Citibank Checking Referral Bonus
I have covered many Citibank checking bonuses on Miles to Memories over the past couple of years. The bonuses hit a frenzy last year when people started to realize just how powerful being able to fund the account with a credit card was. Unfortunately that frenzy ended with credit card funding being cutoff and now apparently Citi is even trying no to honor some of the bonuses. Booooo.
Anyway, if you do have a Citi checking account from a recent bonus or for any other reason, you may be able to refer your friends and earn up to $100 in cold hard cash. PDX Deals Guy sent over an email he received from Citi explaining the program.
Dear Mr. PDX Deals Guy,
There are many advantages to banking with Citibank®. We’ve added another by offering you up to $100 for each person you refer to us that opens a new eligible Citibank checking account.¹ It’s our way of saying thank you for sharing the benefits of Citibank with others.
How To Refer Your Friends
Unfortunately you cannot refer your friends online. Here is the process:
- Enroll in a branch – Visit your nearest Citi branch to sign up for the Member-Get-Member program.
- Invite friends and family – Encourage friends, family and colleagues to open an eligible checking account with us.
- Earn your cash bonus – You’ll receive a cash bonus of up to $100 for each person who opens a qualified checking account.
Offer Terms
- Eligible consumer account packages include: The Basic Banking Package, The Citibank Account Package, and The Citigold Account Package.
- Eligible CitiBusiness accounts include: CitiBusiness Streamlined Checking, CitiBusiness Flexible Checking, and CitiBusiness Interest Checking or CitiEscrow Control account.
- To be eligible for this offer, the Referee must not currently have a consumer checking account with Citibank.
- You are not eligible for this offer if the Referee was a signer on or owner of a Citibank consumer checking account within the last 60 calendar days.
- You must have an existing checking account in an eligible Citibank consumer account package or have an eligible CitiBusiness account to qualify for this offer.
- Limit twenty referral bonuses per customer for the eligible account package.
- Enrollment in this offer does not guarantee eligibility.
- To qualify for this promotion, the customer must enroll in the promotion, meet the terms and conditions in this offer and perform the required qualifying activities contained in this offer.
- Referee must provide a referral certificate with your promotional offer code at account opening by the expiration date listed on the certificate and open a new eligible checking account.
How the Referral Payouts Work
Your payout amount will depend on the type of account your friend opens. Here are the payout amounts:
- $100 cash bonus after a Referee opens a new account in Citigold Account Package.
- $50 cash bonus after a Referee opens a new account in Citibank Account Package.
- $25 cash bonus after a Referee opens a new account in Basic Banking Package.
Should You Refer Your Friends?
It is now tougher to get a Citi checking account bonus than before since they appear to be enforcing terms saying that you need to be targeted. Still, people who have Citi card accounts are generally targeted eventually and by opening an account with your referral they probably will forfeit the ability to get a bonus for at least a year.
Still, if you have a friend looking to open a checking account anyway, then it couldn’t hurt to refer them. My only issue with this Citibank checking referral bonus program is that you have to actually go into a branch in order to start the referral process. Unless you are near a branch and go in frequently anyway, I doubt it would be worth the investment of time.
Conclusion
This isn’t the best nor the worst referral offer I have see. I actually wish more banks would give you the ability to refer for a checking account, but then again I don’t know how often your friends ask for advice for this sort of thing. Either way you can probably refer people to Citibank and make some money if that is your sort of thing.
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Do you know if this referral bonus will work in conjunction with the $400 citi checking account bonus offer?
I do not believe it will.
No, I wouldn’t recommend this Citibank account to anyone. I have opened many online checking/savings accounts, and received many bonuses for doing so, but working with Citibank personnel on this account was the worst! After I opened the account and linked it with my personal ID, they immediately shut down all online access to my credit cards for “security reasons” until I received their debit card (which I didn’t want anyway). It took 3 weeks for the card to arrive, and then it didn’t work, so they sent another one. When I tried to verify the bonus, I got 3 differing responses. By the time the 2nd debit card arrived, it was beyond the 30 day limit to fund the account, and I didn’t want to have to “negotiate” an extension with them. By that point, it just wasn’t worth the hassle anymore, so I never even funded the account.