ByBanks are cracking down on credit card churning. American Express, Capital One, and Chase have introduced strict new bonus rules, closing loopholes and adding family restrictions. Here’s the full breakdown.
Credit Card Churning Crackdown: Amex, Capital One & Chase Tighten Bonus Rules
Credit card churning has long been a popular strategy among credit card enthusiasts—opening a new card, earning the welcome bonus (often worth $1,000 or more), keeping it for a year, then closing it to avoid annual fees. After some time, churners would reapply for the same card or move to another card in the same family to earn bonuses again.
But in the past few years, major banks have significantly tightened their policies, making churning more difficult than ever.
Recently, American Express, Capital One and Chase have all introduced new rules that restrict repeat bonuses, close loopholes, and introduce strict “family language” rules. Here is a full breakdown of what has changed and how it affects churners.
What Is Churning and Why Banks Are Cracking Down
Churning involves:
- Opening a credit card
- Earning its welcome bonus
- Closing it before the next annual fee
- Repeating the cycle with new cards
- Sometimes returning to the original card after a long gap to earn the bonus again
This practice grew in popularity—so much so that it even led to a dedicated subreddit. But banks lose money on chronic churners, especially when bonuses are exploited.
Now, instead of clear guidelines, banks are shifting to broader, vague language that gives them discretion to deny bonuses based on prior card history.
American Express: Closing Loopholes & Strict Lifetime Rules
American Express has always had a “once-in-a-lifetime” welcome bonus rule. If you have ever had a particular Amex card before—even years ago—you normally cannot earn the bonus again.
1. Platinum Card Loophole Closed Completely
Earlier, different versions of the Amex Platinum card were treated as separate products:
- Vanilla Platinum
- Charles Schwab Platinum
- Morgan Stanley Platinum
Churners used this to pick up multiple bonuses.
Amex has now closed this loophole, stating that all versions of Platinum (and older versions) count as the same product.
2. Forced Application Order Across Charge Cards
Amex has also added strict cross-card restrictions:
- To get the Green Card bonus, you cannot have previously held any Platinum or Gold card.
- To get the Gold Card bonus, prior Platinum history can disqualify you.
This forces applicants to apply in a specific order—Green → Gold → Platinum—if they want all three bonuses.
Amex is actively reshaping its ecosystem to discourage churners and reward long-term customers instead.
Capital One: Family Language Added to Venture Cards
Capital One introduced the 48-month rule in 2023. You cannot earn a bonus on any card if you earned a bonus on the same product within the last 48 months.
But now, they’ve gone further for the Venture card lineup.
1. Venture X
- Bonus not allowed if you’ve earned a Venture X bonus in the past 48 months.
2. Venture
- Bonus not allowed if you earned a bonus on either Venture or Venture X in the past 48 months.
3. VentureOne
- Bonus not allowed if you earned a bonus on VentureOne, Venture, or Venture X within 48 months.
This forces customers to move upward only:
VentureOne → Venture → Venture X
If you started at the top (Venture X), earning all bonuses could take eight years instead of three.
Chase: Cracking Down on Ink Business Cards
Chase has now implemented similar restrictions on its Ink Business credit cards—once considered the easiest cards to churn.
New Rule for No-Annual-Fee Ink Cards
For cards like:
- Ink Business Unlimited
- Ink Business Cash
The new terms state:
“The new cardmember bonus may not be available if you have ever had this card or any other Chase business card without an annual fee.”
Chase is also enforcing this with pop-ups that warn applicants before submitting applications.
Ink Preferred Also Restricted
Chase Ink Preferred now includes:
“The new cardmember bonus may not be available to you if you have ever had this card.”
This is effectively a once-in-a-lifetime rule, similar to American Express.
The era of opening multiple Ink cards for repeated bonuses appears to be ending.
What This Means for Churners Going Forward
While the landscape is tightening, opportunities still exist:
- New credit cards often launch with looser rules
- Banks typically add restrictions only after a product becomes widely exploited
- Strategic planning and timing still allow for valuable bonuses
Churning is not dead—but banks are making sure it requires more discipline, planning, and patience.
