Citi has added a pop-up to applications for its Strata cards that tells you whether you are eligible for the welcome bonus before you finish applying. If you can get the card but not the bonus, you can stop there.
Why this matters
The Strata Premier and Strata Elite now have lifetime language: if you have held that card before, you cannot earn its welcome bonus again. That makes it easy to accidentally apply for a card with no bonus attached, which wastes an application and possibly a credit inquiry.
American Express and Chase already have similar eligibility checks, and they have saved a lot of people from wasted applications. Citi joining them is good news.
What to do
- If you see the pop-up saying you are not eligible, stop the application. A card is rarely worth opening without its bonus.
- It is not yet clear whether Citi pulls your credit before showing the pop-up, so do not use it to test your eligibility casually.
- If you held the older Citi Premier but never the Strata Premier, early reports suggest you may still be told you are not eligible, so check before counting on the bonus.
Source: Frequent Miler
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