Several years ago (in 2015), applicants of Chase credit cards suddenly found themselves being declined. The surprising thing is that many of these applicants had otherwise great credit reports and great credit scores.
The reason for these denials was something along the lines of “too many new accounts opened in the last 24 months”. Very rapidly the rewards community collected enough data points (reddit, Doctor of Credit etc) to determine a new Chase policy had likely been created. Thus the 5/24 rule was born.
What is the Chase 5/24 rule?
According to the unpublished Chase 5/24 rule, you will be denied for many of their credit cards if you have opened five or more personal credit cards from any issuing bank in the past 24 months. Another way of looking at this is that in order to be approved, you need to have opened four or less personal credit cards from any bank in the past twenty-four months. There are other rules such as Bank of America 2/3/4 that only include credit cards opened from that bank. However the 5/24 rule includes all personal cards opened from all banks! This is what makes this rule so infuriating! This is why I also recommend opening five chase cards first before moving onto other cards from other banks.
Are All Chase Cards Subject to the Rule for Approval?
Not all cards issued by Chase are under the 5/24 rule.
Here are the cards that are subject to the 5/24 rule for approval:
- Chase Freedom Unlimited
- Ink Business Cash Credit Card
- Ink Business Unlimited
- Ink Business Preferred
- Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase Slate
- Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
- Starbucks Rewards Visa Card
- United MileagePlus Club Card
- United MileagePlus Club Business Card
- United MileagePlus Explorer Card
- United MileagePlus Explorer Business Card
These cards are not subject to the 5/24 rule for approval:
- AARP Credit Card From Chase
- Aer Lingus Visa Signature Credit Card
- Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card
- British Airways Visa Signature Card
- Disney Premier Visa Card
- Disney Visa Card
- World of Hyatt Credit Card
- Iberia Visa Signature Credit Card
- IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
- IHG Rewards Club Traveler Credit Card
- Marriott Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
CAUTION: Keep in mind that even if you apply for one of these cards not subject to the 5/24 rule, you can still be denied for other reasons. Ex: low FICO score, high debt to income ratio, too many new accounts opened in a short period of time etc. You still need to meet the other requirements for being approved as in this Guide to Credit Card Application Rules.
What New Accounts Opened Count Toward the 5 Card Limit?
The following new accounts do count:
- All personal cards opened from any bank count. Even non Chase cards
- All personal charge cards count. Ex: Personal Platinum Card from Amex does count.
- Only personal cards count. Business cards do not.
- If you are added as an authorized user, it usually shows up toward the five card limit. However you can call the Chase reconsideration line and usually ask them not to include these accounts.
The following do not count toward the five card limit:
- Business cards
- Cards you apply for but are denied. Keep in mind however these will still result in a credit inquiry and hard pull.
- Student loans, auto loans, personal loans, mortgages.
Do Card Upgrades or Product Changes Count?
Sometimes, but usually not. Ask the bank if they will be doing a hard credit pull. If so, then it will probably count. Standard upgrades/downgrades or product changes usually don’t count.
Good lucky and happy travels!
Here is a great site from doctorofcredit that has some additional information about the 5/24 rule.
