Top 14 Questions About Applying for the Southwest 65,000-Point Personal Card Offer

Are you considering applying for a Southwest personal card? Good for you! It’s a great way to earn a bunch of points all at once that you can use to book FREE flights on Southwest.

These points also qualify for the 125,000 points needed to earn the Southwest Companion Pass, which lets one person fly free with you from the time you earn it until the end of the following year!

Thank you for using Go to Travel Gal affiliate links for your credit card applications (for this offer AND others), as you get the SAME OFFER, but you allow us to earn a commission to help support our free content. We SUPER appreciate you using our links!!

You’ll find them within Go to Travel Gal blog posts and articles or at TRAVEL CREDIT CARDS in the main menu of GotoTravelGal.com shown in the image below. Just click on Travel Credit Cards/Airline Cards and then you may need to click “See More Offers” at the bottom of the page a few times until you see the Southwest card you want.

 

Southwest Card Options

• Southwest Priority ($149 annual fee, 4 upgraded boarding orders, $75 credit for airfare and Early Bird, 7,500 anniversary points; my full review)
• Southwest Premier ($99 annual fee, 6,000 anniversary points)
• Southwest Plus ($69 annual fee, 3,000 anniversary points)

 

What’s the Offer?

Right now eligible individuals can apply for ANY Southwest personal card and earn 65,000 Southwest points after completing a $2,000 minimum spend in 3 months.

This deal ENDS on Monday, September 14 at 5 p.m. ET. 

Watch my August 2020 webinar to learn more about the offer and hear me answer some of these questions below…

 

 

Top 14 Questions About Applying for Southwest Personal Cards

I’ve put together some of the most common questions I receive for those applying for Southwest personal cards. I figure for every person who has this question, there are plenty more who have the SAME question!

 

1. What if I was recently approved for a lower personal Southwest card offer than is now available? Can I get the new offer?

Yes, most likely. Go to Travel Gal readers have been successful in the past reaching out to Chase (either by phone or through online messaging within your Chase account) to see if they will honor the new offer if they recently applied for a card at a lower point deal. Most have been successful!

In fact, some reported that Chase is honoring applications from as far back as a few months. It’s certainly worth asking!

 

2. Does being an authorized user on someone else’s Southwest personal card disqualify someone from applying for this offer?

No. If you are an authorized user on someone else’s Southwest personal card, that DOES NOT preclude you from getting a Southwest personal card in your own name.

Being an “authorized user,” however, DOES count toward Chase’s 5/24 rule, which states that they will not approve you for any new cards if you’ve OPENED 5 credit cards of ANY type in the last 24 months (Chase, Citi and AMEX business cards are excluded from the 5 total).

Join Go to Travel Gal ALL ACCESS, our monthly membership program that grants you access to our full video library among many other benefits, to watch a full video about the 5/24 rule and what to do if you fall under it. ALL ACCESS opens for new members the last week of each month, but you can join the waitlist if we are not currently accepting new members.

 

 

3. If I use your affiliate links to apply, do I get the same deal?

Yes, you get the EXACT SAME OFFER (no strings attached!), and in fact, you’ll know with 100% certainty that you are applying for the RIGHT deal and that you did not accidentally end up on the wrong page and apply for the wrong offer (or wrong card; I hear that one quite often, as well ;-))! Plus, you get my support if you have any questions :).

Here are the links for the offer:

• Southwest Priority ($149 annual fee, 4 upgraded boarding orders, $75 credit for airfare and Early Bird, 7,500 anniversary points; my full review)
• Southwest Premier ($99 annual fee, 6,000 anniversary points)
• Southwest Plus ($69 annual fee, 3,000 anniversary points)

 

4. I already have a personal Southwest card. Am I eligible for the current Southwest personal card offer?

You are eligible for this offer if 1) you have not earned a bonus on ANY personal Southwest card in the last 24 months and 2) you don’t currently hold a Southwest personal card.

 

5. I have a balance on my Southwest personal card that I want to close, do I need to pay it off first?

Yes, you will need to pay the balance on your card in order to close it. You should also ensure all refunds/charges have completed and turn off any automatic charges. 

 

6. If I want to apply for 1 Southwest personal card and 1 Southwest business card to earn all the points I need to earn the Southwest Companion Pass, how long should I wait between applications?

You should wait 30 days between applications, because Chase will NOT approve you for more than 1 of their cards every 30 days. This also includes other cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Ink Business Preferred.

Keep in mind, however, that Chase has tightened up its business card approvals. It doesn’t hurt to apply, but we are hearing that the only people who are getting approved are those who have a substantially-funded business account with Chase.

 

7. Can I apply for a personal card and my spouse also apply for a personal card and have them count toward ONE Southwest Companion Pass?

No, all qualifying points for the Southwest Companion Pass must go into ONE PERSON’s account. And you cannot transfer them to that person and have them qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass either.

All bonus points will go into THEIR Southwest Rapid Rewards account and qualify for THEIR Southwest Companion Pass.

 

8. Can my spouse apply for a card and have the points go into MY Rapid Rewards account?

No, the bonus Southwest points must go into the Southwest Rapid Rewards account of the person named on the card.

 

9. If I get a business card, do those points go into my same Rapid Rewards account?

Yes, they do. Both personal card Southwest points and business card Southwest points go into your SAME Southwest Rapid Rewards account. You will be asked for your Rapid Rewards number during the credit card applications.

 

10. Can I spend the entire minimum spend right away and get the full bonus points?

Yes. In fact, if you can do so without going into debt, this would be a great way to quickly get your points, and more quickly get your Southwest Companion Pass!

 

11. Does closing cards affect your credit score?

It can, yes, but usually minimally. Part of your credit rating is based on the length of time credit has been extended to you. Closing cards (unless they are new and therefore have not added to your “length of credit”) does affect the “length of time,” but so long as you have some cards that you hold over the long haul, you should not see a significant change.

I have found that the most important factors when it comes to credit is your debt-to-credit ratio (ie the amount of credit extended to you compared with the debt you have; you always want your debt to be 1/3 or less of the credit extended to you, aside from mortgages), as well as paying bills on time. Usually if these two things are in order you will maintain a great credit score. 

Here are my tips for how to improve your credit score in a hurry to apply for travel credit cards.

 

12. I took advantage of a tiered bonus offer on a Southwest personal card where I earned two different amounts of points after reaching two minimum spend thresholds. Does Chase consider the last “bonus” you received as the second tiered bonus?

Yes, the second tier of the bonus would be considered the last time you received a “bonus” on any Southwest personal card, and you are not eligible for a bonus on any Southwest personal card until 24 months from that date. This was confirmed with a Chase spokesperson.

 

13. If I am not eligible for a Southwest personal card offer right now, what other options do I have?

You could have a spouse or other traveling companion apply for the offer, earn the Southwest Companion Pass and bring YOU as THEIR companion.

 

14. Can I time earning the 65,000-point bonus to qualify for a Southwest Companion Pass good through 2021-2022?

Yes! Though it’s slightly tricky, and I’m happy to help you through it.

I recommend watching my recent webinar (you can also view it above) about this offer to get a full understanding. But basically, you need to ensure that you meet your minimum spend AFTER you card’s December close date, but BEFORE your 3-month minimum spend deadline.

That may require you to contact Chase to move your close date earlier in the month to ensure you can accomplish this.

 

More Questions?

Got more questions about the offer or how it helps you earn the Southwest Companion Pass specific to your situation? Please email them to me at lyn AT gototravelgal.com and I’ll be happy to help!

 

Thanks again for using the links in this post or in the TRAVEL CREDIT CARDS links in the main menu of GotoTravelGal.com above for your card applications to help support our free content!