Estate planning as a Citi ThankYou account holder

Citi ThankYou Points are bank-proprietary points earned on the Citi Strata Premier, Double Cash, Custom Cash, and other Citi cards. Points can be redeemed for travel, gift cards, statement credits, direct deposits, and checks, and transferred to airline and hotel partner loyalty programs. Citi is unusual among points programs in publishing a death provision that runs in the estate's favor: the Terms and Conditions state points are lost at death and that the estate has no property rights in them, but carry a Cash Rewards exception — if the executor or administrator sends a written request within one (1) year of the death, with evidence of the death and of their appointment, Citi "can allow" the remaining points to be redeemed for Cash Rewards. The exception is discretionary, cash-only, and time-limited, and the points themselves never become property of the estate.

Citibank reviews transfer requests for Citi ThankYou points on a case-by-case basis after the account holder's death. Approval is at the company's sole discretion, and documentation requirements must be met before any transfer is considered.

Citi ThankYou allows members to transfer points to other program members during their lifetime, typically for a fee. This is a practical way to share value without a formal estate transfer.

What happens at death

The Citi ThankYou Rewards Terms and Conditions provide, under the heading "Loss upon death": "You will lose Your Points upon Your death, and Your estate, successors and assigns have no property rights or other legal interests in such Points, except under this circumstance:" followed by the "Cash Rewards option": "If we receive a written request within one (1) year of Your death from the executor or administrator of Your estate, along with evidence satisfactory to us of Your death and the identity and appointment of the executor or administrator, we can allow Points remaining in Your ThankYou Account to be redeemed for Cash Rewards. Contact the ThankYou Service Center at 1-800-THANKYOU (1-800-842-6596) (TTY: Use 711 or other Relay Service) for more information." Four limits follow from the text itself. (1) The default is loss, and the points are never property of the estate. (2) The exception is discretionary: Citi "can allow" the redemption; the agreement does not say it will. (3) The request must be WRITTEN, must come from the executor or administrator, and must reach Citi within one (1) year of the death, with evidence satisfactory to Citi of both the death and the appointment. (4) The redemption is limited to Cash Rewards — the executor does not get the partner transfers, travel bookings, or other redemption routes a living cardholder has. The agreement fixes no rate for that redemption: "Cash Rewards" is not defined anywhere else in it, and the agreement states that "the value of a Point may vary depending on the Reward for which it's being redeemed" and that Citi has "the right to change the 'Points to dollar conversion rate' for Rewards at any time." Timing also matters because the same agreement forfeits points on account closure: if Citi closes the Citi Account "for any reason other than inactivity," the cardholder loses the points immediately, and "if You have Points, and Your ThankYou Account is closed for any reason, You will lose them immediately" — while a voluntary close or an inactivity close leaves sixty (60) days to use them. The card account is closed on death notification, so the executor's written request should accompany the notification of the death rather than follow the closure of the account.