If you start poking around on the internet on blogs and Facebook groups you’ll start to see “what’s your 5/24” come up a lot. This is a rule specific to all Chase cards. Essentially, Chase will not approve you if you have opened five or more personal credit cards in the past 24 months. Most business credit cards are not counted in this number (some Capital One business cards are, TD bank, and Discover are), though, so opening business cards can be a helpful strategy. Of note, if you are applying for a new Chase business card, you will not be approved if you have opened five or more personal accounts in the past 24 months. This is sometimes confusing to people.

You cannot improve your 5/24 by closing accounts, you just have to wait it out until you hit the 24-month mark on the least recent card. Typically, applying one month after you hit that date will work. You should also avoid adding yourself or your spouse as an authorized user on a card unless it is absolutely necessary. This fluctuates in being important, but more recently Chase has been including personal accounts on which you are an authorized user in the algorithm for approval or denial. You can always call and ask to remove an authorized user, but it might take several billing cycles before it stops reporting on your credit.

If you unsure of how many (mostly) personal credit cards you have opened in the past 24 months, the easiest way to find it is to check your credit report on whatever platform you prefer to use. You will easily be able to see all of your credit card openings over the past two years. Moving forward, you can choose to use one of many app’s to keep track of this. Many like TravelFreely for keeping track of 5/24, among many other important details.

People like to keep this rule in mind because Chase has an excellent travel rewards program with their Ultimate Rewards, as well as many interesting co-branded cards with airlines and hotels. If you don’t think strategically about this rule, you may find yourself locked out of some lucrative offers for a while in 5/24 jail. Don’t fret though, its not forever! And you can become an expert in the Amex or Citi rewards landscape while you wait – but you’ll want to stick to business cards to keep that 5/24 down!