3 then option 1 for application status
  • (866) 606-2787 General Application and Account Questions with live rep
  • (888) 201-4523 Application status
  • (866) 606-2961 Reconsideration Line.
  • Twitter : @AskCiti. Very powerful tool.
  • Executive Office - useful for getting a more empowered agent for reconsideration purposes: CitiBank Executive Review Department, P.O. Box 6000, Sioux Falls, SD 57117

FAQ
  1. Are these AA cards churnable?
  2. What are the most current time-restriction rules in applying for all Citi cards?
  3. Do I need to close existing cards before applying?
  4. When should I close existing Citi accounts?
  5. Can I apply for a business card if I dont have a business?
  6. Can I buy Visa gift cards to meet my minimum spend?
  7. Do I get 10% back when redeeming miles for awards?
  8. Do I have to use my own AAdvantage number on applications?
  9. There is nothing on the application page stating the bonus miles. How do I know what I will be getting?
  10. When will my bonus miles post?
  11. I met the minimum spend. Why does my statement say "Miles Reported to AA: 0"?
  12. Can I cancel a card using secure messaging?
  13. I activated the card online and got a message about this card replacing an old card. What does that mean?
  14. Which credit bureau does Citi pull and can I force them to use a different one?

1. Are these AA cards churnable?
Yes and No. The general rules are:
  • Personal AA cards: As of August 25, 2013 all linked personal AA cards in this thread can be churned only after Citi decides that you are no longer an existing cardmember. This usually occurs between 12 and 26 months after your last successful AA personal card approval of any type including AA Executive card(s). If you want both a Platinum card and an Executive AA card and are eligible under the 12-26 month rule, get the Platinum card first or the Executive card will restart the clock. Although it is not a hard-and-fast rule, 18 months after previous approval is the most common. YMMV. You do not need to cancel old personal cards.
    • Note: You cannot circumvent this rule by applying for a card type different from your previous Citi AA card. If your last personal AA card was a Visa, the waiting period for your next personal AA card will be the same regardless of whether you apply for a Visa, MC, or Amex.

  • Business AA cards: have been churnable repeatedly by some people without restriction other than the general Citi application rules. Apply once every 91-95 days. For unknown reasons, some other people have been unable to churn business cards at all. Also, some (but not all) people need to completely cancel their previous business card (ie, cancel both the card account and the associated master account) before they can apply for another business card.

    Note: If you encounter difficulty in obtaining a Citi AA business card after holding one before, it may because of the unusual way Citi sets up business accounts. The business account per se has its own master number; like a standard MC/Visa, this master account number is 16 digits. In addition, each card on the account has its own 16-digit card number. Each of these numbers, including the number for the primary cardholder, is different from the master account number.

    Sometimes, when you call to close your card account, all the card numbers are canceled but the master account remains open. When this happens, subsequent applications for a business card may encounter difficulty. Online, there should be a dropdown of accounts under your business login; the number that match your card number is your card account, the number that does not match your card number is your master account. When cancelling, ask to cancel both accounts, giving the last 4 digts of each (as shown in that dropdown).


2. What are the most current time-restriction rules in applying for all Citi cards?
  • Only 1 Citi application of any kind per week (8 days to be safe).
  • No more than 2 Citi applications of any kind in 60 days (65 days to be safe).
  • No more than 1 Citi business application in 90 days (95 to be safe). This does not override the rules above.

While the day limits are a little flexible by a few days either way and YMMV, the rules themselves are not flexible. Note: In applying the rules above, count all Citi applications, including denials and/or applications for non-AA cards.

Mixed type Example:
Day 1 60K HHonors Visa
Day 9 or later 50K Personal Platinum Visa
Day 66 or later 50K Business #1
Day 74 or later 60K Executive
Day 161 or later 50K Business #2
18 Months, 74 days or later 50K Personal Platinum Visa

Not sure what day you applied? The date is written year, month, day in the application number: 201402280000 means you applied on Feb 28, 2014


3. Do I need to close existing cards before applying?
No. There is no requirement that you close previous personal accounts. People have reported having 4 or more of the exact same card. However, many people have reported problems getting AA Business cards if they have an open Business account.


4. When should I close existing Citi accounts?
This is a matter of personal preference. Citi cards can be closed immediately after receiving a bonus and paying off the balance. There are no verifiable reports of Citi clawing back miles (exception - miles were clawed back for returned merchandise around November 2011).

Reasons to keep accounts open:
  • Having large credit lines improves your utilization percentage.
  • Maintaining old cards improves average age of cards.
  • Credit lines can be moved from old cards to new cards.
  • Anecdotal evidence suggests that Citi counts the credit lines of recently-closed accounts for 3-6 months against your total available credit.
  • You can receive retention offers once every 6 months per card. See this thread for details on the latest retention offers.

Reasons to close accounts:
  • Having a large amount of available credit with Citi will eventually reduce your chances of instant approval. Your application will automatically be reviewed if your CL's total 75K or more. This may also result in a large disparity between existing account CL's and new CL's, such as 20K, 20K and 1K for a new card, as an example.
  • There is little incentive to pay an annual fee if it is not waived.
  • The annual fee on Business cards is rarely waived.
  • Having a large number of open Citi cards will show up on your credit report and may affect non-Citi applications as well as the overall age of your accounts.


5. Can I apply for a business card if I dont have a business?
Anyone can apply for a business card. You do not need a registered business with an EIN. If you do not have a business with an EIN or with bills/accounts in the business name, you can apply using your name as the business. The three possibilities are that: 1. You could be approved unconditionally, 2. You could be asked to fax a couple of bills or accounts (water, electricity, gas, cable, or phone bills, bank accounts, etc.) in the name of the business to Citi, or 3. You could be required to fill out and send a 4506-T tax form. Whatever you do do not make up income etc. about the business. Plenty of people have been issued cards for businesses with $0 annual revenue, 1-5 employees, and 0 years in business.


6. Can I buy Visa gift cards to meet my minimum spend?
Purchases from banks are almost always coded as a cash advance regardless of what they are for. Purchases from stores, e.g. CVS, are almost always coded as a purchase.
If you are concerned about it, its recommended to send a secure message Citi and have them set your Cash Advance limit to zero. Phone CSRs often say they can not do this.


7. Do I get 10% back when redeeming miles for awards?
It depends. First, the rebate program (which began in April 2012) applies only to holders of these cards:
  • Citi Platinum Select AAdvantage Visa Signature
  • Citi Platinum Select AAdvantage World MasterCard
  • Citi Platinum Select AAdvantage World Elite MasterCard
  • Citi Select AAdvantage American Express
It does not apply to the Citi Gold World MasterCard, Citi Executive products, or some of the Citi Business cards.

Also, the maximum rebate for any cardholder in a single calendar year is 10,000 miles. Having more than one qualifying Citi AA card will not allow you to receive a larger rebate; the restriction applies per AAdvantage account.

For more on the 10% rebate benefit, see Citi 10% miles back / rebate for reward redemption.


8. Do I have to use my own AAdvantage number on applications?
Yes. The name on the card application must match the name on the AAdvantage account. You cannot apply for multiple cards for different people and use the same AAdvantage account number. AA does not care or even know how many Citi accounts you have so there is no harm in having your AAdvantage account number associated with multiple cards in your name. If you forget to add your AAdvantage account number to your application, an AAdvantage account in your name will be created and can later be merged with your existing account by calling AA.


9. There is nothing on the application page stating the bonus miles. How do I know what I will be getting?
You need to have faith in the people here if you want to maximize your miles. The people on this board constantly apply for these cards and report back what they are told are the benefits and what they actually receive. The way Citi works is that if you are approved for a card, you will get the bonus associated with the link you applied under as long as you make the minimum spend. It does not matter if you already had the card or anything else. If you are approved - then you get the bonus. The two exceptions to this are: 1. If you fail to clear your cache and accidentally load a cached application, you get the miles associated with that application and 2. Some people have recently succeeded in 'bumping the bonus' by contacting Citi and requesting a match to a 50K offer after applying for a 40K card. If you don't feel like trusting in the experiences of others, then apply for an offer with a landing page.


10. When will my bonus miles post?
Two working days after the date of the statement containing the charge that takes you across the spend threshold. It posts overnight, it'll be there when you check your AAdvantage account in the morning.


11. I met the minimum spend. Why does my statement say "Miles Reported to AA: 0"?
No one knows exactly why this is happening to some people (Citi blames AA, AA blames Citi, and both blame the merger). It supposedly has something to do with the time it takes them to properly link your AAdvantage number to your card. There are two ways to deal with this:
  • Wait 1-2 statement periods, and see if the points post on their own. Per Citi, it can take this long for the accounts to link.
  • Call AA (1-800-882-8880) and open a case about it. Most people have had their miles post within 2 weeks of doing this.

For ongoing discussion, see Some AA Citi Card miles not transferred to AAdvantage accounts [Q3 2013 - Q1 2014]


12. Can I cancel a card using secure messaging?
Yes, assuming you have set up the credit card in your Citi account. Quick and easy.


13. I activated the card online and got a message about this card replacing an old card. What does that mean?
When activating cards online, Citi normally displays the text:

"This account replaces your old account, which is now closed. Statements for your old account will be available for up to 6 months. Your current account summary and unbilled transactions are now listed under your new account number."
This is normal and is supposed to be displayed when activating a replacement card but it seems to display even when activating a brand new card. This is nothing to worry about.


14. Which credit bureau does Citi pull and can I force them to use a different one?
Citi appears to use Experian most frequently, followed by Equifax. For some people they pull both. It depends on where you are located. You can check the Credit Boards database to see where card issuers have pulled recently.

For the most part, freezing Experian, or another bureau, will not cause Citi to pull a different bureau. They will almost certainly require you to unfreeze the bureau they wish to pull or deny your application. Some people have been successful providing the PIN but others have not. Mostly, freezing a credit bureau in an attempt to force Citi to pull a different one seems to waste time, money, and effort for little result. But YMMV.

For one person's experiences with various card issuers, check here.


For rules and info on any offers that include Admirals club passes or statement credits, see here.
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Citi AA credit cards, except Executive. (2013-2014)

Old Jul 7, 2014, 7:32 am
  #4801  
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Originally Posted by TheSandman83
"You already have the maximum number of accounts that can be issued to an individual."
Originally Posted by x712xdamx
Crazy. Definitely couldn't be maximum number of accounts as I've been approved for new personal cards with up to 8 open currently.
Yes, it could, because despite the poor phrasing, it's not the same number for everyone, it's a very variable number that's related to what they saw on the credit report(s).

Welcome to FlyerTalk, TheSandman83, but without knowing anything about your credit history / profile (overall, not just at Citi), it's hard to judge why they gave you that reason.
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Old Jul 7, 2014, 1:18 pm
  #4802  
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I recently applied for an AA business card & had a slightly unusual experience.

Short version: If, after submitting your online application, you receive a message to the effect of "we are unable to approve your application at this time," it's not necessarily a denial. And if you call recon & they say they can't find your application, wait 48 hours & then call back.

Long version: I applied online Friday evening & got one of those ambiguously negative messages stating that Citi was unable to approve me. I called a couple different app status lines. The US rep claimed her system had real-time info, but was showing no application; overseas CSR also saw no new application, but advised waiting 24-48 hours for their system to update.

I checked again over the weekend; same answers. (At this point I triple-checked compliance with 8/65 rule -- all good -- and reconfirmed that I'd shut down the master account on my last business card.)

Called earlier today & US rep could not only see the app, but advised that I was approved. I was ready to close an older Citi Hilton card to reduce their exposure, but it never came to that.

I have to say I'm very surprised by the lag in application visibility. Some weeks ago I applied for a personal Citi Hilton card, got the "can't approve you" message, and called immediately. In that case, the recon specialist was able to see the application with no difficulty.

It's clear that Citi has separate systems for personal vs. business apps. (Phone rep confirmed that today.) Do we have other data points on whether business apps are invisible to recon for a few days after application?
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Old Jul 7, 2014, 7:49 pm
  #4803  
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 2,113
Folks
I read the wiki but had a question. I've not applied for any Citi card in 24 months. Can I now apply for both platinum personal and citi business (each offer has 50k miles) on the same day using two browsers?

Thx
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Old Jul 7, 2014, 8:04 pm
  #4804  
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Originally Posted by sam007
Folks
I read the wiki but had a question. I've not applied for any Citi card in 24 months. Can I now apply for both platinum personal and citi business (each offer has 50k miles) on the same day using two browsers?
You can apply -- and your second application will fail. Per the wiki:
2. What are the most current time-restriction rules in applying for all Citi cards?
Only 1 Citi application of any kind per week (8 days to be safe).
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Old Jul 8, 2014, 10:10 pm
  #4805  
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2,055
Originally Posted by sam007
Folks
I read the wiki but had a question. I've not applied for any Citi card in 24 months. Can I now apply for both platinum personal and citi business (each offer has 50k miles) on the same day using two browsers?

Thx
Your best bet is likely: Day 0, 50K Personal. Day 8, 50K Business. Day 60(65), 100K Exec if you can pull off the $10K spend in <30 days or 3 months if you think the benefits are worth $450.
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Old Jul 9, 2014, 6:46 am
  #4806  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
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Just got that offer for 2 lounge passes if you spend $1250 by 9/30/14. Anyone know if Amazon (Payments) will count towards Electronics, Office Supply, Dept Stores or Clothing?

Last edited by Songer5; Jul 9, 2014 at 7:18 am
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Old Jul 9, 2014, 1:11 pm
  #4807  
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Originally Posted by Songer5
Just got that offer for 2 lounge passes if you spend $1250 by 9/30/14. Anyone know if Amazon (Payments) will count towards Electronics, Office Supply, Dept Stores or Clothing?
No. Tried AMZN actual purchase before and failed. That was on the TYP Citi card but I think the classification of merchants is the same across all citicards.

Therefore I am fairly confident the AMZN Payment would be a no go.

Also the OfficeMax or Staples only work for office supplies, not electronic stores either.

I guess you could use BBY and get your AMZN GCs there. BBY should qualify as electronic store.

Last edited by Happy; Jul 9, 2014 at 8:33 pm
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Old Jul 9, 2014, 5:57 pm
  #4808  
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Originally Posted by Songer5
Just got that offer for 2 lounge passes if you spend $1250 by 9/30/14.
It's not one offer. It's got targeted variations. Mine is just $600, with gas, grocery, restaurants, and dept stores IIRC. Mine says that dept stores does not include discount stores, and means physical stores with different departments for different items, or something like that. Now I know they mean it doesn't Ross Dress for Less, and it does count Macy's, but I'm still not clear on whether it counts Walmart!

And of course, a payments processor does count as any of these! Wny would it???
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Old Jul 9, 2014, 8:32 pm
  #4809  
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Originally Posted by sdsearch
It's not one offer. It's got targeted variations. Mine is just $600, with gas, grocery, restaurants, and dept stores IIRC. Mine says that dept stores does not include discount stores, and means physical stores with different departments for different items, or something like that. Now I know they mean it doesn't Ross Dress for Less, and it does count Macy's, but I'm still not clear on whether it counts Walmart!

And of course, a payments processor does count as any of these! Wny would it???
WalMart/KMart/Target are not counted as Dept Stores by virtually all 3 major card issuers based on experiences, and no definition language to go by (remember how we went back and forth on the AS card's Retail purchase?...) dont know the like such as Barclays or Discover.
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Old Jul 9, 2014, 9:14 pm
  #4810  
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Originally Posted by Happy
WalMart/KMart/Target are not counted as Dept Stores by virtually all 3 major card issuers based on experiences, and no definition language to go by (remember how we went back and forth on the AS card's Retail purchase?...) dont know the like such as Barclays or Discover.
Correct. Citi classifies Target as a grocery store.
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Old Jul 10, 2014, 12:13 pm
  #4811  
swy
 
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I just applied for my 2nd CitiBusiness AA credit card, after closing the previous one 3-4 months ago (I have had it for about 1.5 years). I didn't get the instant approval and called back a day later and found that it was declined The customer service rep said it was because I have had a previous card within 18 months.

Am I one of those people who can't churn business card, as mentioned in the FAQ? If so, what can I do? My credit score is good and I rarely get declined. Thanks!
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Old Jul 10, 2014, 12:32 pm
  #4812  
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Originally Posted by beltway
Correct. Citi classifies Target as a grocery store.
Even those without grocery sections?

And does the same thing hold true for Walmart?

(My promo includes both department stores and grocery stores. )
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Old Jul 10, 2014, 12:34 pm
  #4813  
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Originally Posted by swy
I just applied for my 2nd CitiBusiness AA credit card, after closing the previous one 3-4 months ago (I have had it for about 1.5 years).
You didn't explain: Did you close just the card account, or did you close both the card account and the "master" account?

If you didn't do the latter (which you make no mention of doing), it's not really closed!

Originally Posted by swy
The customer service rep said it was because I have had a previous card within 18 months.
Customer service reps at Citi often don't give the real reason. The real reason may only be on the snail mail letter you'll get (in a little while).
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Old Jul 10, 2014, 2:09 pm
  #4814  
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Originally Posted by beltway
Correct. Citi classifies Target as a grocery store.
Ditto for the WMT super center too. I saw the WMGC bought at a super center earned 3x HHonors pts.
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Old Jul 10, 2014, 2:11 pm
  #4815  
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Originally Posted by sdsearch
Even those without grocery sections?

And does the same thing hold true for Walmart?

(My promo includes both department stores and grocery stores. )
WMT super center is classified as grocery store by the Citi HHonors.

All Targets have a grocery section. The non-super center Targets just sell their fruits by piece instead of by weight, but they have rows of freezers and aisles of groceries not much less than the super center.

Why dont you just try a smallish purchase to see for yourself if you are so concerned?
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