No upgrades in the first 12 months to comply with a provision of the C.A.R.D. Act which prohibits increasing the annual fee in the first year that an account is open.

American Express will generally offer Green/Gold cardholders a "pre-approved" invitation to upgrade to Platinum. There would be no credit pull if the invitation is used. There would be a bonus, but it will be smaller than if applying for a new card.

However, recent new card bonuses have excluded holders of related cards. The specifics vary from offer-to-offer. There is no assurance that today's policy will still be in effect in the future because all credit card issuers are testing way to attract and retain profitable customers, and to discourage churning.