Chase has quietly tightened the rules for getting welcome bonuses on two of its most popular business credit cards with no annual fee. This change reflects the issuer’s more restrictive approach across its portfolio, including Sapphire Card Family. in June.
What is changing?
Effective immediately, Chase has added cross-card eligibility language to the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (see rates and fees) and the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card (see rates and fees).
In practical terms, you can no longer earn the welcome bonus with one card if you once had the other. This is how it works now:
- If you previously had Ink Business Cash, you are not eligible for the welcome bonus at Ink Business Unlimited.
- If you previously had Ink Business Unlimited, you are not eligible for the welcome bonus at Ink Business Cash.
Chase added the following clause to the terms and conditions of both cards:
“The new cardholder bonus may not be available to you if you have ever held this card or any other Chase for Business card without an annual fee. We may also consider factors relevant to your business when determining your eligibility for the bonus.”
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This new language creates a “family rule” for Chase’s no-annual-fee commercial products, bringing them closer to the issuer’s recent limits on Sapphire-branded cards and echoing the Family restrictions on cards increasingly used by American Express.
What does this mean for business owners?
You can still apply for (or switch products to) any of the Ink Business cards, even if you’re not eligible for the welcome bonus. However, many small businesses have historically opened both cards to maximize their rewards strategy. This is because the cards win:
Neither card charges an annual fee and, when combined with a premium card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards pointslike him Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees), cash back rewards become fully transferable Pursue ultimate rewards needles. Losing the ability to earn both bonuses makes that strategy a little less attractive to newcomers.
In a nutshell
Chase has spent this year tightening eligibility for bonuses, most notably restricting bonuses for its Sapphire cards five months ago. With these Ink family restrictions, it appears that the issuer is continuing its effort to limit duplicate registrations while also urging applicants to commit to a single product within each card family. We wouldn’t be surprised to see this rolled out to other Chase card families in the future.
Editorial Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here are solely those of the author, not of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
