One of the less useful benefits of the AMEX Green is the up to $100 annual LoungeBuddy airport lounge reimbursement per calendar year. I applied for the Green card while the all-time high MR offer 45,000 welcome bonus was available, and I immediately bought a LoungeBuddy pass afterward (you can purchase in the app or online). Unfortunately, I ran into a small issue.
- If you use a non-US IP to buy a pass on the website, the transaction may be identified differently and affect the reimbursement (likely it will not be reimbursed).
On the same day, I made two separate purchases: one was a $50 pass bought with a US IP, and the other was another pass for the same lounge bought with a China IP (the amount displayed was 355 RMB, and it posted as $51.45).
For the $51.45 charge, the mobile app shows AIRPORT LOUNGE ACCESS (with the transaction location in the UK), while the desktop site shows STRIPE (a third-party payment processor, apparently also located in the UK). The transaction also earned only 1x MR (it was not correctly recognized as a travel purchase), and it still has not been reimbursed. By contrast, the purchase made with a US IP was reimbursed successfully and earned 3x MR.
I contacted customer service via online chat. The representative said the charge looked normal on their end and asked me to wait 2 weeks; if the reimbursement still did not post, they would manually add it for me. I am not very optimistic, though, since it has already been more than a week. I will update this DP later.
- For purchases made in the mobile app, IP does not seem to matter much so far, and both can be reimbursed normally. For direct purchases on the website, IP appears to be very important, or perhaps you may be able to manually select the region setting.
https://www.uscreditcards101.com/amex-green-intro/
https://www.uscreditcards101.com/lounge-buddy-review/