Citigold Bonus Confirmation & More Info
Last week Citibank released a couple of pretty amazing offers for opening a Citigold checking account. Depending on which offer you apply for, you can either get 50K AAdvantage miles or 50K ThankYou points. A great bonus either way!
As part of my walkthrough for signing up, I recommended that everyone send Citi a secure message to verify the bonus in writing. You can of course call in and verify this information via the telephone, but I like to have it in writing in case something doesn’t post right.
(Note: Some people are being told by Citi that this bonus is targeted. While many others have applied and confirmed the bonus, there is a chance you may not get the bonus. I suggest reading the comments in this post.)
Written Confirmation from Citi
When I opened my account I immediately sent Citi a message as is detailed in my instructions. Yesterday I heard back. Their response answers a few of your questions, so I thought it was worth posting. I have cut out parts that were not important to the promotion, since he went on about Citigold benefits, etc.
Dear Mr. Coomer,
I reached out to a specialist in our New Account Servicing (NAS) on your behalf for assistance with your inquiry. I am happy to confirm that you are enrolled in the promotion offer for the 50,000 AAmiles. You will need to complete $1,000 in qualifying debit card purchases and also 1 qualifying bill payment must post to the account for two consecutive calendar months. Once you complete the requirements, you will receive the miles within 90 days from the end of the statement cycle in which you complete all requirements. We will obtain your account number from your Citi-Amex credit card. Can you please provide your account number so we may place a note on your account?
Sincerely,
Citigold Customer Service
Takeaways
Based on the info in the message, here are a few takeaways that answer questions I have received.
- They take your AAdvantage account number from your existing credit card.
- I have a AA Visa & Amex, but it seems they are looking at my Amex card to qualify for this promo.
- The bonus will post within 90 days of the statement closing after the requirements have been met. This means it could take up to 5 months or $90 in fees before you receive the points/miles.
Since I just opened my account, I plan to make the bill pay and debit card transactions as quickly as possible. I will then set a calendar reminder and do the 2nd bill pay on the 1st of November. While this won’t guarantee my miles post quickly, it will give me the best shot. When I did a similar promotion in 2013, the miles posted within 90 days of opening the account so I only paid 1 X $30 monthly fee.
Conclusion
Citi is willing to confirm the bonus in writing via secure message if you are looking for peace of mind. You can also call them to get confirmation via the telephone if you are worried. For me, the toughest decision was whether or not to go for the miles or ThankYou points. Now that I have made my decision, applied and received confirmation in writing, it should be smooth sailing. Crossing my fingers.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is the old king of travel rewards cards. Right now
bonus_miles_full
Learn more about this card and its features!
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
hoping I get my miles. I was not targeted
I just want to say Thank you. I sent the secure message for the confirmation after my Barclay 15K posted in Citigold. They confirmed by secure message today. I was not targeted. I signed up for the Barclay card & Citi AA card at the same time. My bonus sign up and extra points for the Citigold showed up today as 70K on my Barclay Arrival Card. Love your Blog.
Thanks May! I’m glad to help! Enjoy your miles.
Shawn, Did you send the secure email through your credit card account logon prior to opening the Citigold checking account? When I sent a secure email through my credit card account, I got the following message:
“Unfortunately, we are unable to assist with checking account related inquiries through the Secured Message Center. Please contact Citigold Customer Service at 888-248-4465 for assistance. We are available to assist 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our telecommunication number for our hearing impaired customers is TDD/TTY: 1-800-788-6775.”
I sent it from my Citigold account after I gained online access.
Shaun,
Did you have to wait until you received your debit card before you gained online access? None of the checking info shows up when I use my credit card logon id (which I also used to apply for the Citigold checking.). When I called, the rep told me that I would have to separately register the checking account, but couldn’t do so until I received the debit card – since the debit card number is needed in the registration process.
I linked it to my online account when applying, so it showed up, but a lot of others had the same issue as you. You should be able to get them linked together, but with Citi’s website things are rarely easy.
Data point. I opened the account online on 11/7. Waited until 10/9 to let it establish the account. Called to give funding instruction and used Citi AA Plat MasterCard to fund the new account on 10/9. I also used the opportunity to confirm the promotion. I was told they process all the funding orders once a day after midnight. The transaction showed up on 10/10 and remained pending until 10/12. Around 10/13 2AM, it posted and it was treated as Purchases. Around 10/13 12PM, the funding became available on the Citigold checking side. I quickly paid off Citi AA card since I maxed out my credit line and I don’t want to have a huge utilization ratio at the next statement close time, which could bring down my credit score. I also added a payee and scheduled a Bill Pay for 10/15. Hopefully debit card will arrive soon!
Any idea if using the debit card to load serve/bluebird would meet the $1000 spending requirement as debit purchases?
I believe it will based on data points of others, however I am testing this and will confirm in about a week personally.
Does anyone know if Chase funding will be treated as Cash Advance?
All Chase cards will post as a cash advance.
just signed up under the Thankyou point promo. Now i am locked out of my thankyou account. And i believe they created a new thankyou point program for the checking that is separate from the thankyou point program tied to the prestige card. Anyone else have this issue?
Two little girls in pigtails with a lemonade stand on a card table down the street are selling AA miles now for 95 cents per thousand.
Good follow-up post.
Subscribe.
Thanks for this follow-up post. Great help!
Don’t you have to fund the account with $50,000 within 30 days? Also keep it funded for over 30 days?
i think that’s only to avoid the $30 monthly fee
I tried applying but now I’m getting a message that it is not available. 🙁
Hey Shawn. This is what I was worried about the other day. They say they get the AA number from your card, but if I cancel it between getting the checking account and getting the bonus, I might be screwed, especially if they only verify the number after you meet the spend or whenever they decide to post it… I don’t think I should call in on this one. Ahhh!!! Tough decisions!!!!
What about confirmation for the 50,000 TY points? They said I have to wait for my debit card or checks to start the online account.
MY EXPERIENCE:
I can confirm that a SECURE MESSAGE after opening the account DID get me the promotion attached to my account.
It was a leap of faith to open the account first (i had not yet funded it) and especially after the runaround I got with the various phone numbers that I tried …. So, don’t call in, just go for it, send a secure message after, and, only then, fund it.
A follow-up, has anyone used Wells Fargo Visa Signature for bank account funding? Haven’t seen any reports whether that works as purchase.
Thanks
Do you if funding this with the Citi AAdvantage Executive will post as a cash advance? Seems like an easy way to meet that 7.5k minimum spending.
Awesome! Hey Shawn, when was your last account closed? I’m trying to confirm if I’m eligible. I closed a citigold account last October, I believe.
Best, Jake
Hello Shawn,
I signed up on Sunday, and received a “your account is processing” message, as opposed to your screenshot that showed that your account was open. Do you know the number to call so that I could follow up on the status of my Citigold checking account?
Thanks, interesting about the Citi-Amex, that is the one Citi AA card I have so it seems I would be good to go.