With American Express Canada, there are typically two ways to apply for a credit card: a publicly available offer that anyone can access, and a referral offer which is accessed through a “refer-a-friend” link.

Generally speaking, the referral offer tends to be a bit better than the public offer, although they may also be the same.

Recently, Amex Canada has introduced “Preferred Offers” as a third option for credit card applications, and they appear to be better than the rest.

What Are American Express Preferred Offers?

American Express has introduced Preferred Offers as an option for applying for a credit card through a refer-a-friend link.

It’s not clear exactly when Amex introduced Preferred Offers, and it’s also not certain who is eligible to have Preferred Offers available on their accounts, nor is it obvious which cards have Preferred Offers available at any given time.

Preferred Offers appear to present an elevated welcome bonus compared to the standard referral offer and the publicly available offer, which would make them the best way to apply for an American Express product, as long as they’re available.

For example, at the time of writing, the standard publicly available welcome bonus on the American Express Cobalt Card is for up to 15,000 Membership Rewards points, structured as follows:

• Earn 1,250 MR points for each of the first 12 months in which you spend $750 (all figures in CAD)

The standard referral offer available for the Cobalt Card is the same as the best-available public offer for up to 15,000 MR points, with an identical structure:

• Earn 1,250 MR points for each of the first 12 months in which you spend $750

However, you may also notice that your refer-a-friend link has a Preferred Offer available for up to 22,000 MR points, structured as follows:

• Earn 1,250 MR points for each of the first 12 months in which you spend $750
• Plus, earn an additional 7,000 MR points upon spending $2,500 in the first three months

In other words, with a Preferred Offer on the Cobalt Card, you’ll get 7,000 more points than what’s available through the other offers, offered through meeting a minimum spending requirement in the first three months that isn’t otherwise available.

At the time of writing, the Prince of Travel team has also noticed a Preferred Offer available for up to 110,000 points on the American Express Platinum Card, which is 10,000 points greater than the standard public or referral offers for up to 100,000 points.

In both Preferred Offers, it’s clearly stated that the “offer is only available to you through this webpage”, and that “your eligibility for this offer can change any time”. 

Therefore, if you have a Preferred Offer available to you through a refer-a-friend link, your best bet is to apply for it sooner rather than later if you’re eligible, since it could disappear at any time. 

Keep an Eye Out for Preferred Offers

With the introduction of Preferred Offers, Amex Canada is adding some more intrigue into the world of credit card welcome offers.

Since a welcome bonus is a one-time incentive to apply for a card, you’ll ideally want to time an application with a record-high offer, as you’ll have made the most of the opportunity.

If a record-high offer isn’t available and you don’t want to hold out for one, you should at least aim for an offer that’s better than the standard offers out there, which is where Preferred Offers can be a great option.

Earning points through referrals is one of the best ways to leverage your American Express cards on an ongoing basis. 

Therefore, it’s certainly worth auditing the referral offers available from your American Express cards every now and then. If you see a Preferred Offer available, it’d be a great reason to reach out to family and friends who may be interested in the card(s).

On the other hand, if you’re interested in applying for an Amex card, it’s worth getting in touch with friends and family in your network to see if they have a Preferred Offer available.

Conclusion

Recently, American Express Canada has introduced Preferred Offers, which appear to be available exclusively through refer-a-friend links.

Preferred Offers have a higher welcome bonus than what’s available through public and standard referral offers, which would make them the best way to apply for an American Express product when they’re available.

Be sure to check your account for Preferred Offers every now and then, and then reach out to family and friends who may be interested in applying for an elevated offer.