Of all the changes that have happened in the magic world over the past 5-6 years, if I had to pick the single most important change for earning miles, it would have to be Chase's 5/24 rule.

While Amex's "once in a lifetime" rule and Citi's no same-card family issuance rule are certainly important changes, they only apply to applications for their own company cards.

Whereas, Chase's 5/24 rule indirectly affects not only Chase cards, but other companies' card issuance as well, so it's hard to compare the impact..

In today's post, we'll focus on Chase's 5/24 rule and add Chase's related 1/30 and 2/30 rules to organize them into a 10 question, 10 answer format.

I've written a similar post before, but I've updated it with some new information.

Before we get started, let me say two things.

1) I'm going to keep using the word "rule" in this post, but it's important to note that this is not a rule that Chase has actually published as an official document.

I've scoured the Chase site and can't find any documentation on it, so I'm guessing it's some sort of internal rule in the Chase system.

2) I'd also like to mention that for the 1/30 and 2/30 rules, I learned from the expertise of @Bocher on the message boards. He's the best expert on card company specifics.

Okay, let's get started with 10 questions and 10 answers.

1. What is the Chase 5/24 rule, or Oisa in Korean? 

The basic definition of 5/24 is that it's nearly impossible to get a Chase credit card if the number of all personal credit cards and some business cards you've been issued in the last two years, counted at the time you apply for the card, is five or more.

2. When you say all personal credit cards, does that include cards from other companies?

That's right, when calculating the number of cards you've opened in the last 24 months, you should add up all of your personal cards from other card companies like Citi, Amex, and Capital One, not just your Chase card.

So if you've opened two Amex personal cards, one Capital One, and two Citi in the last two years, you've already filled five, which is why it's almost impossible to get a Chase card at this point.

This is why I mentioned in the introduction that the 5/24 rule affects other card companies as well: if you're aiming for a Chase card, you'll need to manage 5/24.

3. Are cards issued by Gap or TJ Maxx eligible? 

I understand that these are also personal credit cards, so they are included in the 5/24 counting.

4. I created 10 cards over the past 2 years, but now I've canceled all of them and only have 3 left, can I avoid the 5/24 rule? 

No, what Chase counts is the number of cards you've been issued, not the number of cards you currently have, so even if you canceled a card, it should still count towards your 5/24 count.

5. I don't remember when I got my card because I didn't write down when I got it. Where can I find out how many cards I have or haven't gotten past 5/24? 

Passion shared this on the message boardLike CreditKarma.comand FreeCreditReport.comseems to be the cleanest way to do this.

However, in the case of CreditKarma, I logged in for the first time in years and found that they had changed the process of finding my credit report to be a pain in the ass.

So for the 5/24 check, we recommend using the following method.

1) First, sign up on the CreditKarma site and log in.

2) Then, press the following address immediately afterward.

https://www.creditkarma.com/myfinances/creditreport/#accounts

If you go to the main screen instead of that address, you'll see your credit score as shown below, but it's very difficult to find your credit report.

3) Once you've logged in, click on the link to your credit report and you'll see your detailed credit report from TransUnion.

https://www.creditkarma.com/myfinances/creditreport/#accounts

Click the Accounts tab after Overview, and double-click the Open Date section to organize it in descending order.

4) This will organize your cards from the most recent to the oldest, and it's recommended that you take a leisurely 25-26 months to count your cards, rather than 24 months as of today's date.

5) In some rare cases, the three credit bureaus, TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian, will show different card counts, and since Chase uses different credit bureaus in different regions and in some cases checks two instead of one, it's a good idea to check all three if you can.

6. Do family cards count toward the 5/24 count?  

Yes. Family cards are also included in the 5/24 count.

However, the In the case of a family card, it's not counted against the person who created the family card. It goes on the credit history of the recipient of the family card..

So if you're the primary applicant for a card, and your spouse gets a family card, he's going to be counted on the 5/24 because he's the primary applicant, and it's going to go on his credit report separately, and he's going to be counted on the 5/24.

That's why it's important to think carefully about your decision to put your name on a family card.

If you've already created a family card, then you have two options.

1) One is to cancel the AU cards in advance and ask them to remove them from your credit history altogether. There's a detailed explanation on the boardin the app.

2) The other is to apply for a Chase card and once you get rejected, call Chase and ask for a reconsideration and say, "These are AU cards and therefore not cards I should be paying for, so please take them off.

There are quite a few successful examples of this on the boards, but it's a case-by-case thing, so I'd recommend thinking about your family card from the start.

7. The popular Capital One Venture X CardDo you also check 5/24 when creating this card? 

You asked an important question.

This is a common misconception, so it's worth going over it again in detail.

The 5/24 rule seems like a straightforward rule, but it's easy to misunderstand it because it conflates two different things.

1) First, there's the part about applying for a card. This only applies to Chase card applications, not Capital One, Amex, or Citi card applications. (To avoid misunderstanding, these other card companies have their own rules, which I'll explain in another post.)

2) In addition to this, there is a post-issuance part that applies. This is the part where once the card is approved, does it count towards the 5/24 count?

When we talk about cards that are not subject to the 5/24 rule, we typically refer to 1), but we often hear people refer to 2), which is when a card is created and then removed from the 5/24 count.

Therefore, When we say 5/24 is a rule, we mean two things: 1) whether you're subject to the 5/24 rule when you apply for the card, and 2) whether you're included in the 5/24 count after you're issued the card. First, it's good to remember.

If we have two factors like this, we can multiply by two and have a total of four cases, right?

That is,

1) Cards that are subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application and are included in the 5/24 count after issuance - YY cards

2) Cards that are not subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application, but are included in the 5/24 count after issuance - NY cards

3) Cards that are not subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application and do not count towards the 5/24 count after issuance - NN cards

4) Cards that are subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application but are not included in the 5/24 count after issuance - YN cards

I think we can make a distinction like this.

This may seem like it's getting complicated, but I think it's easy to understand if you think about it, so I'll give you some specific card names to illustrate.

1) Cards that are subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application and count towards the 5/24 count after issuance: YY cards

• Almost all Chase personal cards are eligible. This includes the Sharp Card, Sapphire Card, Freedom Flex Card, Freedom Sister Card, United Card, and Hyatt Card.
• These cards are checked against the number of cards you've been issued in the last two years when you apply, and if you're approved, they're included in the 5/24 count.

2) Cards that are not subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application, but are included in the 5/24 count after issuance: NY cards

• This includes all personal cards that are not Chase cards, such as Capital One, Citi, Amex, etc. For example. Citi Premier Cardis a card that doesn't check for more than 5 cards issued in the last 2 years when you apply for the card (so you can still get it if you have more than 5), but once you get it, it counts towards the 5/24 count.

3) Cards that are not subject to the 5/24 rule at the time of application and do not count towards the 5/24 count after issuance: NN cards

• Business cards issued by Amex or Citi are examples of this. Because they're not Chase cards, they don't run a 5/24 check when you apply, and because they're business cards, they don't go on your personal credit report, so if you pull your credit report, you won't see them.

• Of course, as I mentioned earlier, not all business cards do this, and some issuers, like Capital One and Discover, will put it on your personal credit report, so be careful. As of now, I know that Amex, Citi, and Bank of America don't put it on your personal report, but it's not impossible that this could change in the future.

4) Cards that are subject to the 5/24 rule at application, but do not count toward the 5/24 count after issuance: YN cards

• Ink Sister, Ink cache, Hyatt Business Card Business cards from the same Chase are known to fall into this category.

8. okay, so it sounds like I need to create a business card to continue to receive the signup bonus without increasing the number of cards counting 5/24, because they are NN cards, am I understanding correctly?

That's right.

As you can see from the example above, the best way to get around Chase's 5/24 rule is to get the Alaska Business Card from Amex, Citi, or Bank of America (the 60,000 sign-up bonus is great these days).

These Cards don't count towards the 5/24 rule when you apply for them, and they don't count towards the 5/24 rule after they're issued, so this is a great way to keep your card count below 5/24 while still taking advantage of bonuses.You'll be able to.

Of course, for business cards, I would say that if you're still a student or on an H-1 visa or something like that, you shouldn't do it at all because you're going to get in trouble with your status.

Additionally, each card company has its own rules, so it's not an infinite supply.

However, Amex alone has a number of business cards, including the Business Platinum, Business Gold, Hilton Business Card, Delta Platinum Business, and more, so I'd say there's a good chance that business owners can earn a decent sign-up bonus, as long as you're mindful of Amex's own rules (you can have up to 4 or 5 credit cards + forfeit the sign-up bonus if you cancel the card within 12 months of issuance).

If you can't apply for a Chase card past 5/24, the Citi-AA Business Card or Bank of America's Alaska Airlines Business Card are good offers right now.

9. Chase business cards could also be a good option, right?

Yes, it is.

However, for Chase-issued business cards, this option is only available to those who are not over 5/24, as the card application checks for 5/24 status.

If this applies to you, the Ink family of cards has some great sign-up bonuses, so this could be a great option for you.

However, if you're applying for a Chase business card, you'll also need to consider the 1/30 rule.

10. What is Chase's 1/30 rule?

Mr. Borcher hit the nail on the head..

The 1/30 rule is "if the second card you apply for in 30 days is a business card, you'll be declined", which means "if you've already opened one Chase card [personal or business] within 30 days, the next business card you apply for will be declined".

So if you need to open two Chase cards in a month for one reason or another, the order of application should be 1) business first, 2) personal second, not the other way around.

For those looking to get a Sway Companion Pass next yearis a rule that we think you should be aware of.

11. I heard that Chase also has a 2/30 rule, what is this?

Again, Borcher explained.

The 2/30 rule means that the "third personal" card applied for in a 30-day period will be rejected, meaning that "up to two personal cards in 30 days are okay, but the third will be rejected," but we hope that's not too much to ask.

12. When does the 5/24 counting start? Is it exactly 24 months, counting from the date?

For this question As @infoandquestions said on the boards Broadly speaking, there are three possibilities

For example, if December 5, 2019 was the card approval date two years ago,

1) If you believe that 5/24 will be released on December 6, 2021

2) If you believe that 5/24 will not be released until January 2022

3) If you believe that on December 1, 2021, 5/24 will be released

It looks like this

From my personal experience (and from what you've confirmed on the boards), it seems that for new applications, it's the first time that counts, not the month. I applied for the Chase Ink Sister card last month in November when the 5/24 was released and got the mermaid.

However, in the case of recons, it seems to be counted as 2 times per month, so if you're not sure if you're going to get a mermaid or not, it's best to count it as 2 times per month, which is the most reliable.

Let's wrap up today's post.

The Chase 5/24 Rule is a very important rule that directly affects all card applications, not just Chase cards, so we want to take this opportunity to familiarize yourself with the details so you don't make any mistakes.

Featured image by @enterlinedesign / depositphotos