From this point forward, buyers purchasing Disney Vacation Club points via the resale marketplace will no longer be eligible for any member perks and benefits.
(Story updated 10:00am 4/6/16 with additional details.)
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An new notice posted to the official website at DVCMember.com indicates that owners purchasing their points via the resale marketplace April 4, 2016 will no longer be eligible for member discount programs. The notice states, in part:
"...effective April 4, 2016, Members who do not purchase their ownership interest directly from Disney Vacation Club will not have access to other Membership Extras, such as exclusive Member experiences and discounts."
Perks impacted by this move include member discounts on Annual Passes, single-day passes to the Walt Disney World waterparks, merchandise discounts, dining discounts and other "Membership Extras."
The PDF version of the Membership Extras guidebook has been updated to reflect these changes.
In 2011, Disney Vacation Club introduced more limited restrictions with members buying after March 21, 2011 deemed ineligible to participate in certain exchange programs. Resale points acquired after that date could not be used toward Disney Cruise Line voyages, Adventures By Disney and many non-DVC resort stays.
These owners are not impacted by the new limitation applied to perk programs. Resale owners who acquired their points between March 21, 2011 and April 3, 2016 will contine to receive full access to ticket, merchandise and dining discounts, however they will still be prohibited from using points toward the excluded Member Getaway programs.
According to a Disney Vacation Club spokesperson, resale contracts must have formally closed prior to April 4, 2016 in order for owners to be eligible for the Membership Extras. Transfers which are currently in-process--somewhere between the acceptance of an offer and completion of the closing--are ineligible for the Membership Extras. Initial reports pointed toward a more lenient policy for in-process contracts but late Tuesday, a number of DVC resale agents began contacting clients confirming this stricter policy.
(NOTE: Late in the day on 4/6/16, Disney Vacation Club again contacted resale agents and stated that they would extend the Membership Extras perks to any resale offer which had been submitted to DVC prior to the 4/4 cutoff date.)
There is no minimum number of direct purchase points required in order to be eligible for the Membership Extras. Disney Vacation Club currently maintains a minimum contract size of 25 points for any add-on point purchase. After completing a resale purchase, the new owner could gain access the Membership Extras by purchasing as few as 25 points direct from Disney. Note that this minimum contract size is subject to change.
Resale buyers closing after April 4 will not receive Disney Vacation Club ID cards, either in hard plastic or digital format. Historically the sole purpose of the ID card has been to verify eligibility for member perks and discounts.
Not all member perks and benefits fall under the umbrella of "Membership Extras." A Disney Vacation Club representative indicated that the member website will be updated to clearly differentiate between perks which are available only to direct buyers and perks available to all. Early reports suggest that pool hopping and complimentary resort DVD rentals are among the benefits which will remain available to all owners.
