What To Do When You Get Your Chase Sapphire Reserve

If you read this blog or any other miles and points blog; you probably applied for the Chase Sapphire Reserve. You probably also can’t wait to use the 100,000 Chase points that you’ll earn. Now let’s talk about what to do when you get your card in the mail.

Activate Your Priority Pass Membership:

Your Chase Sapphire Card comes with a free Priority Pass Membership that grants you and everyone traveling with you access to Priority Pass lounges. You can relax before your flight at over 900 lounges around the world. To activate your membership, you need to log in to your Chase account, click on Ultimate Rewards, select your Reserve account, then select card benefits from the drop down menu under Use Points. You’ll see the below screen where you can click activate. You’ll also find other benefits that you can enroll in like elite status with certain rental car companies.

Sign up for Global Entry/TSA Precheck:

Chase will refund you up to $100 when you use your Chase Sapphire Reserve card to pay for Global Entry or TSA Precheck application fees. I recommend applying for Global Entry since you’ll automatically get TSA Precheck with it. Having TSA Precheck comes very handy to avoid the long dreaded security lines at US airports. It’ll also help with getting you to your lounge even quicker 😉

Remember to use your card for all Travel and Dining expenses:

You’ll earn 3X Ultimate Rewards points with your Reserve card on all dining and travel expenses. In addition to that, you’ll get $300 in travel credit every calendar year towards travel expenses. Chase has a broad definition of the travel category. So make sure you use your card whenever you take Uber or Lyft, paying for hotel or airfare, booking on Expedia or other online agency, even when paying for a parking garage. So keep your Chase Sapphire Reserve card in your wallet all the time 🙂

Make a plan to reach the $4,000 minimum spend requirement:

You’ll need to spend $4,000 in the first 3 months in order to earn the 100,000 bonus points. If you don’t think you’ll be able to reach that number with your normal day to day credit card spend; make sure to sign up for Plastiq. With Plastiq, you can pay bills such as mortgage, rent, student loans and utilities using a credit card for a small fee. The sign up process is easier than ever and very intuitive and there are no credit checks so you don’t have to worry about affecting your credit score.

Bottom Line:

The Chase Sapphire Reserve has received a lot of attention since Chase released it last year and for all good reasons. The card has so many benefits and perks that if used properly will get you more than 5 times the amount of the annual fee in benefits. Once you receive the card in the mail make sure to do the above 4 things and read my post about the best uses of 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points and start planing your next trip. You can always email me with questions or click the “Book Award Travel” link on top of the page for specific questions.

If you have any questions please comment below, tweet me @pointspointers or email me at pointspointers@gmail.com