A travel blogger‘s thoughts on the current Chase RR Companion pass promo...

[elijahbrantley]

Applying for a credit card is an important decision that varies for everyone, but interesting thoughts on the current Companion Pass with new credit card promo here!

[ZevSupport]

Great read, thanks for sharing! 

Just to be clear, does the CP come through as soon as the 4k is paid, or you have to wait for the monthly bill?

[elijahbrantley]

Here are the terms from Chase's site.  Note the bold text below in regards to your question! @ZevSupport

The product is not available to either (i) current Cardmembers of any Southwest Rapid Rewards® Credit Card, or (ii) previous Cardmembers of any Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Card who received a new Cardmember bonus within the last 24 months. This does not apply to Cardmembers of the Southwest Rapid Rewards Business Card and Employee Credit Card products. To qualify for Companion Pass, you must make Purchases totaling $4,000 or more during the first 3 months from account opening. Please allow up to 8 weeks for Companion Pass to post to your Rapid Rewards® account. ("Purchases" do not include balance transfers, cash advances, travelers checks, foreign currency, money orders, wire transfers or similar cash-like transactions, lottery tickets, casino gaming chips, race track wagers or similar betting transactions, any checks that access your account, interest, unauthorized or fraudulent charges, and fees of any kind, including an annual fee, if applicable.) To be eligible for this promotional Companion Pass offer, account must be open and not in default at the time of fulfillment. Promotional Companion Pass is valid through December 31, 2019. Promotional Companion Pass entitles the Member to designate a Companion to fly free of carrier charges (does not include taxes and fees from $5.60 one way) anywhere with the Member on the same Southwest Airlines flight that is purchased (with cash or points) by the Member. Promotional Companion Pass travel is subject to taxes, fees, and other government or airport-imposed charges from $5.60 per one-way trip. Applicable taxes, fees, and other government or airport-imposed charges can vary significantly based on your arrival and departure destination. The payment of any taxes, fees, and other government or airport-imposed charges must be paid when the reservation is made. Any additional tax liability, if imposed, is the responsibility of Companion Pass traveler. If Companion Pass is earned by flying 100 qualifying one-way flights or earning 110,000 qualifying points in the calendar year while qualified for promotional Companion Pass through December 31, 2019, the regular Companion Pass qualifications will supersede the promotional Companion Pass entitling the Member to Companion Pass through December 31, 2019. Visit Southwest.com to review the full Companion Pass program rules and regulations. All Rapid Rewards rules and regulations apply and can be found at Southwest.com/rrterms

[ZevSupport]

Got that part. Thanks for bolding. My question is, must I wait for the billing statement to close, or as soon as I hit 4k, the companion pass is already sent/sending?

[DancingDavidE]

---

@ZevSupport wrote:

Got that part. Thanks for bolding. My question is, must I wait for the billing statement to close, or as soon as I hit 4k, the companion pass is already sent/sending?

---

The interpretation is that points are only earned when Chase sends the request to Southwest, and that only happens when a statement closes.

Southwest does not have any access to your account to know the "live" status or that you've made any payment to Chase.

Edit: You don't actually have to have paid the statement to get the points, the points are earned on the statement closing. But no, you would not be able to rack up the charges, pay them in advance, and then earn CP earlier.