Every bank card issuer has its personal set of restrictions it makes use of to information approvals and decide welcome supply eligibility. Standards embody the variety of playing cards you may apply for, the timing of your purposes and the way typically you may earn a welcome bonus on the identical card.
With American Airways providing substantial welcome gives on its lineup of playing cards, these of you who’ve had certainly one of its playing cards previously could also be questioning whether or not you are eligible for a second bonus.
In the meanwhile, each Citi and Barclays concern AAdvantage bank cards, so there are a number of units of software restrictions to concentrate on if you happen to’re contemplating including one other American Airways card to your arsenal. Here is what you want to remember.
AAdvantage bank cards
Let’s begin with the lineup of card choices.
| Bank card | Welcome bonus | Annual payment | Welcome bonus worth (based mostly on TPG’s July 2025 valuations) |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Airways AAdvantage® MileUp®*
|
Earn 15,000 miles after spending $500 in purchases inside the first three months of account opening. | $0 | $232 |
| AAdvantage® Aviator® Crimson World Elite Mastercard®* | Earn 50,000 miles after making a purchase order and paying the annual payment inside the first 90 days of account opening. | $99 | $775 |
| Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Choose® World Elite Mastercard®* (see charges and charges) | Earn 80,000 bonus miles after spending $3,500 in purchases inside the first 4 months of account opening. | $99 ($0 introductory annual payment for the primary yr) | $1,240 |
| Citi® / AAdvantage Enterprise™ World Elite Mastercard® (see charges and charges) | Earn 65,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in purchases inside the first 4 months of account opening. | $99 ($0 introductory annual payment for the primary yr) | $1,008
|
| Citi® / AAdvantage® Govt World Elite Mastercard® (see charges and charges) | Earn 70,000 miles after spending $7,000 inside the first three months of account opening. | $595 | $1,085 |
*The knowledge for these playing cards has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or offered by the cardboard issuer.
Citi / AAdvantage card software restrictions
When you’ve earned an AAdvantage welcome bonus on a selected Citi / AAdvantage card, you will not be eligible to earn the bonus once more for an additional 48 months.
Right here is the high quality print underneath the cardboard software hyperlink for the Citi / AAdvantage Govt World Elite Mastercard:
American Airways AAdvantage® bonus miles will not be out there when you have acquired a brand new account bonus for a Citi® / AAdvantage® Govt account previously 48 months or if you happen to transformed one other Citi bank card account on which you earned a brand new account bonus within the final 48 months right into a Citi® / AAdvantage® Govt account.
The phrases apply for every particular person card, versus your complete Citi / AAdvantage card household. For instance, if you happen to lately utilized for the Citi Platinum Choose, you don’t want to attend 48 months to use for a Citi Govt Mastercard to obtain that card’s welcome bonus.
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The one exception is if you happen to product-change your card to a different AAdvantage card after incomes the welcome bonus. For instance, if you happen to modified your Platinum Choose to a Citi Govt Mastercard, you’d nonetheless want to attend 48 months from once you earned your welcome bonus on the Platinum Choose to earn one on the Govt.
An necessary distinction that it’s best to know is that the 48-month ready interval begins once you “obtain a brand new account bonus” for a selected Citi / AAdvantage card. That isn’t the identical as once you had been “accepted for the cardboard,” “acquired the cardboard,” “activated a card” and different widespread phrases you may see from an issuer.
On this case, semantics matter as a result of the bonus posted to your AAdvantage account could have been posted a number of months after you had been accepted for the cardboard itself.
Associated: Selecting the very best card for American Airways flyers
Barclays AAdvantage Aviator card software restrictions
Barclays is a little more obscure than Citi relating to welcome bonus restrictions. Take into account that Barclays at present accepts purposes for only one of their AAdvantage playing cards, the Aviator Crimson.
Primarily based on our knowledge factors, if you happen to’ve closed a card, you typically want to attend six months to be eligible for the welcome supply once more. Nonetheless, some software pages, just like the one on the AAdvantage Aviator Crimson, state the next:
You might not be eligible for this supply if you happen to at present have or beforehand had an account with us on this program.
On this case, the “could not” on this sentence signifies that you possibly can be accepted for a brand new card as a earlier cardholder, meet the minimal spending requirement and nonetheless miss out on the welcome bonus. Once more, your mileage could range, significantly with Barclays.
Citi and Barclays are separate issuers, so that you’re allowed to open an AAdvantage bank card with each issuers whereas additionally receiving the welcome bonus. TPG bank cards author Danyal Ahmed earned the welcome bonus on each the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Choose and Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Crimson.
Take into account that Citi is about to develop into the sole issuer of AAdvantage bank cards in 2026. When you’ve exhausted your Citi card choices, think about a Barclay-issued AAdvantage card when you nonetheless can.
Associated: The various flavors of Barclays’ AAdvantage Aviator bank cards
Backside line
Citi and Barclays each have distinct guidelines relating to software approvals and welcome bonus eligibility for his or her AAdvantage bank cards.
Whereas Citi is much less obscure with restrictions, it additionally imposes a prolonged ready interval of a minimum of 48 months earlier than you may obtain one other welcome bonus. The foundations with Barclays are much more subjective, giving the corporate extra energy to disclaim approval or a bonus ought to it think about your software unworthy.
In any case, if you happen to’re accepted and eligible for a welcome bonus, be sure you can full the minimal spending necessities inside the interval allotted. Welcome bonuses could make the distinction between taking your dream journey or being caught at residence, so it is necessary to earn them when you may.
Associated: The best way to redeem miles with the American Airways AAdvantage program