Credit Card Questions (Declined Application)

Hey Guys,

I don't really use a lot of credit, I prefer to just use my debit card for everything.

I have been doing a lot of international travel lately and I thought I would get a credit card to give me a little security in case I run into trouble and also to try to get some QFF points.

So I applied for the Qantas Platinum Mastercard with Citi thinking it was a no brainer as I more than met the requirements plus I'm a gold QFF, with a credit limit of 12k. I got knocked back.

So I figured I should check my credit rating as maybe I had overlooked something, and it was clean, and I have a credit score of around 850. (I'm sure this would be higher if I actually had more things on credit as I direct debit all my bills)

So I'm confused as hell, should I just apply with another company? If so what companies are giving the most favorable approvals these days?

I am self employed, and I have a letter of earnings from my accountant and she is happy to speak with the bank on the phone.

Comments

  • Do you have the sufficient earning that Qantas Platinum Mastercard required?
    Which is Earn more than $75,000 a year

    • Yes I did.

  • +2

    I'm also self employed, but with a lowish income, and was easily approved for an Amex and 28 Degrees card.

    I tried them both after reading bluesky's reply on this topic.

    • +1

      Looking at the AMEX site now, they have one called The Qantas American Express Ultimate Card which gives a nice 100k points bonus on signup.

      I meet the earning requirements, however do you feel it might be a bit optimistic to go for a premium card straight up?

      • Amex are the easiest to get approved with.

      • +1

        Just apply and see how you go. Will probably be okay if you meet the requirements.

        I applied for Amex on a Sunday night, and was approved next day on Monday. Super fast.

      • +1

        Amex have approved me with an income 10% less than the minimum specified, and didn't request proof of income. Friend of same income was also approved, but with a $15k limit and no proof. Amex don't care…

  • +1

    I am self employed

    This, plus not having much of a credit history maybe (if you've never had another credit card)?

  • +3

    Dear all,

    Your credit score is not the only determinant of a Credit approval/rejection.

    • [Pikachu shock face]

  • I got declined for a Qantas CC, but then got approved for a St George Amplify Visa the next day, go figure. Citibank, who issue Qantas cards, seem to have a higher rejection rate than others.

    • too good credit rating means Citibank don't make money ;)

  • Citibank rejects people with no reason.

    There were several people on Ozbargain with perfect credit history and earning 100k plus got rejected instantly.

    • Citibank is very strict. As a self-employed, they wanted business financial statements before approving my application.
      But at least, they did not reject outright an online application like Bankwest did. Which did not give any opportunity to supply any info.

      • Well, I'm not self-employed. I've only got 2 credit card, no mortgage, earning 100k plus and got rejected by Citi immediately. The same thing happened to my friend as well.

        • Hmm… sounds like they are more strict all-round then.

  • Maybe your income isn't sufficient.

  • May be current credit limit too high

  • Hey Guys,

    So based on the advice here I applied for the mid-tier Qantas American Express Premium Card. (decided against pushing my luck for a premium card with a zillion free points)

    I was able to get conditional approval based on proof of income.

    I have uploaded proof of income and now we wait.

    • Good sign up bonus for this card but not good for overseas spend due to forex fees. Get an ING or Citibank debit card for that.

    • @rolin7 - I was also conditionally approved and then declined after uploading documents.

      Any update on your application?

      • No update at this time.

        I uploaded the docs and they called me and said they did not contain the info they wanted. To clarify my accountant prepared a letter saying how much money my trust was dispersing and to whom. They called me and said "we need a line saying "ROLIN7 MADE THIS MUCH MONEY"".

        So I contacted my accountant and she appended the letter to say what they wanted. I then got another call from someone who explained to me the benefits and points rewards I would be getting from my new card. After doing so they said "oh and BTW we need your letter to be just about you and not mention any profit your company makes or other beneficiaries of your trust"

        So I contacted my accountant again and apologized to her for wasting so much of her time, but the bank requires yet another letter. To be 100% honest at this point I felt like my accountant would feel I was foolish for not knowing what the bank wanted and contacting her over and over again, however she was kind enough to send the new document.

        This new document has been submitted this afternoon and we will see where it go's from there.

  • +2

    Closure.

    Got a call today, they said that my accountant did not attach her date of birth and CPA license number. I told the guy to hold, called my accountant and got those details and relayed them to the call center agent.

    Approved for 19k

    • I called citibank credit card and they said they dont hold information about my application hence unable to advise why.

      Can you tell me which number you called to find out?

      Thanks

    • A bit late to respond to your question - but glad you got a good outcome. Hope your accountant is generous and helped you for free. When I applied for cards, I always avoided involving my accountant - if need be, I provided supporting evidence myself. Just to save on hefty accountant charges.

      Yeah, Citibank is very strict when it comes to self-employed, so not surprised to hear your experience. But still better than Bankwest - see my comment above.

  • I applied for Qantas American Express with income well above the limit, and also have spouse income to show on the application, yet the application was declined.

    I don't have any other loans or cards so it's a bit of a shocker. They never asked for proof of income or employment.

    • I'll have a stab that on your credit rating there is a missed/ late payment. If they see that, that is as far as the application will proceed.

  • i already got 11 credit enquiries over 2 years. hopefully ill get approved i applied for $8000 limit

  • A bit late to this discussion, but I will add my experience. I applied for a Citibank credit card in late 2019, however my application was declined as the online application process won't allow you to confirm/update information before submitting it, and unfortunately I had made a mistake by omitting a large part of my income. Given this, my application was declined.

    Fast forward a few months and I applied for a Qantas Money card, however this too was automatically rejected. I called them to investigate why, and they said it was because my Citibank application was rejected. They advised that Qantas Money are affiliated with Citibank, therefore if you have a declined application request in their system, you're going to have a bad time with any requests you submit to their affiliates.

    Does anyone know if there's any way to have rejected applications removed?

    • +1
    • You can't get them removed but you can challenge their decision. That's what I'm doing with Citibank right now.

      Obviously when you've just applied for the card and are trying to get approved for it, probably won't work if you leave it.

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