In some cases, you might not receive your Amex Refer a Friend bonus. This can be for a variety of reasons, such as: Your friend didn’t use your link to apply for the card Your referral recipient’s card application was denied You’ve reached your referral maximum for the year You’re behind on your payments Also, if you’ve sent the referral to your recipient by email, you might want to follow up. The email might have gone to either the junk or promotions folder. In that case, you might be better off providing them with your personalized link.