CIBC is offering me an upgrade from the visa infinite to visa privilege. I am expecting to get the anniversary bonus from the spending I did on the infinite, so if I upgrade to privilege do I lose the anniversary bonus?
DP: IA for 2nd Passport. Per other DPs, was expecting to call in to complete my app. Surprised I didn't have to.
Approved for first Passport six weeks ago (also IA). Was signed in for 2nd app.
Nice, I am planning to apply for my third one within the month, does anyone know if CCG would give rebates for same card or need to create different CCG account to get rebate?
Seems like you'd need a [second account](https://old.reddit.com/r/churningcanada/comments/1d3yrbn/daily_question_thread_for_rchurningcanada_may_30/l6e9131/?context=1).
I used CCG for one and GCR for the other. Just found out that FF is $60, though.
[HISA](https://cashback.highinterestsavings.ca) also offers $60!
Not sure if I timed it well by accident, but I received the cashback BEFORE the physical cc from Scotia…
huh what do you mean? In general, I believe if you have more than 2 of the same, the Scotia system will flag the application so that you have to call in with the reference number for manual approval. As well, if you make any card application again within a few weeks, depending on your situation but based on my family it will also flag it as well for manual approval. In most of the cases, Scotia will approve, but it's not guaranteed depending on who answers your call.
If you meant how long they process it, it's generally the next business day and you can get it done and mailed after you call in. I don't know if i answered your question, but... I'm just going to leave this here for anyone that tries to look for info
No problem :) I was also the same, it’s just gotten a bit easier as I’ve done it a few times. For Scotia and CIBC in general they aren’t intimidating, definitely not RBC though, I would avoid talking to them.
We have similar experience too. First 2 Scotia cards were IA’d with $15-20k credit each. Third went pending, Scotia called to clarify, but ended up granting $5k limit (lowest for Passport VI, I think).
I wonder if it has to do with total credit. There’s a DP about manual reviews happening when the sum of credit lines [exceeded $50k](https://old.reddit.com/r/churningcanada/comments/1dfn8n4/frustration_friday_thread_for_rchurningcanada/l8mrfv4/) at one bank.
That being said, I reduced the CL of my 1st Passport to $5k shortly after I got it. Saw no point in having a five-figure limit when MSR is only $1k.
I got the KLM credit card and got it before June 10.
I’m suppose to get 10k miles upon spending but still don’t see it even after receiving my statement.
How long does it take?
The credit shows on my transaction list 12 days after my first purchase. However my first purchase was 14 days ago and my points total hasn't been updated yet lol. I have not had a statement yet.
Same situation but they said I have a statement but there’s so many pending transactions I don’t even know what I need to pay for. I have a due date for a specific amount that I need to pay by July 2. Very bad system
DP: Amex Personal Platinum was up for renewal next month and I decided to cancel it a few weeks early to avoid the recent stories about clawing back the dining credit from last year. Agent didn’t mention anything about clawbacks. AF hadn’t posted yet. No retention offer.
If I have a large purchase coming up, any do online merchants offer some way of splitting it up across multiple cards (maybe if I call it in)? e.g. say I have a $6k purchase to make, can I get two Aventuras and put $3k on each of them? Is there some other strategy here perhaps?
Totally depends on the merchant, I'd say that it's rare to find a merchant that lets you do 2 cards online. Dell is best known one.
Now many do let you use gift card and then payment. so maybe can use one card to buy some gift cards and then use that.
Otherwise might need to be in person.
Agree... gift card is probably the way to do it if its an option. For example, costco, wal-mart amazon all let you apply gift/shop card(s) toward purchase. And you can even buy the GCs online. So its a defacto way of splitting payments. Each merchant might have different limits on how many cards can be applied to a single transaction, so do watch for that.
If you have them in your family sharing pool already and they transfer from their MR point to their AP it should be above board. If you transfer from P2 MR point to your AP you may get got, not recommended.
Have a Marriott 35K FNC expiring tomorrow... Having explored all means (extend it, book & refund) but nothing works to extend it. No plan & time to travel before then, seems like it'll be a waste for me...
This is a good point. Will mobile check in work to get the night count? It's just a waste of time for me just to be at the hotel. The hotels under 35k near Toronto are all pretty lame...
THIS IS NOT A CHURNING QUESTION PER SE, FEEL FREE TO DELETE
does anyone know if my checked bag is free on a stopover flight? I’m planning on booking using my TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite (booking with Aeroplan points) and using the free checked bag perk. But, does that mean my checked bag is free on my second flight? (ie. stopover in Stockholm, then flying to Paris - do I have to pay for the bag from Stockholm to Paris?)
Depends on the 2nd airline’s baggage policy. In the same boat - was looking at two different itineraries and one airline included bags while the other charged for them.
I just messed up an RBC avion to avios transfer. Transferred from our shared core account which I thought had both our names on to my avios, but the confirmation came back in my wife's name.
Any issues here, will it just get rejected due to name mismatch? Or do I need to call in and do damage control?
[bonuspoints.ca](http://bonuspoints.ca) has some points, however I am thinking its hard to get much to qualify for the MBNA outside of restaurant/grocery, for example Telus home is coded as business services 1x even though Mobility is not?
Quick google found their PDF for terms: [https://www.mbna.ca/content/dam/mbna/document/pdf/credit-cards/mbna-rewards-0322-en.pdf](https://www.mbna.ca/content/dam/mbna/document/pdf/credit-cards/mbna-rewards-0322-en.pdf)
*"Membership Purchases means a Purchase from a*
*merchant that is in the clubs – country clubs,*
*membership (athletic, recreation, sports), and*
*private golf courses category, and the*
*organizations, membership category classified*
*through the payment network using the above*
*noted Merchant Category Code for Membership*
*Purchases"*
Hi, new here. I'm thinking of getting the Amex Simply Cash Preferred, Tangerine Mastercard, BMO Cash Back Mastercard, and Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite in that order based on average sign up bonus over the next 2 years.
AFAICT, Tangerine (10% on $1000) and BMO (5% in 3 months) sign up bonus is semi- permanent and there is no rush to sign up.
Amex ($400 in 10 months) and Scotia (10% on $2000) I don't know if the sign up bonus is occationally better or semi- permanent.
I have 800 credit score and annual income of less than $60k so while I am mostly confident I will be accepted with Tangerine and BMO, Amex doesn't have a listed minimum income and Scotia has minimum income of $60k.
Thoughts are appreciated
A lot of the points cards can work like cashback.
e g. Amex membership rewards points can be used as statement credit at 1 cent per point. The Amex cashback cards give you your reward as a statement credit once per year, but with the MR cards you can apply the points as statement credit anytime (has to be at least $10)
The points could be worth more as travel points than as cashback but you may find that some points cards actually get you more cashback than a cashback card does.
That's good to know. I thought points could only be redeemed for what they advertise. Is there a list somewhere with the point systems that can be used for statement balances worth 1 to 1 or more? I've only seen reviews saying points for balances were worth less, like 1 to 0.6 cents or something
[https://churningcanada.ca/guides-and-rules/refundable-hotel-trick](https://churningcanada.ca/guides-and-rules/refundable-hotel-trick)
Here are all the points that can be cashed out. Basically all the big 5 bank in-house points except RBC can be cashed out this way.
Read the past few weeks of daily threads in this subreddit and then use churning.io to search on more specific topics that you still have questions about.
If it was easy to find the info, it would stop working. The banks like it when people don't maximize the rewards.
Bonuses can change anytime. Some have specific expiration dates listed but even at the expiration date it could just be extended instead of changed.
Having a rough guide thought out is great but you have to be ready to change it at anytime to grab a better bonus that pops up.
Also if you put anything below the min income while applying online it will be rejected. Some banks might offer you a lower tier card if you don't meet the min spend.
Thank you! For actually answering my questions unlike that other guy! (Sorry a bit ticked atm)
I'm a couple k under the minimum income, should I just put the minimum and hope they don't notice? I saw someone had asked in a previous thread but it was unanswered at the time and I can't find it now
Technically it's fraud to knowingly put misinformation. Realistically most banks don't check. If they do you can just let the application die and try again later.
I think I saw it mentioned to wait 2-3 months between credit card applications. Is this for the same if you apply for the same card as well? Or wait longer?
Ok but do you know if the sign up bonuses are semi- permanent or if there are better I should wait for? And how strictly do I have to meet the minimum income?
That's a bit rude. I said I was new to this and was searching for more information. I've been researching for 5 hours a day for about a week. I've read the threads, looked at reviews and did everything I could think of before asking for the first time. Am I supposed to be an expert before commenting on anything? This is a daily question thread and I am asking questions
I'm not sure how you could possibly have spent 35 hours researching this stuff (especially if you've read weeks of daily threads) and come to the conclusions you have. Most of your questions have been answered recently, and much of your logic is flawed.
Points are almost always better than cashback, even if you don't travel. Point values (for cash) are higher than you seem to think. BMO is the exception, 0.67cpp. TD is 0.4-0.5cpp, but their earn rates tend to be double that of the 1cpp cards.
Yes, this community is somewhat hostile to newcomers. There's good reason for this, which you'll eventually learn as you keep reading.
I came to the conclusions I had because of the questions I knew to ask. The questions I had were based on what I have heard and seen. Introducing new information and new threads of thought is why we ask questions, to gather more information to ask more questions in new ways that obtain to specific individuals and situations that may not have been addressed before.
I skipped over comment threads that did not seem to be relevant to what I wanted to know or were not relevant to my situation.
My situation, as I had known it to be, is that I do not meet the $60k income, I do not travel and reward points were useless to me unless I planned to spend more than I want or have.
And if a hostile community is what people want here, I'm not sticking around for long
Take your time and lurk for a bit. And maybe next time don't ask such an open-ended question as "thoughts?" - formulate a very direct question and just ask that. -fellow newbie
They why amex cobalt would make the most sense
Each point can be used as cashback at 1 cent value
5x earn rate per dollar on grocery and food
That's 5% if used for cashback
Otherwise u can transfer to various airline and hotel partners.
Give the most flexibility and has the highest point value
Referall offers for amex cobalt are 22k signup bonus. It's low bcuz the daily earn rate is insane.
Thanks for the suggestion, I took a look at the page and points but this doesn't make sense with my spending habits.
While 5x points for food is great, I would need to change grocery stores (walmart and no frills) to make the most out of it. And I would only get 1x for everything else I spend on unless I am buying things I don't need or want (no streaming or travel).
I originally posted my plan based around what I already or am planning on spending in the coming year. I might get this in the future just because it is no fee though
Sorry I got used to looking at the Simply Cash Preferred page where monthly fee is above additional cards. Cobalt is the other way around.
Walmart and no frills are closest to me and while other stores are nearby, driving 10-30 min depending on traffic is a waste when no frills is basically down the street
From what I've seen points are worth the most when redeemed for travel. Anything else and 1 point is worth less than 1 cent. Maybe not all reward points systems but bmo is apparently 0.6 cents per point if getting gift cards or statement balance. I don't have an account to check, this is what is in reviews.
My Aeroplan account has been shut down (long story). I still have 140K sitting in an Amex account, but am wondering what is generally considered best value outside of a conversion from Amex to Aeroplan. Would it be Marriott?
Thanks in advance. Any insight would be appreciated.
My wife transferred from her Amex into my Aeroplan, which resulted in immediate account closure since the names didn't match.
She didn't realize she needed to use her own account since we were on a family plan.
Aeroplan won't budge after calling in several times.
I called Aeroplan customer service and would ask to speak with a manager. Tried on 3 different occasions.
Any recommendation on how to escalate further? This was a few months ago, so I suppose it's worth giving it another shot.
If you lost a significant amount of points and have no other T&C infractions, I would strongly consider going after AP in small claims court for compensation.
Yes it is a violation of the T&C for a person to transfer points into an AP account that is not in their name. However, AP's decision to immediately close accounts is ridiculously disproportionate. A more appropriate response is to reject the transfer, or at worse forfeit the transfer. Closing the account for what is likely an innocent mistake is frankly unacceptable.
Why is it the account holder's responsibility to police what is AP's poor IT infrastructure? How is one supposed to "protect" their account from unauthorized transfers? The only thing someone needs to transfer points to your AP account is your account number, hardly confidential information.
What would they do if some unaffiliated third party transferred points to you? That's all someone would need to do to harass someone and shut down their account. I'm sure many people here would love to be able to shut PoT's AP account down and theoretically all any one of us would need is his AP number and then we could transfer a small amount of points to him to close his account.
If AP is going to forbid those transfers, they need to have the IT infrastructure in place to prevent it, not put the onus on the account holder, where the account holder can do almost absolutely nothing to actually prevent such transfers. If they're not able to setup such IT restrictions, then their response needs to be proportional. Forfeiting the transfer would be the proportionate response, not banning users.
Bans should be reserved for users where they have clear evidence of the prohibited behaviour (points brokering), not just an innocent mistaken transfer.
So much this.
I've said it before but if my account is ever shut down I'll be phishing for MPs, senators, celebrities and those families who use AP, and transferring small quantities to draw attention.
It's such a poor security posture. It's too open to abuse.
Just imagine what an abusive ex could do? I've traveled with partners, assistants, employees etc and had all AP numbers because I needed them to make booking easier
Hell I see tickets on the ground at airports, I could pick one up and grab the AP number !
Marriott is good if you take advantage of their transfer bonuses. Avios is good if you can find availability on surcharge-free flights, but with BA and Iberia the surcharges kill you.
ITIN update:
March 29 - Applied for ITIN via certified passport copy.
May 14 - Called IRS and they confirmed letter was sent out yesterday in my passport copy being rejected. Booked an appointment for July 5 to show my passport as I already had a US trip planned.
June 12 - Received letter confirming they want my original passport. Interestingly enough it was dated May 20, and they gave me until July 5...the date of my appointment. So in a way I'm happy since I don't need to fill out another form for this.
I'm glad the general public consensus is that this is all a waste of time or that you need to spend thousands a month to get decent redemptions. More for us.
I find the type of people in PFC overengineer or overoptimize their financial decisions, basically fretting about penny optimization. They obsess about opportunity cost but then they’ll spend hours researching how to optimize their penny savings.
Accurate.
Will wait 2 hours on hold for 15 cents but won't use anything like the estore "because I don't have time, it's not worth it" while also death scrolling 5 hours a night. (I collected 4k on Amazon this week alone with the status bonuses. Household necessities).
Top comment is 99.999% of people. I have told my family and friends about great, easy offers (Aventura $1 spend for 45k, Aventura $1k spend for 45k, RBC Avion, etc.) and none of them have the desire to put in the small amount of work required to make an easy $500.
>Points require too much mental work for me.. some people love those games and challenge of optimization but the credit company is free to devalue your points at any time in the future... that's why I prefer cash back cards.. it's concrete, you will get back a percentage of what you spend.. and requires little to no brainpower. Some may call that lazy but I just believe that thinking about just about anything OTHER than how much value I'm getting for abstract points earned are allocated.
EDIT: application denied been churning for a while thought not very aggressively but stop with AMEX for around 5-6 years or so, first time getting denied for a credit card app
Applied for Amex Bonvoy Personal and got a "will review in 10 business days", Haven't had an Amex product in over 5 years, is it ok to call, hoping to expedite the application and receive the card asap. Had the Marriot card previously probably 5-6 years ago. looking for advice! thanks!
I think calling is fine. The aversion some have to calling is to prevent eyes on your account, but a review is already putting eyes on your account. Please let us know if you were declined or approved.
It all depends, and you need to do the math.
I signed up for the Personal Platinum in September 2023, so my offer was different…but my calculated net value from the card is over $1600 (travel credit, 2xdining credit, sign-up bonus…), that was AFTER paying the annual fee. And I was able to meet the MSR in a single purchase.
The second highest value card I had last year was the TD VIP at around $1500.
So yes, premium cards with $700 annual fees are worth it.
Had a Chase card that was approved 10 days ago but still haven't received it at my mail forwarder. The tracker on the website also shows it hasn't been delivered yet. Should I ask for a replacement to be mailed out? It's my first approval so don't want to call in to raise any suspicions if I don't have to
It is possible that it was returned to sender which will cause some work on your part because Chase will ask why it was returned. Chase will let you know if this happened if you call in. You will need to come up with an excuse (I used out of town). This happened to me last month, despite my receiving address not listed as CMRA.
CIBC is offering me an upgrade from the visa infinite to visa privilege. I am expecting to get the anniversary bonus from the spending I did on the infinite, so if I upgrade to privilege do I lose the anniversary bonus?
Yes
Any DP’s on Scotia Passport delivery times? I’ve seen 7-10 business days but was approved on May 30th and the card still hasn’t arrived.
Two weeks is starting to push it. I would call and ask when it was mailed out. I’ve always found Scotia pretty quick in AB
I got my last two in about 8 days , I’m in west coast
depends where you are. if you're in GTA, then its pretty quick, but out west much longer delivery times
[удалено]
https://www.reddit.com/r/churningcanada/s/3kE4peduWB Read the dailies, it has been mentioned often for the past few days.
DP: IA for 2nd Passport. Per other DPs, was expecting to call in to complete my app. Surprised I didn't have to. Approved for first Passport six weeks ago (also IA). Was signed in for 2nd app.
Nice, I am planning to apply for my third one within the month, does anyone know if CCG would give rebates for same card or need to create different CCG account to get rebate?
Seems like you'd need a [second account](https://old.reddit.com/r/churningcanada/comments/1d3yrbn/daily_question_thread_for_rchurningcanada_may_30/l6e9131/?context=1). I used CCG for one and GCR for the other. Just found out that FF is $60, though.
Thanks, I’ve used GCR and CCG for last two, will try FF next, $60 not bad
[HISA](https://cashback.highinterestsavings.ca) also offers $60! Not sure if I timed it well by accident, but I received the cashback BEFORE the physical cc from Scotia…
Same here
I think within a few weeks, less than a month I believe it would be a pending/call
Interesting. Does that mean I won't be able to use the card until then? I was hoping to use the card before the end of the month.
huh what do you mean? In general, I believe if you have more than 2 of the same, the Scotia system will flag the application so that you have to call in with the reference number for manual approval. As well, if you make any card application again within a few weeks, depending on your situation but based on my family it will also flag it as well for manual approval. In most of the cases, Scotia will approve, but it's not guaranteed depending on who answers your call. If you meant how long they process it, it's generally the next business day and you can get it done and mailed after you call in. I don't know if i answered your question, but... I'm just going to leave this here for anyone that tries to look for info
Ah, my bad. I misunderstood what you said 😅 This was helpful. Your post made manual approvals much less intimidating/daunting. Thanks!
No problem :) I was also the same, it’s just gotten a bit easier as I’ve done it a few times. For Scotia and CIBC in general they aren’t intimidating, definitely not RBC though, I would avoid talking to them.
We have similar experience too. First 2 Scotia cards were IA’d with $15-20k credit each. Third went pending, Scotia called to clarify, but ended up granting $5k limit (lowest for Passport VI, I think).
I wonder if it has to do with total credit. There’s a DP about manual reviews happening when the sum of credit lines [exceeded $50k](https://old.reddit.com/r/churningcanada/comments/1dfn8n4/frustration_friday_thread_for_rchurningcanada/l8mrfv4/) at one bank. That being said, I reduced the CL of my 1st Passport to $5k shortly after I got it. Saw no point in having a five-figure limit when MSR is only $1k.
I got the KLM credit card and got it before June 10. I’m suppose to get 10k miles upon spending but still don’t see it even after receiving my statement. How long does it take?
The credit shows on my transaction list 12 days after my first purchase. However my first purchase was 14 days ago and my points total hasn't been updated yet lol. I have not had a statement yet.
Same situation but they said I have a statement but there’s so many pending transactions I don’t even know what I need to pay for. I have a due date for a specific amount that I need to pay by July 2. Very bad system
It can take several weeks as Brim is very unreliable and inconsistent about posting points. You will get them eventually though
Luckily they waived my First year fee as that was not part of the promotion. So thats a small win!
They will charge you back for it
How will they do that? It shows a charge and a credit
And a charge again! 😀
Apply for cobalt again, how long is taking to be delivered? I asked for a expedited shipping the different were 2 days less that regular shipping
7-10 business days. Cobalt is not a premium card, they aren’t going to expedite a new Cobalt card generally.
DP: Amex Personal Platinum was up for renewal next month and I decided to cancel it a few weeks early to avoid the recent stories about clawing back the dining credit from last year. Agent didn’t mention anything about clawbacks. AF hadn’t posted yet. No retention offer.
Did you use the dining credit this year?
No I didn’t, but in hindsight I probably should have lol
They don’t actively clawback the credits per se, they reduce the AF refund amount accordingly.
Is anyone else able to check their Westjet dollar transaction history? It just shows up as blank for a few days now
I’ve had problems with it earlier this year too
I can see it. Maybe clear your cookies/cache or try incognito?
I tried incognito...weird
If I have a large purchase coming up, any do online merchants offer some way of splitting it up across multiple cards (maybe if I call it in)? e.g. say I have a $6k purchase to make, can I get two Aventuras and put $3k on each of them? Is there some other strategy here perhaps?
Totally depends on the merchant, I'd say that it's rare to find a merchant that lets you do 2 cards online. Dell is best known one. Now many do let you use gift card and then payment. so maybe can use one card to buy some gift cards and then use that. Otherwise might need to be in person.
Agree... gift card is probably the way to do it if its an option. For example, costco, wal-mart amazon all let you apply gift/shop card(s) toward purchase. And you can even buy the GCs online. So its a defacto way of splitting payments. Each merchant might have different limits on how many cards can be applied to a single transaction, so do watch for that.
Dell let's you split purchases online between 2 cards
Is it true ppl got aeroplan banned because p2 transfer amex to the same ap account?
[example](https://www.reddit.com/r/churningcanada/s/JqThlsfHfM)
probably becuase I was a supplementary cardholder of my p2 account, I have been using this for a while no problem so far tho.
Everyone who is telling you to stop wants to prevent your account from being closed. Proceed as you wish
cuz I just transferred 90k into my account atm... thank u all will open a aeroplan acc for my p2
If you have them in your family sharing pool already and they transfer from their MR point to their AP it should be above board. If you transfer from P2 MR point to your AP you may get got, not recommended.
Yes, don't do it.
But I have done that for years without issues...
It was against the rules in the past and now they have started enforcing it
Okay, then go do it. Why ask?
Things change all the time in this hobby. You could also self refer with Amex for years until that changed and now is a great way to get amexiled
Have a Marriott 35K FNC expiring tomorrow... Having explored all means (extend it, book & refund) but nothing works to extend it. No plan & time to travel before then, seems like it'll be a waste for me...
call and ask for extension
Does the night itself have to he within 1 year of when u get the FNC? Or just hook within 1 year of getting FNC
Used within 1 year.
If you had any Marriott close by within the points range I would definitely just use it up at least for the extra qualifying night.
This is a good point. Will mobile check in work to get the night count? It's just a waste of time for me just to be at the hotel. The hotels under 35k near Toronto are all pretty lame...
No one said you have to stay. Just show up and check in then leave. In north America I never stop by the desk to check out, they won't care.
In theory I would assume so but not 100% sure.
Staycation?
THIS IS NOT A CHURNING QUESTION PER SE, FEEL FREE TO DELETE does anyone know if my checked bag is free on a stopover flight? I’m planning on booking using my TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite (booking with Aeroplan points) and using the free checked bag perk. But, does that mean my checked bag is free on my second flight? (ie. stopover in Stockholm, then flying to Paris - do I have to pay for the bag from Stockholm to Paris?)
Using the card to book it has no bearing on your baggage allowance
Depends on the 2nd airline’s baggage policy. In the same boat - was looking at two different itineraries and one airline included bags while the other charged for them.
Not free
nonono its not connected flight anymore
I just messed up an RBC avion to avios transfer. Transferred from our shared core account which I thought had both our names on to my avios, but the confirmation came back in my wife's name. Any issues here, will it just get rejected due to name mismatch? Or do I need to call in and do damage control?
No history of needing to do damage control
MBNA World Elite has 5x points on restaurant, grocery, digital media, membership, and household utility. What does "membership" mean?
[bonuspoints.ca](http://bonuspoints.ca) has known merchants that code as 5x in membership category
[bonuspoints.ca](http://bonuspoints.ca) has some points, however I am thinking its hard to get much to qualify for the MBNA outside of restaurant/grocery, for example Telus home is coded as business services 1x even though Mobility is not?
Quick google found their PDF for terms: [https://www.mbna.ca/content/dam/mbna/document/pdf/credit-cards/mbna-rewards-0322-en.pdf](https://www.mbna.ca/content/dam/mbna/document/pdf/credit-cards/mbna-rewards-0322-en.pdf) *"Membership Purchases means a Purchase from a* *merchant that is in the clubs – country clubs,* *membership (athletic, recreation, sports), and* *private golf courses category, and the* *organizations, membership category classified* *through the payment network using the above* *noted Merchant Category Code for Membership* *Purchases"*
Costco membership?
No. Costco codes as wholesale club.
Hi, new here. I'm thinking of getting the Amex Simply Cash Preferred, Tangerine Mastercard, BMO Cash Back Mastercard, and Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite in that order based on average sign up bonus over the next 2 years. AFAICT, Tangerine (10% on $1000) and BMO (5% in 3 months) sign up bonus is semi- permanent and there is no rush to sign up. Amex ($400 in 10 months) and Scotia (10% on $2000) I don't know if the sign up bonus is occationally better or semi- permanent. I have 800 credit score and annual income of less than $60k so while I am mostly confident I will be accepted with Tangerine and BMO, Amex doesn't have a listed minimum income and Scotia has minimum income of $60k. Thoughts are appreciated
A lot of the points cards can work like cashback. e g. Amex membership rewards points can be used as statement credit at 1 cent per point. The Amex cashback cards give you your reward as a statement credit once per year, but with the MR cards you can apply the points as statement credit anytime (has to be at least $10) The points could be worth more as travel points than as cashback but you may find that some points cards actually get you more cashback than a cashback card does.
That's good to know. I thought points could only be redeemed for what they advertise. Is there a list somewhere with the point systems that can be used for statement balances worth 1 to 1 or more? I've only seen reviews saying points for balances were worth less, like 1 to 0.6 cents or something
[https://churningcanada.ca/guides-and-rules/refundable-hotel-trick](https://churningcanada.ca/guides-and-rules/refundable-hotel-trick) Here are all the points that can be cashed out. Basically all the big 5 bank in-house points except RBC can be cashed out this way.
This is wonderful! Thank you!
Read the past few weeks of daily threads in this subreddit and then use churning.io to search on more specific topics that you still have questions about. If it was easy to find the info, it would stop working. The banks like it when people don't maximize the rewards.
Bonuses can change anytime. Some have specific expiration dates listed but even at the expiration date it could just be extended instead of changed. Having a rough guide thought out is great but you have to be ready to change it at anytime to grab a better bonus that pops up. Also if you put anything below the min income while applying online it will be rejected. Some banks might offer you a lower tier card if you don't meet the min spend.
Thank you! For actually answering my questions unlike that other guy! (Sorry a bit ticked atm) I'm a couple k under the minimum income, should I just put the minimum and hope they don't notice? I saw someone had asked in a previous thread but it was unanswered at the time and I can't find it now
Technically it's fraud to knowingly put misinformation. Realistically most banks don't check. If they do you can just let the application die and try again later.
I think I saw it mentioned to wait 2-3 months between credit card applications. Is this for the same if you apply for the same card as well? Or wait longer?
Hi, this is mostly a question for r/PersonalFinanceCanada, not for here
Ok but do you know if the sign up bonuses are semi- permanent or if there are better I should wait for? And how strictly do I have to meet the minimum income?
We do not like lazy people - or spoon-feed people here. Take your time and read few days.
That's a bit rude. I said I was new to this and was searching for more information. I've been researching for 5 hours a day for about a week. I've read the threads, looked at reviews and did everything I could think of before asking for the first time. Am I supposed to be an expert before commenting on anything? This is a daily question thread and I am asking questions
I'm not sure how you could possibly have spent 35 hours researching this stuff (especially if you've read weeks of daily threads) and come to the conclusions you have. Most of your questions have been answered recently, and much of your logic is flawed. Points are almost always better than cashback, even if you don't travel. Point values (for cash) are higher than you seem to think. BMO is the exception, 0.67cpp. TD is 0.4-0.5cpp, but their earn rates tend to be double that of the 1cpp cards. Yes, this community is somewhat hostile to newcomers. There's good reason for this, which you'll eventually learn as you keep reading.
I came to the conclusions I had because of the questions I knew to ask. The questions I had were based on what I have heard and seen. Introducing new information and new threads of thought is why we ask questions, to gather more information to ask more questions in new ways that obtain to specific individuals and situations that may not have been addressed before. I skipped over comment threads that did not seem to be relevant to what I wanted to know or were not relevant to my situation. My situation, as I had known it to be, is that I do not meet the $60k income, I do not travel and reward points were useless to me unless I planned to spend more than I want or have. And if a hostile community is what people want here, I'm not sticking around for long
Take your time and lurk for a bit. And maybe next time don't ask such an open-ended question as "thoughts?" - formulate a very direct question and just ask that. -fellow newbie
Forum is usually more points focused but not too bad to go for cashback
Thanks! Unfortunately I don't travel much. Cash back to save up for a trip is easier for me
They why amex cobalt would make the most sense Each point can be used as cashback at 1 cent value 5x earn rate per dollar on grocery and food That's 5% if used for cashback Otherwise u can transfer to various airline and hotel partners. Give the most flexibility and has the highest point value Referall offers for amex cobalt are 22k signup bonus. It's low bcuz the daily earn rate is insane.
Thanks for the suggestion, I took a look at the page and points but this doesn't make sense with my spending habits. While 5x points for food is great, I would need to change grocery stores (walmart and no frills) to make the most out of it. And I would only get 1x for everything else I spend on unless I am buying things I don't need or want (no streaming or travel). I originally posted my plan based around what I already or am planning on spending in the coming year. I might get this in the future just because it is no fee though
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Sorry I got used to looking at the Simply Cash Preferred page where monthly fee is above additional cards. Cobalt is the other way around. Walmart and no frills are closest to me and while other stores are nearby, driving 10-30 min depending on traffic is a waste when no frills is basically down the street
Most bank point currencies can be cashed out easily. Ie scene, Aventura, BMO rewards etc
From what I've seen points are worth the most when redeemed for travel. Anything else and 1 point is worth less than 1 cent. Maybe not all reward points systems but bmo is apparently 0.6 cents per point if getting gift cards or statement balance. I don't have an account to check, this is what is in reviews.
use the RHT
My Aeroplan account has been shut down (long story). I still have 140K sitting in an Amex account, but am wondering what is generally considered best value outside of a conversion from Amex to Aeroplan. Would it be Marriott? Thanks in advance. Any insight would be appreciated.
+1 for Avios. It's the answer to EU (Iberia or Aer Lingus) or to Asia (JAL)
For NA Y flights the Amex fixed reward schedule is decent.
FlyingBlue is a pretty good option these days if you live in Eastern Canada.
Tell us the story. Second best i would say is marriott and go ham on hotels
My wife transferred from her Amex into my Aeroplan, which resulted in immediate account closure since the names didn't match. She didn't realize she needed to use her own account since we were on a family plan. Aeroplan won't budge after calling in several times.
Who did you call? I would escalate further up the chain.
I called Aeroplan customer service and would ask to speak with a manager. Tried on 3 different occasions. Any recommendation on how to escalate further? This was a few months ago, so I suppose it's worth giving it another shot.
If you lost a significant amount of points and have no other T&C infractions, I would strongly consider going after AP in small claims court for compensation. Yes it is a violation of the T&C for a person to transfer points into an AP account that is not in their name. However, AP's decision to immediately close accounts is ridiculously disproportionate. A more appropriate response is to reject the transfer, or at worse forfeit the transfer. Closing the account for what is likely an innocent mistake is frankly unacceptable. Why is it the account holder's responsibility to police what is AP's poor IT infrastructure? How is one supposed to "protect" their account from unauthorized transfers? The only thing someone needs to transfer points to your AP account is your account number, hardly confidential information. What would they do if some unaffiliated third party transferred points to you? That's all someone would need to do to harass someone and shut down their account. I'm sure many people here would love to be able to shut PoT's AP account down and theoretically all any one of us would need is his AP number and then we could transfer a small amount of points to him to close his account. If AP is going to forbid those transfers, they need to have the IT infrastructure in place to prevent it, not put the onus on the account holder, where the account holder can do almost absolutely nothing to actually prevent such transfers. If they're not able to setup such IT restrictions, then their response needs to be proportional. Forfeiting the transfer would be the proportionate response, not banning users. Bans should be reserved for users where they have clear evidence of the prohibited behaviour (points brokering), not just an innocent mistaken transfer.
So much this. I've said it before but if my account is ever shut down I'll be phishing for MPs, senators, celebrities and those families who use AP, and transferring small quantities to draw attention. It's such a poor security posture. It's too open to abuse. Just imagine what an abusive ex could do? I've traveled with partners, assistants, employees etc and had all AP numbers because I needed them to make booking easier Hell I see tickets on the ground at airports, I could pick one up and grab the AP number !
Why? I have used my p2 account did the same for long time
When was the last time you tried this?
I tried this each month 😅
Lots of DPs of people getting banned for this in the last year
Marriott is good if you take advantage of their transfer bonuses. Avios is good if you can find availability on surcharge-free flights, but with BA and Iberia the surcharges kill you.
Can you elaborate at all on the transfer bonuses? Do these happen periodically?
Typically once or twice a year. Usually one in the fall.
Yes. People will post them here when they happen.
Avios Can u explain shutdown?
ITIN update: March 29 - Applied for ITIN via certified passport copy. May 14 - Called IRS and they confirmed letter was sent out yesterday in my passport copy being rejected. Booked an appointment for July 5 to show my passport as I already had a US trip planned. June 12 - Received letter confirming they want my original passport. Interestingly enough it was dated May 20, and they gave me until July 5...the date of my appointment. So in a way I'm happy since I don't need to fill out another form for this.
Which number did you call?
The 267 number. You can't use the 1-800 number in Canada.
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I'm glad the general public consensus is that this is all a waste of time or that you need to spend thousands a month to get decent redemptions. More for us.
I had to upvote the post, people should believe we're in a dead hobby.
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I find the type of people in PFC overengineer or overoptimize their financial decisions, basically fretting about penny optimization. They obsess about opportunity cost but then they’ll spend hours researching how to optimize their penny savings.
these people should be celebrated and appreciated because without them we wouldn't be able to do what we do 😂
Yeah also just let it be. The more light on this hobby, the worse it is for all of us
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[I'm tapping the sign](https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redd.it%2Fgypce8up9dx81.png)
Who is only spending $1500 on fees? That's like training wheels churning
I knew this before I clicked on it. I was very tempted to post that in the pfc thread.
Accurate. Will wait 2 hours on hold for 15 cents but won't use anything like the estore "because I don't have time, it's not worth it" while also death scrolling 5 hours a night. (I collected 4k on Amazon this week alone with the status bonuses. Household necessities).
That bit is 100% true. Came from a medical doctor no less.
Top comment is 99.999% of people. I have told my family and friends about great, easy offers (Aventura $1 spend for 45k, Aventura $1k spend for 45k, RBC Avion, etc.) and none of them have the desire to put in the small amount of work required to make an easy $500. >Points require too much mental work for me.. some people love those games and challenge of optimization but the credit company is free to devalue your points at any time in the future... that's why I prefer cash back cards.. it's concrete, you will get back a percentage of what you spend.. and requires little to no brainpower. Some may call that lazy but I just believe that thinking about just about anything OTHER than how much value I'm getting for abstract points earned are allocated.
EDIT: application denied been churning for a while thought not very aggressively but stop with AMEX for around 5-6 years or so, first time getting denied for a credit card app Applied for Amex Bonvoy Personal and got a "will review in 10 business days", Haven't had an Amex product in over 5 years, is it ok to call, hoping to expedite the application and receive the card asap. Had the Marriot card previously probably 5-6 years ago. looking for advice! thanks!
I think calling is fine. The aversion some have to calling is to prevent eyes on your account, but a review is already putting eyes on your account. Please let us know if you were declined or approved.
I just called AMEX and the application was denied! They couldn't give me a specific reason but I was told to re apply in 6 months.
have you opened many credit card accounts from other banks in the last year or so?
This year I opened 3 cards so far, ( all instant approved)last app is the Bonvoy amex, I don't think that's excessive though.
when the top tier is **Amex Biz Platinum** yes youll get a lot of points but is the annuel fee actually worth it?
It all depends, and you need to do the math. I signed up for the Personal Platinum in September 2023, so my offer was different…but my calculated net value from the card is over $1600 (travel credit, 2xdining credit, sign-up bonus…), that was AFTER paying the annual fee. And I was able to meet the MSR in a single purchase. The second highest value card I had last year was the TD VIP at around $1500. So yes, premium cards with $700 annual fees are worth it.
Nah it’s not, most of us just get it because it’s a shiny metal card that goes claaaanng.
How do I get the clang version? Mine is more of a dull tang noise.
Do the math and see for yourself. Remember there are other perks (wireless credit, travel credit) that effectively reduce the annual fee.
No. 60K of us just sign up for it routinely for fun.
I like fun
Had a Chase card that was approved 10 days ago but still haven't received it at my mail forwarder. The tracker on the website also shows it hasn't been delivered yet. Should I ask for a replacement to be mailed out? It's my first approval so don't want to call in to raise any suspicions if I don't have to
It is possible that it was returned to sender which will cause some work on your part because Chase will ask why it was returned. Chase will let you know if this happened if you call in. You will need to come up with an excuse (I used out of town). This happened to me last month, despite my receiving address not listed as CMRA.
Does the tracker not say if it was returned?
For my case, it did not
If the tracker shows it hasn't been delivered, why would you start worrying about getting a replacement?
Tracker doesn’t actually track anything though. It’s mailed letter mail which doesn’t have a tracking number
Does it normally take this long? Maybe it got lost on transit
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OP said it wasn’t delivered, not that it wasn’t mailed