Reader story: Part 3-- Is the Chase 5/24 Rule Actually in Effect?

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I have a friend who, after about five months off from applying for any new cards, decided to give it another go recently. He is writing a series for MileValue on his experience. Below is Part 3, where he talks about the response he got from Chase concerning his applications for the Ink Plus and the British Airways Visa Signature, and what he decides to do next. Read Part 1 to see how he decided on his new round of credit cards, and Part 2 to read about application day. 

If you haven’t read Part 1 and Part 2 of this credit card application story, here’s a quick recap for you. I recently applied for the following cards:

• the Ink Plus by Chase
• the British Airways Visa Signature by Chase
• the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature card by Bank of America
• the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card by Bank of America

As expected, I received a pending status on my applications with Chase (I have definitely opened more than five cards in the last two years), was auto-approved for the Alaska Airlines Visa Business card and was manually approved by a Bank of America representative for the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature card after I called the reconsideration line and answered a couple very surface level questions. I decided not to call Chase’s reconsideration line since FlyerTalk advises against it, and just waited to see what response I would eventually receive from them.

And that is where today’s story begins.

So I Heard From Chase…

And it wasn’t the news I wanted.

Here is a scanned copy of the letter I received concerning the Ink Plus:

And here is the letter I received concerning the British Airways card:

Womp womp. Looks like I’ll need to break from the travel cards for two years before Chase cards can be considered again.

Plan B

I was preparing for this response by doing a bit more research on the next best card for me to apply for. I narrowed down my options to:

• the Gold Delta SkyMiles Business Credit Card from American Express
• the Platinum Delta SkyMiles Credit Card from American Express

I recently learned in Scott’s post about the best order for card applications that you should strategically snipe American Express cards whenever they have historically high sign-up bonuses. Both of those cards have high ones at the moment (the limited time offers last until July 6). The Gold Business card is offering 50,000 Delta miles and the Platinum is offering 60,000 Delta miles after spending $2,000 in three months. The Gold Delta SkyMiles card also has the same sign-up offer right now as the Gold Business card, but I have already earned a sign-up bonus from that card in the past, and you can only get the sign-up bonus on an American Express card once in a lifetime.

The most important difference to me between the Gold and Platinum is that the Platinum has a $195 annual fee while the Gold’s $95 annual fee is waived the first year. The Platinum also offers a $100 statement credit towards any Delta purchase, but as I don’t have any plans to fly a revenue Delta ticket in the near future, it didn’t appeal to me. Read more about the 50k and 60k Delta Offers here to see which card is better for you.

The redemptions I have in mind for those Delta miles equal exactly how many miles I would get from the Gold Business card’s sign-up bonus plus the spending I plan to put on it, so I decided to stick with the Gold card instead of coughing up $195 for 10,000 extra miles that would likely sit dormant in my SkyMiles account for a while.

Applying For the Gold Delta SkyMiles Business Credit Card

I love earning extra miles from business cards. From my experience talking to friends, many people assume they are not eligible for a business credit card when they very well could be.

I didn’t waste any time– the day I got the denial letters from Chase I hopped online and filled in all the necessary information to apply for the Gold Delta SkyMiles Business card…

…and received an auto-approval! The thrill never gets old. I always picture myself in a new exotic destination whenever I get a new travel card approval.

What I Got From This Round of Card Apps

All in all, I came out a little short handed from this round of card applications since I was aiming for 60,000 Ultimate Rewards and 50,000 British Airways Avios on top of the Alaska miles. But it was worth a shot, and I added some valuable data points about the Chase 5/24 rule. I know from prior experience that my credit score will bounce back up from the denials after a few months.

It appears very clear to me that the Chase 5/24 does now fully apply to all Chase credit cards, including personal, business, and co-branded cards. I will not be applying for any in the near future. Proceed with caution applying for Chase cards if you have opened any five credit cards in the last 24 months, from any issuing bank.

I still came out 100,000 miles richer from this round, so you don’t hear me complaining!

Final Words by Scott

If you want to apply for the British Airways Visa Signature, Alaska Airlines Visa Signature, Ink Plus, or the Delta Gold or Platinum SkyMiles cards (all mentioned in this post) please consider doing so through the links below. I receive a commission, and your support keeps this blog going.

• The Ink Plus is a business card that offers 60,000 Ultimate Rewards after spending $5,000 in the first three months. Ultimate Rewards transfer 1:1 to United, British Airways, Singapore, Korean, Southwest, Virgin Atlantic, Hyatt, and more. You can
  • While I can not directly link to the current Ink Plus offer, you may find it by clicking below if you decide to apply.
    • View Additional Business Credit Cards Here
• The British Airways Visa Signature card comes with 50,000 bonus Avios after spending $2,000 in the first three months on the card. British Airways Avios are perfect for short, direct, economy flights on British Airways partners that do not levy fuel surcharges like these partners. The Alaska Airlines Visa Signature card comes with 30,000 Alaska miles after spending $1,000 in the first three months. Alaska miles are awesome because you can still book pre-American Airlines chart devaluation  prices with them.
  • While I can not directly link to the British Airways Visa or the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature card, you may find them by clicking below if you decide to apply.
    • View Additional Airline & Frequent Flyer Credit Card Offers Here
• The Gold Delta SkyMiles card comes with 50,000 Delta miles after spending $2,000 in the first three months, and the Platinum Delta Skymiles card comes with 60,000 Delta miles after spending $2,000 in the first three months. Delta miles are great for flying to and within Argentina.
  • While I can not directly link to the Gold or Platinum Delta SkyMiles cards, you may find them by clicking below if you decide to apply.
    • View Additional Limited Time Offers Here
• The Gold Delta SkyMiles Business card comes with 50,000 Delta miles after spending $2,000 in the first three months.
  • While I can not directly link to the Gold Delta SkyMiles Business card, you may find it by clicking below if you decide to apply.
    • View Additional Business Credit Cards Here