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

Old Jun 13, 2013, 2:57 pm
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Last edit by: mia
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.
Print Wikipost

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

Old Sep 11, 2014, 10:38 am
  #5041  
 
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,273
Originally Posted by rgAAFT
until proven otherwise I think the guy just didn't want to give you the card. If you really want the card I would HUCA or just lay low for a while in order to get instant approval or improve your chances next time. I seem to remember, you've had problems with approval before, No?




UPDATE

good question?

only the AA exec cards are churnable , the regulars are NOT... (its been that way since last year.)

This may also help you. (I am surprised you seem not to be aware)
----I biffed it on the 8/65 day rule due to double app submitted as a result of my browser hanging on me. Last app for Exec was declined June.

Yes, I was aware. But thought I'd take a shot. It could be that this rep was clueless. On the other hand, it looks as though approvals for the World Exec not as freely granted as they used to be. I've no data, mind you. Just an impression reading through the thread.
ZzzzX is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 12:57 pm
  #5042  
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
Hi, i'm confused.

I applied for an executive card on 7/25/14. (Its still open)

Can I apply for a personal platinum card today on 9/11/14? Or do I need to wait 60 days?
chatterbox22 is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 1:36 pm
  #5043  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,927
Originally Posted by chatterbox22
Hi, i'm confused.

I applied for an executive card on 7/25/14. (Its still open)

Can I apply for a personal platinum card today on 9/11/14? Or do I need to wait 60 days?
Neither! You need to wait (12 to) 18 (to 26) months! Read the wiki carefully! Citi doesn't allow AA personal cards to churned faster than that except for the Executive. So your only choice for getting another AA personal card this year or next is to get another Executive card.
sdsearch is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 1:36 pm
  #5044  
 
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: ORD
Programs: AAdvantage, UA, Avios
Posts: 637
Originally Posted by chatterbox22
Hi, i'm confused.

I applied for an executive card on 7/25/14. (Its still open)

Can I apply for a personal platinum card today on 9/11/14? Or do I need to wait 60 days?
You cannot apply for another non-Exec card for about 18 months. More info in wiki.
starbuk is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 3:29 pm
  #5045  
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2,055
There was some talk a week or two back about Business cards being harder to get, especially second+ cards, and perhaps the world ending. I just got approved for my third in the last year (and a day), with both of the others still open. CL = $7000, the highest business CL I have gotten in a long time, if ever. My wife also got approved, although it has been a year (and a day) since her last one and she had none open.

Both of our applications were deferred and hers approved a couple of days later without calling while mine took three calls, the first to someone I could barely understand, the second to someone relatively unhelpful, and after a week since application the third was great and got me approved.
IkeEsq is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 3:53 pm
  #5046  
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: LAX
Programs: UA, AA, BA
Posts: 162
Originally Posted by IkeEsq
There was some talk a week or two back about Business cards being harder to get, especially second+ cards, and perhaps the world ending. I just got approved for my third in the last year (and a day), with both of the others still open. CL = $7000, the highest business CL I have gotten in a long time, if ever. My wife also got approved, although it has been a year (and a day) since her last one and she had none open.

Both of our applications were deferred and hers approved a couple of days later without calling while mine took three calls, the first to someone I could barely understand, the second to someone relatively unhelpful, and after a week since application the third was great and got me approved.
Congrats! I previously was able to get 3 citi business cards, but the last 3 tries were automatic declines online. When called, the reason was current cardholder. There was no evidence of a hard pull with the auto decline that I could see however.
yztim is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 4:30 pm
  #5047  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: SoCal
Posts: 2,164
Originally Posted by starbuk
You cannot apply for another non-Exec card for about 18 months. More info in wiki.
up until last week i believed that you cannot apply for a platinum after you get executive for 18 months, but my friend had one exec card closed it back in June, applied last week for platinum(never applied for platinum before) and she got approved. i just wanted to put this out there to see if anyone had similar experience.
ninim2200 is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 7:18 pm
  #5048  
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 6
I'm not sure if this has been posted before, but I got this link in the post the other day: away6.citicards.com

It is a link to a landing page a personal Citi AA 50K mastercard (chip) and a business Citi AA 50K mastercard.
language is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 8:46 pm
  #5049  
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2,055
Originally Posted by language
I'm not sure if this has been posted before, but I got this link in the post the other day: away6.citicards.com

It is a link to a landing page a personal Citi AA 50K mastercard (chip) and a business Citi AA 50K mastercard.
Thanks for the link, it is in the Wiki.
IkeEsq is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 8:47 pm
  #5050  
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2,055
Originally Posted by ninim2200
up until last week i believed that you cannot apply for a platinum after you get executive for 18 months, but my friend had one exec card closed it back in June, applied last week for platinum(never applied for platinum before) and she got approved. i just wanted to put this out there to see if anyone had similar experience.
Was the Platinum a targeted offer?
IkeEsq is offline  
Old Sep 11, 2014, 10:43 pm
  #5051  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: SoCal
Posts: 2,164
Originally Posted by IkeEsq
Was the Platinum a targeted offer?
no it was not, just off the links in the wiki, i was honestly surprised that she got approved. i shared this to see if others had similar experiences.
ninim2200 is offline  
Old Sep 12, 2014, 10:44 am
  #5052  
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Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 8,135
Refund of annual fee?

Does Citi have a policy (similar to Chase's) under which one can have the annual fee refunded within X days after payment/anniversary? I'm well aware of the grace period to cancel before paying (30 days after delivery of statement showing the fee) & am not asking about that.

I'd thought the wiki addressed this question, but I don't see it there. TIA.
beltway is offline  
Old Sep 12, 2014, 10:49 am
  #5053  
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: BDL, JFK
Posts: 658
Another data point. Approved for Visa Business card 11/2013, cancelled 6/2014 and did not request cancellation of "master account". Applied today for Business Mastercard and was approved. So still possible to churn the business card though perhaps ymmv.
Robl is offline  
Old Sep 12, 2014, 5:03 pm
  #5054  
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Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
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Originally Posted by beltway
Does Citi have a policy (similar to Chase's) under which one can have the annual fee refunded within X days after payment/anniversary? I'm well aware of the grace period to cancel before paying (30 days after delivery of statement showing the fee) & am not asking about that.
No, instead Citi has a much better policy where you can often get the 2nd year annual fee (and maybe also the 3rd year annual fee, etc) credited in full and yet get to keep the card too! There's a whole separate thread about that; see here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/citi-...all-cards.html

And since the time you can apply for your next Citi card has nothing to do with whether you cancel or not (only with when you last got your previous card). why not keep the card another year if it doesn't cost anything? That way you can have its benefits (free checked bag, priority boarding, 10% rebate -- up to 10k a year -- on award redemptions, etc) another year.
sdsearch is offline  
Old Sep 12, 2014, 5:11 pm
  #5055  
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Very near SFO
Programs: BA, AAL, UA, SW, HHonors, UR
Posts: 51
Another not-great data point. I have a Citi business Mastercard active since about 1/1/14 (first charge was 1/4/14). Just applied for another (same business, same other data) and was turned down in 45 seconds by the auto-denier on the website. Are they getting smarter, or was there an obvious implicit proviso that I missed (such as, always use a different business when you apply)?
FrequentSleeper is offline  

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