Rumors about the Barclaycard Arrival Credit Card Offer Confirmed

Just days after I posted my definitive one year review of the Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard® rumors started circulating on the internet about changes to the card’s minimum purchase requirement.

Today, those rumors were validated.

Previously, if you spent $1,000 within 3 months of opening the Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®, you would get 40,000 bonus points worth $400 toward any travel purchase. That is a very generous offer for opening new credit card. What’s more, you’d earn 10 percent back on all redemptions for travel expenses, so the payout is worth $440.

In my definitive one year review, I argued that I know of no other credit card with such a generous bonus offer for such a low minimum spend requirement.

Now, the minimum spend requirement is going to be increased to $3,000 in a 3 month period.

Does an increase in the minimum spend requirement affect my evaluation of the Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®?

Absolutely! Arguably, $1,000 in spending over a 3 month period is fairly doable for many households. Triple that requirement, and you would have to move your major purchases to the new credit card, which is not always easy to accomplish. If you are not easily able to meet the increased minimum spend requirement, you might want to hold off applying for this card until you anticipate some major expenses.

Cash back credit cards like the Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard® are not worth it if they cause you to spend more money than you would ordinarily. An increase in the minimum spend requirement makes this offer less accessible to many people.

If you have been considering Barclaycard Arrival Plus™ World Elite MasterCard®, you can read more about my take on the pros and cons of this offering here.

Here are the specifics of the offer as of today:

Earn 40,000 bonus miles when you spend $3,000 or more on purchases in the first 90 days from account opening. 40,000 bonus miles equates to $400 off your next travel redemption!
0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 12 months after account opening. After that, variable APR, currently 14.99% or 18.99%, based upon your creditworthiness
Earn 2X miles on all purchases
No mileage caps or foreign transaction fees
Get 10% miles back when you redeem for travel statement credits (i.e. redeem 25,000 miles for travel and get 2,500 miles back)
Use your card to book through any airline, hotel or discount travel engine with no blackout dates or seat restrictions
Easily redeem your miles for statement credits towards all or a portion of your travel purchases within the last 90 days
Complimentary online FICO® Score access for Arrival cardmember

There is another option.

Barclaycard Arrival™ World MasterCard®

There is a no annual fee version of the Barclaycard Arrival: Barclaycard Arrival™ World MasterCard®. This card offers 20,000 bonus points after an initial spend of $1,000 in the first 3 months.

This version of the card pays 2x points on restaurants and travel expenses, and 1x point on everything else. The 20,00 bonus points can be exchanged for $200 statement credits on travel purchases. There is no annual fee ever, so this card is a keeper!

Here are the specifics:

Earn 2X miles on travel and dining purchases with no caps
Earn 1X miles on all other purchases
Earn 20,000 bonus miles when you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first
90 days (that equates to $200 off your next travel redemption)
Enjoy a 0% introductory APR on purchases for the first 12 months afteraccount opening – after that, a variable APR, currently 14.99% or 18.99%,based on your creditworthiness
Book any airline, any time with no blackout dates or seat restrictions
Redeem for all types of travel rewards Choose to redeem for all or a portion of your travel purchases, starting at just 2,500 miles
Get 10% miles back when you redeem for travel (i.e. redeem 25,000 miles for travel and get 2,500 miles back)
No foreign transaction fees