Chase officially announced a new enhancement today for its premier rewards card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Chase Sapphire Preferred cardmembers will now enjoy two points per dollar spent on travel (including air, hotel, car rental, trains, travel agencies, taxis, etc.) and on dining purchases (from fast food and coffee shops to fine dining). Previously, travel and dining purchases earned double points only on purchases made through the Ultimate Rewards portal, but that restriction has now been removed. Purchases of eligible airfare and hotel accommodations made through Chase’s Ultimate Rewards will still earn an additional point per dollar spent (now for a total of 3 points per dollar).

While Chase made the official announcement of this new benefit today, it has actually already been rolled out to existing cardmembers for over a month now.

Cardmembers will also enjoy these existing benefits:

• No foreign transaction fees
• Dedicated customer service — all calls are answered by people, never machines
• Redeem points through the Ultimate Rewards portal for a 20% discount
• Transfer your points to participating hotel and airline programs
• Collect 7% annual points dividend, even on already redeemed points

As mentioned previously, Chase is offering new Chase Sapphire Preferred cardmembers an extremely generous one-time bonus of 50,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months, enough for a $500 statement credit or $625 towards airfare or hotel accomodations.

To apply, see this link.