How Do Citi’s 24 & 48 Month Application Rules Work?

In the interest of full disclosure, OMAAT earns a referral bonus for anyone that’s approved through some of the below links. Citi is an advertising partner of OMAAT. These are the best publicly available offers (terms apply) that we have found for each product or service. Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of the bank, credit card issuer, airline, hotel chain, or product manufacturer/service provider, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Please check out our advertiser policy for further details about our partners, and thanks for your support!

Major credit card issuers have different rules when it comes to approving their cards. The issuer's policies tend to be among the most confusing in this area. I wanted to make sure that I explained how the credit card application rules work. The Citi Premier ® Card offers a best-ever welcome bonus, so I think this is worth it.

There isn't a limit on the number of credit cards you can have with the bank. Citi restricts the number of cards you can apply for in a given time period.

• You can only apply for one Citi card every eight days
• You can apply for no more than two Citi cards every 65 days

There isn't a limit on how many cards you can have, though at some point you may find that you're maxed out in terms of the credit that Citi will give you. It depends on your income, credit score, etc.

Citi’s 24 & 48 month rules

The rules for being eligible for the sign-up bonus on a card can be different depending on the card.

The rule known as the 24 month rule is the most common restriction in place. Let's look at the details of the rules.

Citi’s 24 month rule

If you have received a welcome bonus or closed a card in the past year, you can't get a bonus on a particular card.

You have to wait two years after you get a bonus on a card or cancel a card before you can get another one.

Some of Citi's most popular cards are the Citi premier card and the Citi rewards card. There are restrictions on the bonus on these cards.

Bonus ThankYou Points are not available if you received a new cardmember bonus for Citi Rewards+, Citi ThankYou Preferred, Citi ThankYou Premier/Citi Premier or Citi Prestige, or if you have closed any of these accounts, in the past 24 months.

If this is the case, you are not eligible for the bonuses on those cards.

• You’ve received a new cardmember bonus on any of those Citi cards in the past 24 months (it’s important to differentiate the opening date from when you got the bonus)
• You’ve closed any of those Citi cards in the past 24 months

Some examples are given.

• You are eligible for the Citi Rewards+ if you currently have the Citi Premier, but received the bonus over 24 months ago
• You aren’t eligible for the Citi Rewards+ if you currently have the Citi Premier and received the bonus within the past 24 months, or if you closed the Citi Premier within the past 24 months

I know that this distinction can be hard to understand.

You can get the bonus on the Citi Custom Cash Card even if you already have the other cards, because it is a separate product from the above.

Citi’s 48 month rule on AAdvantage cards

The rules for the Citi American AAdvantage cards are different for both better and worse. If you have received a bonus on a specific card in the last 48 months, you are not eligible for the bonus. Each card's eligibility is considered on its own.

The Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard® has certain terms.

American Airlines AAdvantage^® bonus miles are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a Citi^® / AAdvantage^® Executive account in the past 48 months.

The World Elite Mastercard® has the following terms.

American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus award miles offer and American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus Elite Qualifying Miles offer are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® account in the past 48 months.

There is no annual fee for the American Airlines AAdvantage MileUp SM card.

Statement credit and American Airlines AAdvantage^® bonus miles are not available if you have received a statement credit or American Airlines AAdvantage^® bonus miles for a new AAdvantage MileUp℠ account in the past 48 months.

The CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard® has certain terms.

American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles are not available if you have received a new account bonus for a CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® account in the past 48 months.

The rule is either better or worse than the standard rule.

• On the plus side, there’s not a “family” rule for these cards, so having one Citi AAdvantage card doesn’t impact your eligibility for another Citi AAdvantage card
• The downside is that you have to wait 48 months rather than 24 months

What happens if you product change a card?

People are wondering how it works if you change a card. If you apply for the Citi Premier ® Card, you can decide after a year if you want to switch to the Citi rewards+ card.

Is it possible that the product could change the clock to fit eligibility? Yes, the answer is usually no.

If your account number isn't changed, the clock isn't reset. If your account number changes, that usually means you have reset the clock.

What about eligibility for the Citi Double Cash?

I think the Citi Double Cash Card is the most lucrative credit card because you can earn up to two ThankYou points for every dollar spent. The card is one of the best for everyday spending.

How does applying for that card fit into a strategy? The Citi Double Cash doesn't have a welcome bonus so you can apply for it without affecting your eligibility for any other Citi cards.

The only impact would be that it would count towards the limit of applying for one Citi card every eight days.

The welcome bonuses language can be hard to understand. When you consider that different cards have different rules, it makes sense.

The rule of 24 months is hard to understand. The rule refers to the action of either earning a welcome bonus or closing a card. You can potentially be eligible for another card in the same family if you keep your Citi cards open for more than two years.

It's easier to understand the rule of 48 months. If you've received a bonus on the same card in the past 48 months, you're not eligible for the bonus on a co- branded AAdvantage card. Eligibility for each card is considered on a case by case basis.

It would be great if that clarified things for those considering picking up the Citi premier card.

Is there any other questions about the application rules?