Credit card churning means opening cards mainly for their welcome bonuses, meeting each bonus’s spending requirement, and then closing or downgrading the card before (or after) the next annual fee, and repeating the cycle. This page describes how it works, the limits Canadian issuers put in their own offer terms, and what the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) says about the credit-score side. It doesn’t rank cards or recommend churning; the trade-offs are different for every household.
It’s part of the rewards programs hub. Programs that come up in the offer terms below have their own guides: Aeroplan, Amex Membership Rewards, TD Rewards and BMO Rewards.
How churning works
The cycle has the same steps whatever the card:
- Apply for a card that has a welcome offer. Each application is a hard credit inquiry (see the credit section below).
- Meet the spending requirement within the offer’s time limit, using purchases that count under the offer terms.
- Receive the bonus once the issuer posts it; the offer terms say how long that can take.
- Decide what to do before the next annual fee: keep the card, switch to another card from the same issuer, or close it.
- Wait until the issuer’s terms allow another bonus before applying for a similar card again.
Welcome offers change; this page doesn’t list them
Welcome bonuses are set by the issuer and change from time to time, so this page doesn’t store or list them. The current offer, its spending requirement and its time limit are on the issuer’s own card page and in the offer terms there.
Illustration of the arithmetic. A card with a $150 annual fee and a welcome bonus you’d value at $400 at the redemption you plan to use leaves $250 after the first year’s fee, before counting the card’s regular rewards. If the issuer rebates the first-year fee under that offer’s terms, the full $400 stays. Both figures are made up; the value of a points bonus depends on how the points are redeemed (the Aeroplan points value guide covers that for Aeroplan).
Welcome-bonus limits in issuers’ own terms
Issuers limit how often one person can earn a bonus. The wording differs by issuer and by offer, and it is in the offer terms on each card page. Three examples, quoted from the issuers’ pages:
| Issuer | What the offer terms say |
|---|---|
| American Express (Cobalt Card offer) | “For current or former American Express Cobalt Cardmembers, we may approve your application, but you will not be eligible for the Membership Rewards points offers available in the first 12 months of Card Membership.” Similar wording appears in the Gold Rewards Card, Platinum Card and Marriott Bonvoy offers on the same page. |
| TD (Aeroplan Visa Infinite offer) | The applicant must not have opened any TD Aeroplan Visa account in the last 12 months. Under the Aeroplan terms the offer cites, bonus points may also not be issued, or may be revoked, “if you have previously received welcome or other incentive Aeroplan points in connection with the opening, activation, use or holding of a new Aeroplan credit card account with TD or another issuer of the same card category type as the Account.” TD also reserves the right to “limit the number of credit card accounts opened by one person.” |
| Scotiabank (Passport Visa Infinite offer) | People who hold or held a Scotiabank personal credit card as primary or secondary cardholder in the past 2 years, including those switching from an existing Scotiabank card, are not eligible for the offer’s main bonus; neither are Scotiabank employees. |
Two things follow from that wording. First, a limit can reach across issuers: the Aeroplan clause covers points received from “TD or another issuer of the same card category type,” so a bonus earned on one bank’s Aeroplan card can affect eligibility on another bank’s. Second, switching cards inside one bank doesn’t necessarily count as a new account for bonus purposes, as the Scotiabank terms show. All three offers also require the account to be in good standing, and TD’s terms add that closing the account or transferring to another TD card may forfeit bonus points not yet awarded. Other issuers, including CIBC and BMO, publish their own conditions with each offer.
What counts toward a spending requirement
Offer terms define which transactions count. Some examples of the wording:
- American Express: “Interest charges, annual fees, other fees and cash equivalent transactions are not purchases and do not qualify for Membership Rewards points.”
- TD: the Aeroplan Visa Infinite offer counts “net purchases (including the first purchase, less any returns and credits),” so a return made inside the offer period reduces the total.
- American Express (Cobalt offer): purchases count in the billing period in which they post, so one made on the last day of a monthly billing period that posts the next day may count toward the next period instead.
Cash advances and cash-like transactions carry a cost of their own. The interest-free grace period doesn't apply to cash advances, cash-like transactions and balance transfers. Buying things you wouldn’t otherwise buy to reach a threshold costs the full price of those purchases, which can exceed the bonus.
How churning affects a credit score
The FCAC’s guidance on improving a credit score covers each part of a churning cycle. Credit bureaus and lenders don’t publish their scoring formulas, so the size of any one effect isn’t something a reader can look up.
| Part of the cycle | What the FCAC says | How long it stays on the report |
|---|---|---|
| Each application | Credit card applications are hard inquiries, and hard inquiries affect your credit score; too many credit inquiries made too close together may make lenders think that you're urgently seeking credit or spending beyond your means | 3 years at Equifax, 6 years at TransUnion |
| Each new card | A new card counts as a new account. The FCAC: “This may reduce the average age of your accounts and lower your credit score.” | Part of your credit history while the account is open |
| Closing a card | Closing an older account means losing that credit history and reducing your available credit | At Equifax, closed accounts stay on the report for up to 10 years; see does closing a card hurt your score |
| Spending to meet a requirement | The FCAC suggests trying to use less than 30% of your total credit limit, and notes high use can count against you even when balances are paid in full each month | Reported monthly as balances change |
| Paying on time | Payment history is “the most important part of your credit score” | Late or missed payments can stay for up to 6 years; see what hurts your credit score |
Lenders check credit reports before approving a mortgage or car loan, so recent inquiries and new accounts are part of what they see. The hard inquiry guide and soft vs. hard credit checks go into more detail.
Keeping, switching or closing a card
When the next annual fee approaches, the options are to keep the card, ask the issuer to switch it to another card, or close it. On annual fees, the FCAC says: “Usually, the charge will appear on your credit card statement once a year.” It also notes that keeping an older account open, even with a zero balance, helps maintain your credit history and utilization rate. Whether an issuer refunds part of an annual fee after cancellation, and whether a switch is allowed, is set out in the cardholder agreement and by the issuer.
What a churner tracks
People who churn keep a record of each card so deadlines aren’t missed:
| Item | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Application and approval dates | Issuer look-back periods run from these dates |
| Spending requirement and its deadline | The bonus depends on meeting it in time |
| Bonus posting | Confirms the issuer paid it |
| Annual fee date | The point at which keeping the card has a cost |
| Each issuer’s bonus limit | Determines when a similar card could earn a bonus again |
Trade-offs
| Possible benefits | Costs and risks |
|---|---|
| A welcome bonus on top of the card’s regular earning | Annual fees, unless rebated under the offer |
| Card benefits (insurance, lounge access) while the card is held | Hard inquiries and lower average account age, which may lower a score |
| Time spent tracking deadlines and terms | |
| Interest if a balance is carried, which can exceed the rewards | |
| Bonuses withheld or revoked if an issuer’s eligibility rule applies |
The balance shifts with circumstances. Someone planning to apply for a mortgage soon has more reason to care about recent inquiries than someone with no borrowing planned, and someone who carries a balance faces interest costs that a person paying in full doesn’t.
Related resources
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them between September 25, 2026 and October 4, 2026. How we check facts.
- americanexpress.com: American Express® Membership Rewards® Cards | Amex Canada
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: Improving your credit score
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: How long information stays on your credit report
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: Choosing a credit card
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: How credit cards work
- Scotiabank: Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite + Card | Scotiabank Canada
- TD: TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Credit Card | TD Canada Trust