Many people trying to apply for the American Express Membership Rewards Credit Card (MRCC) notice that it’s not available for direct application .

But there’s a simple way many users still get it.

The trick is to start with another Amex card and then downgrade to MRCC.

🧭 Step 1 — Get Platinum Reserve Card First

Apply for the American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card.

Welcome Bonus

Requirement	Reward
Spend ₹5,000 within 90 days	4,000 Membership Rewards Points

🧮 Step 2 — Maximize Points (30K Spend Strategy)

After the welcome bonus spend, continue spending to unlock milestone rewards.

Spend	Points Earned
₹5,000 spend	4,000 MR points
Additional ₹25,000 spend	11,000 MR milestone points
Base reward points	~1,000
Total	≈ 16,000 MR points

So by spending ₹30,000 total, you can earn ~16K MR points.

🎁 Step 3 — Apply for Complimentary Memberships

Once you become an Amex cardholder, you may see partner memberships in the Amex Offers section.

These sometimes include:

• Taj Hotels Epicure dining membership
• Accor hotel membership offers
• EazyDiner Prime dining membership

Availability depends on campaign and account eligibility.

🔁 Step 4 — Downgrade to MRCC

After earning the welcome rewards:

1️⃣ Wait until the card is active
2️⃣ Request a product change to MRCC

💰 MRCC Fees

Fee Type	Amount
Joining Fee	₹1,000
Annual Fee	₹4,500
Fee Waiver	Spend ₹1.5L annually

The Platinum Reserve card fee is often waived during application campaigns, so users typically switch to MRCC later.

🎯 Why MRCC Is Popular

MRCC is designed for monthly milestone rewards instead of high annual spend.

Monthly Reward Structure

Requirement	Reward
4 transactions of ₹1,500+	1,000 MR points
₹20,000 monthly spend	1,000 MR points
Base reward points	~200

Total ≈ 2,200 MR points per month

📊 Annual Reward Potential

Category	Points
Monthly milestone rewards	24,000
Base spending points	~2,000
Welcome bonus	~4,000
Total	≈ 30,000 MR points/year

This is achievable with roughly ₹20K monthly spend.

🏁 Final Verdict

MRCC is essentially a milestone farming card.

If you:

✔ Spend around ₹20K monthly
✔ Do 4 small transactions
✔ Redeem MR points smartly

It becomes one of the most reward-efficient cards for moderate spenders.