Codex for OSS: activation link rejects accepted maintainers who already subscribe

Codex
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1

I maintain Super Productivity. I was accepted into Codex for Open Source on 7 August and can’t activate the six months of Pro. This looks like an offer-configuration issue rather than a support one, so posting here.

What happens

The activation link in the acceptance email returns:

Thanks for being a ChatGPT subscriber. Current or recent subscribers aren’t eligible for this promotion.

I’m an existing paid subscriber on the same account and email I applied with, so the offer’s new-subscriber check rejects me.

The grant appears to be attached to a generic consumer promo token that gates on new-subscriber status. But the program targets core maintainers, most of whom already pay for ChatGPT, so the check looks misaligned with the population the program selected.

What support could and couldn’t do (case 13195526)

They confirmed the promotion is still unredeemed on my account, and that they have no tooling to apply it manually or to issue a link without the eligibility check. They closed the case on that basis. So the grant is intact and unconsumed. It just needs re-issuing against a token without the new-subscriber gate, or an exemption on the account.

I’d rather not cancel my subscription and wait out a lookback window of unknown length, since the terms say benefits can expire if not activated within a period that isn’t published anywhere.

The API credits

The part I care about more: I’d like the Codex Open Source Fund credits routed to my “Johannes Millan” API org, to run Codex on PR review, issue triage and release notes for the repo. Support had no visibility here either, so I don’t know whether this was granted, declined, or never processed.

Happy to provide the acceptance email, the offer token, or any verification needed.

Unfortunately this has been closed. So I can’t reply.

4

Hi and welcome to the community and please ignore the automated message from the bot.

I do not know if we can help you here in the OpenAI Developer Community Forum, but I have an idea what the issue might be.

Try cancelling your current subscription before attempting to redeem the promotion code. At least, that is a regular requirement when receiving gifted subscriptions that I know of.

If that does not work, I can try to get in contact with someone from the OSS team directly.

Let me know how it goes!

7

Thank you very much for your reply. I really appreciate, after trying to find a solution for quite some time now. I both did cancel my subscription, which unfortunately didn’t help and contact the support which concluded after some back and forth that there was no way to help me. If helpful I can post the emails here

8

Here is the mail I got:

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out to OpenAI Support.

This is Jamilane, and I’m taking over your case regarding the promotional benefits associated with your Codex for Open Source acceptance.

We understand that you received the promotion but have been unable to redeem the six-month Pro benefit because the activation flow indicates that current or recent subscribers are not eligible. We also recognize that you requested confirmation of the API credits associated with the program.

We have completed the available support-side checks for these concerns and confirmed that the promotion has not been redeemed on your account. Regarding the six-month Pro benefit, OpenAI Support cannot manually apply the promotional code or benefit to your account, and we do not have an alternative activation link that bypasses the promotion’s eligibility requirements.

Promotional eligibility is determined when the offer is redeemed. Receiving the promotional offer before its expiration does not override the eligibility requirements applied at redemption. In this case, the redemption link indicates that your account is not eligible because of its current or recent subscriber status.

Regarding the API credits portion of the promotion, the available support-side checks have also been completed. OpenAI Support does not have a method to manually add or apply the API-credit portion of this promotional offer to your account or API organization.

You have already provided the promotional link, acceptance information, screen recording, and sanitized HAR file. No additional troubleshooting, diagnostic information, or resubmission of these materials is required.

Based on the completed support-side checks and the available support options, there are no additional manual activation or credit-application steps that OpenAI Support can provide for these promotional benefits.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please let us know. We’re here to help.

Best,

Jamilane

OpenAI Support

9

@VeitB following up on your offer: yes, I’d be very grateful if you could put this in front of someone on the OSS team.

One useful data point since my last reply. I did cancel the subscription as you suggested, and the activation link still rejects me. So the check isn’t only on current subscriber status, it looks back over recent ones too. That leaves me without the subscription and without the grant, and there’s no published lookback length I can wait out.

Short version for whoever you pass it to:

Accepted 7 August, promotion still unredeemed, activation link rejects on the new-subscriber check, cancelling did not clear it. Support (case 13195526) confirmed the grant is unconsumed and that they have no tooling to bypass the check or to apply the API credits. It needs the grant re-issued against a token without the new-subscriber gate, or an exemption on the account.

The API credits matter more to me than the Pro seat. I’d like them in my “Johannes Millan” API org, for PR review, issue triage and release notes on Super Productivity.

Happy to send the acceptance email, the offer token or anything else privately. Thanks for stepping in on this.

10

Hi VeitB, I saw your offer to help connect an OSS maintainer with the program team. Could you point me toward someone who can verify application receipt? I applied around June 24 and submitted an update on July 15 following Support’s advice. Case 12608987 couldn’t confirm whether either submission reached the review system. I understand you may not have access yourself; any guidance on the right contact would be appreciated.

11

@johannesjo @mateorojasv09

I just wanted to confirm that someone from the team will look into it.

12

Hi @VeitB, I’m experiencing a similar issue to @johannesjo. After being accepted into Codex for OSS, I canceled auto-renewal of my Google Play Pro 20x subscription as instructed. My activation code now says “The promo code is invalid.”

My concern is losing access when my account returns to Free on September 28: if the code remains invalid, I may be unable to restore Pro 20x even by paying, since new Pro 20x subscriptions appear to be paused on the web.

My support case number is 14794510. Could you please pass my case to your contact on the OSS team as well? Thank you!

13

Hi @VeitB, I’m experiencing the same issue with the Codex for Open Source grant. I received the acceptance email and the 6-month ChatGPT Pro activation link, but it shows “Promo Unavailable — The promo code is invalid.”

I’m currently on the Free plan and using the same account that received the invitation. Would really appreciate it if you could help connect me with someone from the OSS team who could look into this. Thank you! :folded_hands:

14

Short update: I canceled my subscription and waited for it to expire. Now I get “The promo code is invalid” when trying to activate.

15

Same issue. Support email messaging took too many back and worth to resolve their questions but in the end it was escalated to a specialist. Hopefully it will be resolved quickly.

17

me too. I’ve lost pro access.

18

Hello, just registered on this forum.

I’ve got accepted into the program on Aug 18. I got a legit email from noreply@email.openai.com: “As part of Codex for Open Source, we’re offering you 6 months of ChatGPT Pro on us”.

I had an active subscription, so redeeming the code didn’t work. I unsubscribed and have waited for it to finish.

Today it finished today, and I got switched to a free plan. Trying to redeem the code gives me an error: “Promo unavailable. The promo code is invalid.”

I can’t buy a new month of ChatGPT since I’ll definitely not be able to redeem the code in that case.

Please let me know whom I can contact about this if this is the wrong place or what’s going to happen next.

Thanks,
Alan (alurm on GitHub, alan.urman at gmail.com)

19

The same is true for me, I signed up and got a code however it was invalid and resulted in me losing my 20x Pro account after canceling.

20

Was the support of any help?

21

I’ve asked support and it did not help.

22

No. They can’t reissue code.

23

Doesn’t that mean the invitation code they sent us are essentially blank cheques at this point