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Yesterday I learned from a source that the Merrill+ Visa Signature Card will be discontinued in “mid September”. This means that we expect the following to be true at some point in September:
- The card will no longer be available to new applicants
- Existing customers will keep the card until further notice
Is it worth signing up for this card before it’s gone?
As I reported before, this card is great for it’s signup bonus. The card also offers some perks with big spend, but I argued that you can do better with big spend on other cards. See: $1000 worth of airfare? Sure. $50K spend? Maybe not.
As a reminder, the signup bonus is for 50,000 points after $3K spend. 50,000 points can be used to get $500 in statement credits or up to two $500 flights. Either way it’s a good deal.
So, yes, if you can get approved and meet the spend requirement, this card is worth getting.
General Card Info
- Annual fee: $0
- Foreign Transaction Fee: $0
- Point earning rate: 1 point per dollar
- Point value: 1 point = 1 cent when redeemed for statement credits. 1 point = up to 2 cents when redeemed for flights.
- Cardholders can earn a $200 travel credit or Delta SkyClub membership after $50K in spend per year.
Up to 2 cents per point value towards flights
When redeeming points for flights, Merrill+ charges 25,000 points for any flight worth up to $500. If you purchase two tickets, they’ll charge 50,000 points. According to Doctor of Credit, If your ticket price is more than $500, Merrill+ will charge you 1 additional point for each penny above $500. That means that you can theoretically get 2 cents per point value by buying tickets worth exactly $500, but if you veer far from $500 in either direction, your point value will plummet.
How to maximize value
Miles Per Day details a trick that can be used to get the full 2 cents per point value from the 50,000 points signup bonus. Details here: Maximizing the Merrill + card 50,000 point signon bonus.
How to apply
The Merrill+ card is available only by phone. You can apply as follows:
- Call 866-751-1257
- Use application code: BAABZX
A disclosure agreement for this offer (which includes signup bonus info) can be found here.
Summary
The Merrill+ Visa Signature Card’s 50K signup offer is excellent. It’s well worth getting if you can handle the $3K spend requirement. After that, though, I recommend sticking the card in a drawer. There are many better options for ongoing spend.
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Greg, I hope you get this message on an old subject.
I still have the card in my sock drawer, but I still have 53,000 points from spending $3000 originally.
I had forgotten about this until now and things have changed.
1) They now include Southwest
2) Southwest has changed dramatically regarding cancellations – where one can hold a credit basically forever.
I I were to do the old FlexPerks trick where I wait 24 hours before cancelling a reservation, Southwest will just allow me to save the funds in my account for future use. This would make it much more flexible and I’d get $1060 in credits if I pick the right flights.
How would I get my Southwest account number on the reservation?. .
4:10 EST-9/19/17-Just tried to apply but was told it is no longer available.
Just applied right now. 6pm pst. Froze experian. Went pending. Will report back tomorrow.
[…] If you’re interested in this card, make your move before it’s too late. See our post Last call for Merrill+ $1,000 in airfare for more information on this valuable […]
Applied this morning, froze Experian report beforehand, went pending, will report back, but should be easy approval. (I hope)
9-18-2017 8:30am EST applications still being accepted.
[…] Last call for Merrill+ $1,000 in airfare […]
Is it still time to apply? Please advise? Thank you.
DP: I applied on 9/4, went to pending (I had frozen Experian). Talked with them on 9/7 and the card was approved. They said I’d receive it in 7-10 business days and I asked if it could be expedited – the guy immediately said that was possible and that it would arrive the next day. Received it, as planned, via UPS on 9/8. I have no BoA cards and they pulled both TU and Equifax, even though when he asked about my Experian being frozen I asked him to pull Equifax (has the fewest pulls at 5 while the others have 10 or 11).
I tried calling today but the code is not valid anymore. Was anyone able to apply now.
I applied today – went to pending.
I did not provide a code, just told the rep to find the promotion.
She was able to locate the promotion.
I applied today with the code and it went through fine. Pending though but at least it went through.
Called Recon today and got approved. But was charged the $15 expedite fee.
Guess who was approved in error AGAIN!! This time they told me 2 cards was sufficient with them and $10K credit was the most i could have. They also told me they like to see no more than 5 inquiries for this card. I fought through but could not win this one, they had an excuse for every solution i brought up to open the card. I think i’m done with BoA, it sucks that my oldest card is with them.
[…] Last call for Merrill+ $1,000 in airfare: Word on the street is that this card will disappear in mid-September. No word as to exactly when — but not much longer to go on this offer. […]
[…] will be discontinued for new applications on September 18th or 19th. This is consistent with what Frequentmiler was told that it’ll end […]
[…] appears it is last call for the Merrill+ Visa Signature card. Good bonus for a card to kill afterwards you redeem the 50,000 […]
Any idea on if the rewards will expire? I don’t have any travel plans but don’t want to lose my 60000 points
I don’t think there’s any real chance of that. My guess is that worst case they’ll make you cash out at 1 cent per point if/when they stop allowing flight redemptions.
I got a Merrrill Card for both my wife and myself in January. I now have 3 B of A cards and plan to get a New Travel Rewards (Prime or whatever they call it) because I qualify for the 2.625 every day spend rebate and the 3.5 travel and dining rebate. I don’t really like trying to get the best deal for converting points etc so I like the cash back rates on this card.
I just wondered if there was any downside to closing my Merrill Cards. I have already had the 1000 dollars between the 2 cards transferred to my bank account and have no balance.
I read above that B of A may not like a person to have 3 or 4 credits, so that sparked this question.
Once you’ve redeemed the points I can’t think of any downside to cancelling
Will it be asking too much for one of you guys to call BoA to confirm the card was approved not in error? I only ask because it takes a week or so for it to come.