Hello, I'm new to posting here, so my apologies if I'm posting in the wrong forum!
I've perused the myFICO forums for a few years now to read advice about credit cards I was interested in and have recently used it to figure out what to do with my AMEX Optima Oasis card. If you're not familiar, the Optima Oasis card is one that is offered by AMEX typically after someone has their account(s) cancelled and/or settled. The card is essentially a way to prove to AMEX that you are responsibile enough to have one of their cards again. If you'd like to skip all the fluff about my personal story with this card, please go all the way to the bottom of this post to get the condensed details.
Long story short, in 2015 I opened three credit cards. Back in 2017 I ran all three of them up the wazoo while I was unemployed in NYC for about 9 months as a result of a redundancy. These are the balances I carried toward the end of my unemployment;
- Bank of America Cash Rewards Visa ~$4,000 (maxed out)
- AMEX Everyday Card ~$3,000 (maxed out)
- AMEX Gold Card ~$6,000
At the time, I could only pay my minimum balances to make ends meet. Thankfully, my Bank of America card is still open to this day -- I called them and they were very empathetic and understanding and gave me a reasonable repayment plan -- and it is now paid off. Both of my AMEX cards, on the other hand, were cancelled on their part because I simply wasn't paying enough for them (I don't blame them!). The AMEX cards were sent to two separate collections agencies and, after I got a job again, I was able to settle both debts over the course of about six months. Both settlements came with a reward: if I could settle my debt within the agreed settlement timeframe, AMEX would consider offering me an Optima Oasis credit card, but I could only have one card (even though I settled two separate accounts). I found a few posts about this card on this forum and ended up accepting the offer, mainly because I understood that I'd likely be on AMEX's black list for years if I didn't. I received the application in the mail about a week after I submitted my last payment. The application was relatively short and came with a letter with the cardmember agreement. The card offered a $900 credit limit (which was effectively 1/10th of my total debt owed), a $49 annual fee (charged immediately of course), a 25.99% APR, and literally no way to earn MR points or any other rewards. You can find the full cardmember agreement here. I wasn't happy about the annual fee, but I suppose that was the price of getting back into AMEX's good graces. I didn't care about the APR because I intended to pay my balance in full each month and never carry a balance, basically using it as my debit card. About a month after I mailed in my application, AMEX notified me via e-mail that my Optima Oasis card was approved and it was delivered about a week later. The card was actually very pretty and kind of old-school AMEX style in design. You can see it at the very bottom of this page.
I've had this card for 1 year and 9 months. In the verbal agreement that was read to me over the phone by a representative of the collections agency after I expressed interest in being considered for the recovery program, it was explained that I could apply for a CLI and/or a new card after 12 consecutive months of on-time payments. It also said this in the letter I received with the application. That being said, I have tried to get a CLI four times now after my one year mark. Once at exactly one year, then at 1 year and 3 months, then at 1 year and 6 months, and finally again last week (1 year and 9 months). The first two times I used the automated dial-in number on the back of the card and tried to request a CLI in the prompts and was promptly denied both times because of my credit score. The third time I tried, about 3 months ago, I called and asked to speak with a representative and had them perform a CLI request for me and was once again denied. They of course cited my credit scores, which have been consistently at:
- EX 658 (this was the score they used in their snail mail letter to me saying why I didn't receive an increase)
- TU 723
- EQ 739
In terms of my credit profile:
- $65,000/year salary
- 0% utilization for both my cards
- 99% payment history (One 30d late payment on my BofA visa)
- $14,275 in one federal student loan (in forebearance now, but have been paying ~$200/m steadily for 9 years now with no missed payments)
- 0 derogatory marks
I was very frustrated that I was stuck with this card, so I figured maybe I could just apply for a different AMEX card and they'd let me in that way. I bit the bullet and applied for an Everyday card, which I've had before, and was immediately denied with a soft pull. Frustrated even more, I figured AMEX just hated me so I decided to take the plunge and apply for an Apple Card and, to my delight, I was approved for a $2,500 limit with a 21.99% APR (again, I don't care because I pay in full) with a hard pull, of course.
Last week I asked for a CLI on my Apple Card (3 months in) and they gave me an addition $500. Right after that, I figured I'd try again with AMEX (which happened to be my 4th time trying for a CLI, waiting 90 days in between) but this time via online chat. Sidebar: I don't know if this is a thing unique to Optima Oasis cards, but trying to access live chat on the desktop website results in a disconnection after sending your second message every single time, no matter what browser or device (on both my mac and PC). They really make you feel like you're left on Oasis island with no benefits or help at all... Thankfully, live chat via the AMEX iphone app works. In the chat I was told flat out that my "current card is ineligible for a Credit Limit increase request", which was the first I've heard of that being the case, but that certainly explained my previous CLI denials with AMEX. Now, I didn't want to be stuck on Oasis island with no rewards and an annual fee forever, but I also didn't want to close the card if that means I couldn't get another AMEX... so I did some more digging online and found this specific comment on a Reddit post which was from a user in the same situation. They explained that applying for a pre-qualified offer was successful, so I decided to give that a try. I logged on to the AMEX website and clicked "Check for Pre-Qualified Credit Cards" and saw the Gold card, the Green card, and the Blue Cash Everyday card. I ended up going with the latter as I'm not interested in an annual fee and I also didn't think they'd approve me for another Gold card. Upon clicking "apply", I was brought to a short application screen where some of my information was automatically filled in (since I was logged in) and the top of the page read "[my name], you're pre-approved!". I kind of thought it was too good to be true, but I hit apply and viola! I was at last approved for a $1,000 card with no annual fee.
The card arrived today and I've just cancelled the very useless Optima Oasis card. The card reads "Member since '15" which is also nice. I feel so happy to be back as a real AMEX member, now able to benefit from cash back rewards and no annual fee. These are now in my wallet, all at 0% utilization come statement time;
- Bank of America Cash Rewards Visa $4,000 limit
- Apple Card Mastercard $3,000 limit
- AMEX Blue Cash Everyday card $1,000 limit
I'll try to change my Blue Cash Everyday back to a regular Everyday card in a year's time if they allow it. If not, then I'll probably change my Bank of America Cash Rewards card to a Travel Rewards card because my other two are also cash based, but I'll see how I go...
TL;DR -- Optima Oasis Facts
- The Optima Oasis card is invitation only, for those who are trying to get back into AMEX's good graces after an account cancellation or settlement
- The card's credit limit will be significantly lower than what you've previously had across your AMEX accounts, mine was $900 (10% of what I previously owed)
- The card is ineligible for CLIs point blank period
- There is a $49 annual fee and high (20+%) APR with literally no rewards
- You cannot earn MR points or any other kind of rewards, but you do have access to AMEX-specific benefits
- You can use the card with ApplePay and other mobile wallet apps, but it does not seem to work with Venmo or CashApp
- After 12 calendar months, you can apply for another card (soft pull)
- You do not have to close your Optima Oasis card to apply for another card
- AMEX will most likely decline your application to a card you've previously had that was closed by them/sent to collections, so I would suggest applying for a different card altogether
- Your membership will still be backdated (cosmetically, on the card, not the account on your credit profile), so my Optima Oasis card as well as my new Blue Cash Everyday card both read "Member since '15" which is when I first opened my AMEX account, even though I received these cards in 2018 and 2020, respectively.
I really hope this helps! If anyone has any questions relating to the Optima Oasis card, please feel free to comment or PM me and I'll try to answer :-)
as of 1/1/23
