Amex Platinum Bonus Increases to 60k + Referral Bonuses Return

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A week ago I wrote about the changes coming to the American Express Platinum card March 30. It’s April 2, so those changes have now taken effect. The annual fee is now $550, and in exchange you get the following new benefits:

• $200 in Uber credits annually
• 5x Category Bonus on Prepaid Hotel Bookings through American Express Travel^®
• Enhanced Priority Pass membership will allow free guests
• A new metal card design
• The ability to add Gold Card members free of charge

We also saw two more improvements to the Amex Platinum not previously publicized:

1. The sign up bonus also increased to 60,000 Membership Rewards for an increased minimum spending requirement of $5,000 within the first three months of opening the card.
2. Referral bonuses are back.

Increased Sign Up Bonus

By spending $5,000 on the Amex Platinum within three months of opening it, you’ll earn a bonus of 60,000 Membership Rewards. It’s good to see more value added to the Platinum who’s annual fee has increased, especially for those who don’t use Uber often and won’t get much value out of that new benefit.

Referral Bonuses

Doctor of Credit reported that referral bonuses for the American Express Platinum are back. The referrer gets 15,000 Membership Rewards for every referral, and the person signing up gets the 60k Membership Rewards for spending $5k, same as the public offer. You can generate your own link here.

The maximum amount of Membership Rewards you can earn from referral bonuses per year is 55k.

Existing Cardholders

As for existing cardholders, if your annual fee is due before August 31, 2017, you’ll be charged the same $450 annual fee (and get all these benefits for free for another year!) If your annual fee is due September 1, 2017, or later, you’ll be charged $550.

Bottom Line

While we already knew about the new benefits coming with the increased annual fee on the Amex Platinum, the increased 60k sign up bonus (from the prior 50k) is news.

You can also earn up to 55,000 Membership Rewards per year by referring new customers to the Amex Platinum through your designated referral link. Feel free to leave referral links below.

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