# Wells Fargo — documented application rules

> Wells Fargo application rules, documented: 3 tracked rules (2 active as last confirmed), 6 dated rule changes on record since 2017, most recently February 16, 2026. Every change dated and sourced; statuses reflect our last documented confirmation, not live issuer policy.

## 48-month rule (Wells Fargo) — Active — last confirmed February 16, 2026

- **2026-02-16**: Per-card 48-month bonus language documented on Active Cash — Date approximate; reflects the guide's date, not the terms change. Sources are tier-3; tier-1 dating not found. Active Cash terms deny intro APR, fee, and bonus offers to anyone who has or opened that card within 48 months, while Choice Privileges cards keep a 15-month window. — sources: https://www.bankrate.com/credit-cards/issuers/credit-card-application-rules-by-issuer/ · https://www.fool.com/money/credit-cards/wells-fargo/guides/wells-fargo-card-application-rules/

## 1 card per 6 months (Wells Fargo) — Active — last confirmed November 3, 2022

- **2022-11-03**: Rule introduced — The rule became one Wells Fargo card per six months across all personal Wells Fargo cards. — sources: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/wells-fargo-one-bonus-per-16-month-rule/ · https://www.doctorofcredit.com/things-everybody-should-know-about-w/

## 15-month bonus rule — Retired — last confirmed November 3, 2022

- **2022-11-03**: Rule retired (replaced by 6-month rule) — The Hotels.com card still showed the 15-month rule relative to a prior Hotels.com card. — sources: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/wells-fargo-one-bonus-per-16-month-rule/
- **2019-10-05**: Terms softened from "will not" to "may not" qualify — Doctor of Credit was unsure whether this was a real change or lawyer wording. — sources: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/wells-fargo-one-bonus-per-16-month-rule/
- **2018-01-30**: Confirmed as a 15-month rule — Both places in the terms used 15-month language by this date. — sources: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/wells-fargo-one-bonus-per-16-month-rule/
- **2017-04-01**: Rule first documented (16-month and 15-month language) — Date approximate (month only). Application terms stated that opening a Wells Fargo card within the prior 16 months disqualified the applicant from intro rates and bonus offers, with a 15-month version elsewhere in the terms. — sources: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/wells-fargo-one-bonus-per-16-month-rule/ · https://travelwithgrant.boardingarea.com/2018/05/02/dont-forget-about-the-wells-fargo-credit-card-15-month-rule/

Canonical page: https://www.bonuseagle.com/rules/wells-fargo
Full dataset: https://www.bonuseagle.com/rules/dataset.csv (CC BY 4.0)