Update 10/03/18: Chase is sending out this offer again. Referrals aren’t a good idea as new users can get up to $600 currently. Do the right thing and tell your friends about the better offer!
The Offer
Direct Link (check if you are eligible to refer at this link)
Chase now offers a $50 referral bonus to banking customers who refer friends for their banking products. The bonus is only available to those who have a debit/ATM card with Chase, and only for referring friends who don’t currently have any checking or savings account with Chase.
- Get $50 when referring a friend to Chase Total Checking or a new Chase Savings account
The new member will also get a bonus offer when using a referral:
- $200 if they open a Chase Total Checking
- $150 if they open a Chase Savings
The Fine Print
The terms for the new member’s bonus are the typical Chase checking and savings terms. You can find them in a previous post.Â
Here are the $50 referral terms:
- Referral bonus is available to eligible personal checking and savings account holders that hold EMV-enabled debit and ATM cards
- To receive the $50 Refer-a-Friend bonus: 1) Refer your family and friends to open a New Chase Total Checking® and/or New Chase SavingsSM account; 2) Referred candidate must be a new Chase customer and open a Chase Total Checking® and/or Chase SavingsSM account using corresponding coupon; AND 3) After your referred family and friends have opened their Chase Total Checking® or Chase SavingsSM account, we’ll deposit the $50 bonus into your primary checking account within 10 business days
- You can receive up to 10 referral bonus deposits (totaling $500) each calendar year
- Bonuses are considered miscellaneous income, and may be reportable to you and the IRS on Form 1099-MISC (or Form 1042-S, if applicable)
- Refer-a-Friend program is not available for the following customer or account types:Â Associates of JP Morgan Chase Bank, Legal Entities, Title Companies, Estates or Minor Children
- By referring friends via email you agree to allow us to send an email on your behalf giving them the opportunity to open a qualifying Chase checking and/or savings account; Your friends’ email addresses will only be used for this offer and will not be used for any other marketing solicitations or sold to third parties; If your friend already has a Chase account, is on our email opt-out list, does not live in an area with access to Chase branches, has already received a coupon code or if the email address you provided is incorrect or no longer valid, your friend may not receive the email; Due to the confidential nature, we cannot disclose any information about qualifying accounts opened by the friends you invite
Our Verdict
Before referring friends to this offer, take note that the signup bonus earned by the new member is less than the top offer we’ve seen many times which is to get $300 for opening a Chase checking account and $200 for the savings.
Still, I can see a few scenarios where this offer can make sense:
- Apparently, the coupon sent to the new member will work to open the new account online. A lot of people can’t get to a Chase branch or aren’t interested in doing so. They can’t typically get the $500 bonus and have to settle for these lower offers in the $350 range.
- The Savings bonus only requires a $10,000 deposit versus the standard $200 savings bonus which requires a $15,000 deposit (though we have occasionally seen the $200 bonus with $10,000 deposit).
- Someone who is doing a $200 Chase Savings bonus can instead have their spouse refer them for the $150 bonus and land up with the same $200 collectively, and even do it online, as noted above. (The $150 will be reported by Chase on a form 1099INT while the $50 might or might not be reported by Chase on a form 1099Misc.)
- If you are referring someone outside of the hobby and there aren’t any good public offers or you don’t want to explain to them how to do these offers, it might be easier to just send a referral. Right now, for example, there aren’t any public $300 checking or $200 savings bonus offers. While you can buy them on eBay, that’s not for everyone.
Please don’t put your referral here in the comments. I don’t think too many readers will be using these links. More information on Chase credit card referrals can be found here.
Hat tip to mirbachur on r/churning
