TODAY ONLY: Free spend & points from Staples

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Greg The Frequent Miler
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This deal is good today only 3/3/2013 

Staples has two new FAR (Free after Rebate) software downloads today only thanks to two overlapping rebates!  These are a great way to make progress toward meeting credit card minimum spend thresholds or to earn points for buying software regardless of whether you actually want the software.

The idea here is to go through an online portal to Staples.com. Once there, buy ten copies of each of these “Free After Rebate” downloadable software products for a total cost of $799.80 (or less if you apply a coupon).  If you use your Chase Ink card you will earn 5 points per dollar since this is an office supply purchase.  In other words, you could earn about 4000 points for free.  See Preparing for Miles for more info about the Ink and other cards.

Staples has an amazingly easy “Easy Rebate” system. Once you purchase the software, they send you a rebate link via email. You click the link, fill out a little bit of info and you’re done. Note that you will have to wait a while, though. It takes 4 to 6 weeks to receive your check.

If you have questions, please see the Q&A section at the bottom of this post.  Also checkout this SlickDeals thread for additional details.

Here are the steps to follow:

Step 1: Choose a shopping portal:

You can get additional points or cash back by starting with a shopping portal. Some good choices are TopCashBack 5.5%, uPromise 5%, ShopDiscover 5%, and the Ultimate Rewards Mall 2 points per dollar.

Step 2: Add ten copies of “Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2013 for Windows (1-3 User) [Download]” to your cart:

TIP: Search for item 991094

image

 

And, add ten copies of “Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2013 for Windows (1 User) [Download]” to your cart

TIP: Search for item 982926

image

Step 3: Check out

TIP 1: If you have Staples’ rewards money, use it! If you have a Chase Ink card that gives 5X for office supplies, use it!

TIP 2: Your state may charge sales tax. If you know someone in a state that doesn’t charge sales tax for downloadable internet orders (CA, NH, etc.), then set their address as the delivery address and no tax will be charged. This is a download only purchase anyway, so nothing will really be delivered. I picked “deliver to store” and picked a store in New Hampshire. Of course, there won’t really be anything to pick up.

a close-up of a card

TIP 3: Consider using coupon code 62355 to save $15 from your order.  Caution: Some think that the use of the code will increase the chance of your order getting held up as “researching” and possibly eventually cancelled.  I took the risk and did one order with the coupon and one without.  The coupon is supposed to be limited to one time use per household.

Step 4: Submit Easy Rebates

You will receive an email from Staples with a link in it for submitting the rebates . It’s easy!  Don’t forget to add all four rebates (two per product)!

TIP: The software rebate can be changed from a Visa gift card to a check! About 4 screens into the rebate process, you’ll see something like this (screenshot is from a previous rebate, not the current ones):

image_thumb10

Click on “or see other options for my reward” and you’ll see this:

a screenshot of a computer

Q&A:

Same Item

  • Q: In the past I’ve bought the exact same item for the rebate. Can I do this again?

  • A: Yes. As long as the rebate number is different from your past purchases, you should qualify for a new rebate. This rebate is different from any I’ve posted about in the past.

Per Household Limit

  • Q: Can I buy a copy for every friend I know?
  • A: I don’t recommend it. I know at least one person who tried to do something similar, but Staples did not approve the second set of rebates. I don’t know how they figured it out.

Status = Researching

  • Q: The status of my order says “researching”. What’s up with that?
  • A: Staples needs to verify your order. Sometimes this happens if you have the wrong email address or phone number on file. Simply give them a call or do an online chat with them to verify the information they need. Once that is done, they’ll confirm the order.

Ultimate Rewards Mall T&C

  • Q: The Staples’ Terms and Conditions in the Ultimate Rewards Mall says “Not eligible on promotional items, technology, software, and electronics”. Shouldn’t this deal be ineligible since this is software? And, aren’t these free after rebate items “promotional”?
  • A: In all past FAR deals, points have posted despite these terms & conditions, but there is always a risk that portal points won’t post.

Do I have to use a Chase credit card?

  • Q: If I go through the Ultimate Rewards Mall to Staples, do I have to pay with a Chase credit card in order to get bonus points from the mall?
  • A: No, you can use any credit card, but you may have better luck with a Chase card. For details and information about risks involved please see Ultimate Question.

Rebate Time

  • Q: How long will it take for my rebate to arrive?
  • A: The Staples web site says to expect 4 to 6 weeks. In my experience, that estimate is fairly accurate.

Download

  • Q: Do I have to download this software so that I can qualify for the rebate?
  • A: No! I didn’t download any of the software I’ve bought in the past, but all rebates processed successfully.

Do Good

  • Q: I don’t need this software. Is there someone I can send the license keys to that could make good use of this stuff?
  • A: Check with your local schools or libraries. If someone can make good use of this software, then great!
Chase's 5/24 Rule: With most Chase credit cards, Chase will not approve your application if you have opened 5 or more cards with any bank in the past 24 months.

To determine your 5/24 status, see: 3 Easy Ways to Count Your 5/24 Status. The easiest option is to track all of your cards for free with Travel Freely.
Chase 5/24 semantics ("Subject to" vs. "Count towards"): Most Chase cards are subject to the 5/24 rule. That means the rule is enforced in making approval decisions. In other words, you probably won't get approved if your credit report shows that you opened 5 or more cards in the past 24 months. Meanwhile, most business cards (such as those from Chase, Amex, Barclaycard, BOA, Citi, US Bank, and Wells Fargo) are not reported on your personal credit report. These cards do not count towards 5/24.

Example: Chase Ink Business Preferred is subject to 5/24, so you likely won't get approved if over 5/24. If you do get approved, it won't count towards 5/24 since it won't appear as an account on your credit report.
Amex credit and charge card limits: If you apply for a new Amex credit card, you may get turned down if you already have 5 or more Amex credit cards; or 10 or more Pay Over Time (AKA charge) cards. Both personal and business cards are counted together towards these limits. Authorized user cards are not counted. See also: Which Amex Cards are Charge Cards vs. Credit Cards?
Applying for Business Credit Cards

Yes, you have a business: In order to sign up for a business credit card, you must have a business. That said, it's common for people to have businesses without realizing it. If you sell items at a yard sale, or on eBay, for example, then you have a business. Similar examples include: consulting, writing (e.g. blog authorship, planning your first novel, etc.), handyman services, owning rental property, renting on airbnb, driving for Uber or Lyft, etc. In any of these cases, your business is considered a Sole Proprietorship unless you form a corporation of some sort.

When you apply for a business credit card as a sole proprietor, you can use your own name as your business name, use your own address and phone as the business' address and phone, and your social security number as the business' Tax ID / EIN. Alternatively, you can get a proper Tax ID / EIN from the IRS for free, in about a minute, through this website.

Is it OK to use business cards for personal expenses? Anecdotally, almost everyone I know uses business cards for personal expenses. That said, the terms in most business card applications state that you should use the card only for business use. Also, some consumer credit card protections do not apply to business cards. My advice: don't use the card for personal expenses if you're not comfortable doing so.
Manufacturing Spend Caution: Many, many things can go wrong when manufacturing spend. If you suddenly increase credit card spend, your accounts may get shut down. If you cycle your balance often (e.g. spend to your limit, pay the bill, repeat) within a billing cycle, your accounts may get shut down. If you repeatedly pay your credit card bill from an anonymous bill payment source, your accounts may get shut down. If you buy lots of gift cards you may lose money due to gift card fraud, theft, loss, or simply mishandling those gift cards (e.g. maybe you thought you already used a gift card and tossed it into your “used” bin). If you rely on only one method to liquidate gift cards, you may be stuck unable to pay your credit card bill when that method gets shut down. In other words, don’t try this at home unless you know what you’re doing, and you understand and accept the risks..
Chase Ultimate Rewards points are super valuable and super flexible. At the most basic level, points can be redeemed for cash or merchandise, but you'll only get one cent per point value that way. A better option is to use points for travel. When points are used to book travel through the Ultimate Rewards portal, points are worth 1.25 cents each with premium cards (Sapphire Preferred or Ink Business Preferred, for example) or 1.5 cents each with the ultra-premium Sapphire Reserve card. Another great option is to transfer points from a premium or ultra-premium card to an airline or hotel program when high value awards are available (see this post for details). If your points are tied to a no-fee "cash back" Ultimate Rewards card, then first move those points to a premium or ultra-premium card before redeeming them in order to get better value.
Amex Membership Rewards points can be incredibly valuable if you know how to use them. In general, if you use Membership Rewards points to pay for merchandise or travel, you won't get good value from your points. One exception is with the Business Platinum card where you'll get a 35% point rebate when using points to book certain flights. This gives you approximately 1.5 cents per point value, which is pretty good. Another exception is with the Business Gold Card where you'll get a 25% point rebate when using points to book certain flights. This gives you approximately 1.33 cents per point value. If you don't have either card, then your best bet is to transfer points to airline miles in order to book high value awards. More details can be found here: Amex Membership Rewards Complete Guide.
Marriott points can be redeemed for free night awards, travel packages, airline miles, or experiences. 5th Night Free Awards: When redeeming points for free nights, the 5th night within a single reservation is free. Airline miles: Points can be converted to airline miles at a rate of 3 points to 1 mile. With many programs, a bonus is added on when you transfer 60,000 points at a time, such that 60,000 points transfers to 25,000 miles. Also, you'll get a 10% bonus when transferring points to United Airlines.

Everything you need to know about Marriott's rewards program, Bonvoy, can be found here: Marriott Bonvoy Complete Guide
Editor’s Note: This guest post was written by the same guy who showed you how to fly round trip to Africa (DC to Senegal) for 50,000 points, how to book business class to Europe for 80,000 miles roundtrip, and more. You can find John’s website and award booking service here: theflyingmustache.com/awardbooking.
-Greg The Frequent Miler

Amex Application Tips



  • Safe to Apply: Amex is the safest bank for trying your luck at earning a new welcome bonus offer. They don’t usually issue a hard pull when denying your application, and if you already have an Amex card, they won't usually issue a hard pull when approved for another one. Plus, they’ll now warn you during the application process if you’re not eligible for the bonus.

  • Lifetime Rule: If you've ever had the same card before, you are most likely prohibited from earning a welcome bonus offer for the card if you apply now. Fortunately you'll be warned during the application process if this is the case. Amex is known to "forget" that you've had a card after about 7 years.

  • 90 Day Rule: You can get at most two credit cards within 90 days. This rule does not apply to Pay Over Time (charge) cards.

  • 5 credit card max: Amex usually won't approve applications for new credit cards if you already have 5 or more Amex credit cards or 10 or more charge cards.

  • Better Offers: You may be able to get a better offer than the best available public offer. Details here.

  • Hard inquiries combine into 1 when approved same day


Check application status here.
If denied, call reconsideration: 877-399-3083 (new accountholders); 866-314-0237 (current accountholders)

Chase Application Tips

  • Shut-Down Caution: Signing up for new Chase cards can lead to Chase reviewing your accounts. This may lead to Chase shutting down all of your accounts if you appear to be a credit risk. See this post for details and recommendations: Why Chase shutdowns have increased and how to avoid them.
  • 5/24 Rule: With most Chase cards, you won't get approved if your credit report shows 5 or more cards opened in the past 24 months. Details here.
  • 24/48 Month Rule: With most Chase cards, you can get the same card and bonus again 24 months after having received the bonus as long as you no longer have the card open. With Sapphire cards, you must wait 48 months. No wait is required for Chase Ink cards.
  • 30 Day Rule: It is tough to get approved for more than 2 Chase cards within 30 days
  • Get Same Card Again: You can get the same exact card and again if you first cancel the older card and follow the 24/48 month rule. Ink cards are OK to get again without cancelling previous card if you apply with a new business.
  • Better Offers: You may be able to get a better offer than the best available public offer. Details here.
  • Hard inquiries combine into 1 when approved same day (not always true when mixing business and personal)

Call (888) 338-2586 to check your application status
If denied, call reconsideration here:1-888-270-2127 for both personal and business cards

Citi Application Tips




  • 48 Month Rule: With most Citi cards, you have to wait 48 months after receiving a bonus for the same exact card.

  • Velocity Rules: Max 1 personal card per 8 days. Max 2 personal cards per 65 days. Max 1 business card per 95 days.

  • Get Same Card Again: Citi allows getting same card again (even if card is still open) as long as you follow the 24 or 48 month rules and velocity rules (above).

  • Hard inquiries DO NOT combine into 1 when approved same day


Check application status here.
If denied, call reconsideration here:800-695-5171 (personal); 800-763-9795 (business)
If reconsideration # doesn’t work, try the Citi Credit Card Executive Office: 423-477-6858

Bank of America Application Tips


  • 3/12 or 7/12 Rule: You won't be approved if you have opened 3 or more accounts, with any bank, in the past 12 months. For those with Bank of America deposit accounts, the rule changes to 7+ accounts.
  • 2/3/4 Rule: Max 2 consumer cards per rolling 2 months, 3 per rolling 12 months, and 4 per rolling 24 months.
  • 5 card limit: You will not get approved for a new consumer card if you already have 5 consumer BOA cards open
  • Get Same Card Again: With some BOA cards, must wait 24 months after either opening or cancelling, depending upon the card.
  • Hard inquiries are usually combined into 1 when initiated within 30 days but there have been reports of TransUnion not combining.

Click here to check your application status
If denied, call reconsideration here: (800) 732-9194 (8am-7pm ET Mon-Fri); 800-481-8277 (business cards);

Barclays Application Tips


  • Get Same Card Again: Must wait at least 6 months after cancelling previous card (with some accounts Barclays requires waiting 24 months).

  • Hard inquiries are combined into 1 when approved same day. Most inquiries issued through TransUnion.


Consumer: Click here to check your application status
Business cards: Click here
If denied, call reconsideration here: 866-710-2688

Capital One Application Tips


  • Velocity Limit on consumer cards: Existing or previous cardholders are not eligible for the same card if they have received a new cardmember bonus for the same product within the last 48 months.

  • Hard inquiries usually get issued through all 3 credit bureaus


To check application status, call (800) 903-9177 or (877) 277-5901
If denied, call reconsideration here: (800) 625-7866

Discover Application Tips


  • 2 card limit: You can have a maximum of 2 Discover cards.

  • 12 month rule: Must wait just over 12 months after previous card was opened before applying for another Discover card.

  • Get Same Card Again: No known rules against getting same card & bonus again.


Click here to check your application status
If denied, call reconsideration here: 888-676-3695

TD Bank Application Tips


Call (888) 561-8861 to check your application status

US Bank Application Tips


  • Get Same Card Again: Depends on the product. For example, with the Altitude Reserve card you cannot get the bonus again. The terms state "The bonus is not available to Cardmembers who currently have, or had, a U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite account."

  • Hard inquiries may be combined into 1 when approved same day.


Call (800) 947-1444 to check your application status.
If denied, call reconsideration here: 800-947-1444 or 800-685-7680

Wells Fargo Application Tips


  • Bank first: Wells Fargo usually requires having a bank account open before you can apply for a credit card.

  • 16 month rule: Limit of one signup bonus per 16 months

  • Get Same Card Again: No known rules against getting same card & bonus again.

  • Hard inquiries are combined into 1 when approved same day.


Check application status here.
If denied, call reconsideration here: 1-866-412-5956 (consumer) or 1-800-231-9244 (business)
Under certain circumstances consumer Visa cards don't work with Plastiq. The following payments are fine:

  • Rent (residential rent, HOA fees, and commercial rent)
  • Taxes & government fees
  • Utilities (electricity, cable, internet, and telecom)
  • Tuition (including daycare and camp)
Payments outside of the above list are subject to the following limitations:

  1. Payments using personal Visa cards issued by Chase are subject to a limit of 20% of your credit limit.
  2. Payments using personal Visa cards from other issuers (other than Capital One or Wells Fargo) will code as a cash advance. That means you’d incur cash advance fees and wouldn’t earn any credit card rewards.
  3. The following types of Visa cards are not affected by these changes: Capital One personal Visa cards, Wells Fargo personal Visa cards, Visa business credit cards, Visa corporate, debit and prepaid gift cards.
In order to meet minimum spend requirements, people often look for options to increase spend in ways that result in getting their money back. These techniques are referred to as "manufacturing spend". American Express has terms in their welcome offers that exclude some manufactured spend techniques from counting towards the minimum spend requirements for the welcome bonus offer. For example, most new cardmember bonuses have terms like this:
Eligible purchases to meet the Threshold Amount do NOT include fees or interest charges, purchases of travelers checks, purchases or reloading of prepaid cards, purchases of gift cards, person-to-person payments, or purchases of other cash equivalents.
That said, many techniques for meeting minimum spend are perfectly fine. Here are some techniques that are safe for meeting Amex minimum spend requirements (click each link for more information):
We have added this to our running list of Black Friday deals, which will be constantly updated through Cyber Monday with a mix of gift card deals, merchandise deals, and travel deals. Check back often.
Want to learn more about miles and points? Subscribe to email updates or check out our podcast on your favorite podcast platform.

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Samuel

If anyone doesn’t plan to use their product keys, please forward them to me. I could use some extras. samdory (at) gmail.com Thanks!

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Goosh

Looks like it was reported earlier, but nice to get a surprise profit of $100. Spent $800. got $900 check today plus all the UR. Need more of these.

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Samuel

Received all my checks today!!

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Lee

My antivirus is going to expire and don’t want AVG (because of the tag line)… anyone have a spare link and serial code… if so, I am at leetrade (at) hotma.. (you know the rest). Thanks in advance… Lee

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Sil

How many days will it take for me to receive rebate check after I see “validation complete”?

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JD

One of the four offers now says “Invalid Purchase Date” and another says “Invalid – You cannot take advantage of the selected offer because you already selected an offer for this product.”

Sent an email and got a reply:

“I apologize but your rebates are currently invalid. You will need to submit proof of purchase by providing the receipts if bought in store or the email confirmation or packing slips if bought online. You can submit this by fax or mail. please allow 2 weeks by mail or 5 days by fax for processing”

Ok. So I faxed. We’ll see…

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JD

Got postcards in the mail telling me two of the rebates were invalid. Did a quick online chat today and the agent marked everything as “validated” so I’m expecting 4 checks total 🙂

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Justin P

Andreas: +1 here. Should hopefully mail soon.

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andreas

mine shows “validation complete” now. So on track to get $900 rebate check! Thanks FM!!

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Sandy

bill: I also ordered on the 3rd, but in the Staples system, it says my order date was the 4th. I spoke with a rebate center supervisor who said I would need to fax them a request to fix the order date along with proof of it being the 3rd. Otherwise, they’ll only honor the two rebates that were valid on the 4th. So I faxed them a letter of explanation, along with a copy of the order confirmation email they sent me on the 3rd (it’s dated the 3rd), and screen shots (from this post) show the product FREE after rebates. I just faxed that in yesterday, so I don’t know what the outcome will be, but I figure with this kind of evidence, if Staples decides not to do the right thing, at least I’ll have a good case ready to go if I need to dispute the charges with my credit card as a last resort. Want the fax number??? 🙂 It’s 866-964-7069. That’s the Staples Rebate Center fax. Good luck!

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bill

Got two postcards in the mail saying that Staples wouldn’t honor two of my purchases for the Kaspersky Anti Virus 1 user. One said “Invalid Purchase Date”, which is untrue — it was made on 3/3 in the middle of the afternoon EST. The other said “All required products were not submitted”, which doesn’t make any sense. Any ideas?

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FrequentMiler

bill: I know it’s a pain, but I think you’ll have to call and convince them to fix it for you

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hanly2

Has anyone had their rebate status change from “validation in progress”?

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JD

I also got the “Please choose one of the rebate offers below.”

After a brief online chat with EasyRebates:
“I’ve sent the information off to Staples. They will confirm you qualify for the rebates and have them processed accordingly. We will have a response within the next 7 to 10 days. Sorry for any confusion or inconvenience this caused.”

Seems like this CSR was familiar with this set of offers and hopefully everything will go smoothly.

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John

Staples cancelled my order after I didn’t return a phone call. “Free” points are not worth that much trouble.

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FrequentMiler

hanly2: It sounds like you went through the Ultimate Rewards Mall that offers 2 points per dollar at Staples. So, the email says that from the Mall you’re getting 2X. That’s fine. You’ll also get 5X automatically on your statement if you paid with your Ink card.

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hanly2

Wow that would be even better since, I didn’t even go through the mall!

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hanly2

Ok so I was able to get in on this deal no problems with rebates and all, BUT I just got a email from chase ink saying that I earned extra points, Then I see that they only gave me 2ppd instead of 5ppd so what gives? Should I call and say something to Chase?

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