Earning Double Sign Up Bonuses When Applying For Spouse

Use Your Spouse/Significant Other To Double Your Rewards

It’s so simple and obvious that it may not even seem like a trick, but most people never consider using their spouse or significant other to double their credit card rewards.

Originally, I only signed up credit card reward cards for myself. Then, one day the light came on and I realized my wife could apply for the very same cards I had already earned bonuses for.

Even if my wife was already an authorized user on my account, she didn’t have an account of her own so she could still apply for and qualify for the same bonuses and rewards on her very own account. This quickly doubled some of the most valuable credit card offers available today.

The first time we used this trick we ended up with a free five day Carnival cruise to the Caribbean. We both applied for the Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite Mastercard and earned over $1,000 in travel rewards between the two of us. However, once you start using this strategy there are a few extra things you need to consider in your rewards redemption strategies.

Beware Of Double Rewards Pitfalls

Double rewards sound pretty awesome, but you need to make sure to do everything perfect and ensure you don’t mess up along the way. There are a few pitfalls to make sure you avoid when doubling your rewards.

Minimum Spend Requirements Are Doubled

Sometimes you get so caught up in the potential rewards that you forget to consider what it takes to earn the sign up bonuses. The main qualification for sign up bonuses is the minimum spend requirements on these credit card offers.

Keep in mind that when you get two accounts, you have to complete two of these bonuses. It might make sense to apply for one card, complete the minimum spend then have your spouse apply for the second account. This spreads out the time you have to reach the minimum spend requirement. This way you aren’t faced with spending $6,000 in three months.

Redemption Gets More Complicated

When you’re only redeeming rewards on one credit card, you simply redeem all you can toward your purchases. However, when you have two separate accounts you need to make sure you’re following all of the rules to redeem all of your points.

For example, we had to plan out our redemption strategy when we used our Barclaycard Arrival miles for our Carnival cruise. In order to redeem all of our points, we had to make four separate payments on our cruise. The first two charges were for $460 on each card to use our base miles. Next, we had to each make a $46 purchase on each of our cards to redeem our carry on 10% bonus miles.

Be sure to plan out your purchases as many issuers will only let you redeem your rewards one time per purchase. You need to be very aware whether you make your purchases on your card or your spouse’s card, too, as you’ll see in the next pitfall.

You Might Not Be Able To Combined Points

If you mess up and accidentally charge your entire travel purchase on one card, you might be out of luck. Few credit card rewards programs will allow you to transfer points between spouses and that could mean you’ll be short of the amount needed to pay off your purchase. This would be a devastating mistake for someone who thought they had planned out the perfect, free vacation.

There are some instances where you can transfer points between spouses or between credit card rewards travel partners, but that’s a more advanced topic for a future article. For now, stick with learning the basics. When you’re ready, delve into the more advanced articles on this site.