Comments on: Reader Question: Is it OK to Get a Business Credit Card when I Don’t Own a Business?

By: Yan

Yan — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 02:10:11 +0000

I got Amex business card when they had a $250 promotion last month. SSN is your Tax ID if you are a sole proprietor. I try to use it for office related expenses, e.g. printer paper, just to be clean. However I doubt Amex would oppose if I had to charge groceries one day.

By: tim

tim — Sat, 21 Apr 2007 12:47:53 +0000

thanks for posting my question.

they did not ask for any type of ‘tax id’ when i signed up with the pre-approval letter they sent.

By: Savvy Steward

Savvy Steward — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 22:34:29 +0000

This has been discussed a lot in the Fatwallet Finance forums and most people would agree that there is nothing wrong with applying for a business credit card because: If you have ever sold anything to someone(e.g. Ebay), then you could technically call yourself a Sole Proprietor. When you apply for a card they will ask you for your business tax ID number. In the case of a sole proprietor, you can just put your SSN number.

Of course once you get the card, using it for only “qualified” business expenses is another issue.

By: broknowrchlatr

broknowrchlatr — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 21:29:56 +0000

Retailers, banks, companies do not care if you ‘pretend’ to be a business. Selling a card as a business card is simply an advertizing gimmick. After all, businesses make them a lot of money so they want them to feel more inportant than regular Joes. They want you to feel special with them if you get their card. If you look hard enough, you can pretty much always get the same card offered as a non-business card.

As a related topic… Dell has a business section of their web site. If you compare that and the Home/HomeOffice section, the prices are about the same. Their specials will vary. One may offer a free upgrade, while another offers free shipping. The sections are targetted with advertisements and sprecials tailored to who they think you are. But, they really don’t care if you are a business. I’ve bought things there and submitted my business name as things like “John’s non-Profit Carbon Monoxide Distributer” (pointing out that respiration causes me to ‘distribute’ CO)

Think about it this way. You are not getting a special deal; they are not getting any government kickbacks for having more corporate users; and, frankly, they don’t care.

Even if they did care… What recourse do they have? Theire is no legally binding definition of a business, not any binding definition of work related expenses. You could say your blog is your business and a purchase like dining out is a business related ‘public apprearance’. The worst they could do is cancel the card. I’d bet a buffalo nickle that nothing will ever come of it.

As for the card ‘terms’. This is most likley just a means of them trying to make business owners feel special.