Get To Europe With One Credit Card App – Chase Ink Increases Offer to 60K

Disclosure: I do not receive a commission for these cards. 

Chase Ultimate Reward points have taken a bit of a hit in the last year, thanks to the devaluation of the high-end travel experiences offered by United and Hyatt and the devaluation of Southwest. I still believe, however, that Ultimate Reward points retain fantastic value since you still get 1.25 cents per point when you redeem the points directly for travel and there is still a lot of economy flights and mid-tier hotels that you can get with their points. In fact, 60,000 United miles will get you a round-trip award ticket to Europe! It just so happens that Chase has just now increased (temporarily) the offer on their Ink Bold and Ink Plus cards to 60,000 points. That means you can get to Europe with  one credit card app!

Chase Ink Bold and Ink Plus At 60,000 Points!

Application Link – Chase Ink Bold/Plus – 60,000 Ultimate Reward Points after spending $5,000 in 90 days (I do not get a referral for this but the link above will take you to Frequent Miler’s page where you can apply through there. The public offer is not reflecting the increased bonus so applying through an affiliate is the only way to get it. Again, I do not get anything from Chase or Frequent Miler for this)

This offer was around last year for small business week and was a huge success – both for the banks and the consumers! It has come back this year and is a really great deal. It is an increase of 20% in the bonus points offered while not raising the minimum spending (which is $5,000 in 3 months). You can do a lot with the extra 10,000 points! In fact, I feel this offer is even more important this year than last year because Vanilla Reload cards are no longer purchaseable with credit card. That used to be an easy way to rack up points but now, that easy spending is gone. So, this 10K points may be worth a bit more to most people than it was before!

What Can You Do With 60,000 Ultimate Reward Points?

There are a lot of things you can do with that many points! I will just cover some of them:

• Redeem for $750 in travel – if you want to, you can redeem those points through the Ultimate Rewards mall for travel at hotels, in airplanes, rental cars, and cruises for $750 in straight value
• Redeem for economy to Europe – If you transfer to United (1:1 transfer partner), you can get a round-trip award ticket to Europe in economy.
• Redeem for economy to southern South America – Again, transferring to United will get you enough for a round-trip to southern South America.
• Redeem for economy to the Caribbean or Central America – almost 2 round-trips! – That’s right! 2 roundtrips to those destinations will cost you 70,000 United miles. Once you factor in the minimum spend of $5,000, you will be 5,000 miles away from two tickets.
• Redeem for 13 one-way short-haul trips on US Airways or American Airlines – If you transfer to British Airways, you can redeem your Avios for 4,500 points on one-way short-haul (less than 650 miles) with US Airways or American Airlines. Great value here!
• Redeem for several nights at Hyatt hotels – You can transfer your points to Hyatt (another 1:1 partner) for multiple night stays at various Hyatts – 2 nights at a category 7, 3 nights at a category 5, and 5 nights at a category 3!

• Redeem as statement credit or gift cards – Now, this is not an adviseable use for these points since you can get a lot more value out of them than redeeming them for cash reasons, but if you do not want to redeem for travel, you can redeem 60,000 points for $600 as a statement credit or gift cards. That ensures that this offer is worth at least $600 in your pocket!

Facts About The Cards

These cards are great for several reasons but some of the chief reasons are that they give 5x points on telecommunication bills (cell phones, cable, phone, etc) and 5x points at office stores. So, paired with this ongoing deal at Staples, you can generate some significant bonus points just by shopping at office supply stores. In fact, you can do your Amazon shopping at office supply stores for the 5x points as well. 🙂 Check out this post.

For gas, you get 2x points, which is nice. That 2X also applies to hotel reservations made through the hotel. Another nice way to rack up the points!

Here are the particulars about the cards:

• 5x points per dollar spent at office supply stores, and cable, internet, landline, and wireless bills (up to the first $50,000 per year)
• 2x points per dollar spent on gas and hotel accommodations (up to the first $50,000 per year)
• 1 point per dollar spent on everything else with no limit on the points that can be earned
• The annual fee ($95) is waived for the first year
• Ability to add employee cards with different numbers to protect the account and provide for easy sorting of transactions
• No foreign transaction fee (typically 3%)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between the cards?

The Chase Ink Bold is a charge card (must pay the balance each month) and the Chase Ink Plus is a credit card (you can carry the balance over). That’s it!

Which is easier to get? 

I would imagine (from both personal experience and the experience of others) that the Chase Ink Bold is easier. It is a charge card so there is no credit line (though there may be an initial ceiling they will give you). Chase is probably more comfortable issuing a card that must be paid in full each month than a credit card which may carry a balance.

Can I get both?

Yes, these are different products so you can get both.

What if I already have them? Can I get them again?

Many people have reported, and has been my experience, that you can get them again if you apply with a different business. You should also be able to get the bonus again (again, has been many people’s experience) if your initial Chase Ink card was a Mastercard as they have been switching over to Visa.

What do I need to apply for a business card?

The application will ask you for your EIN but you can use your social security number if you do not have an EIN for your business (if you are a DBA or something similar). Many people have gotten approved for all sizes of small businesses – from those who do resale to long-established businesses. If there is something you do on the side that you would like to get a card specifically for that purpose, go ahead and apply. Just be ready to answer some questions on the phone about your current business expenses and income (if you need to call in). I have talked to them before about a new business that I was just starting and honestly told them that I had not made any money yet and envisioned my expenses to be quite low for a while. I was approved.

Summary

Are these cards good deals? Yes! I currently have both (I continue to get retention offers each year that make the annual fee worth my while) and my wife has her cards as well. They are excellent cards with great value! I do not know how long this offer will last, so if you were thinking about it, I would definitely make a move!