i contacted barclay and was told i needed to pay the annual fee in order for the bonus to post. the AF is $95. i paid the $95 which was more than the initial charge and statement close and the miles posted at the close of the following statement.
i then called and said that for some reason i thought the AF was waived the first year. i downgraded card so as to not have a hard pull for nothing and to keep the credit line available and the AF was waived.
so must pay a min of $95 for the bonus to post and then can downgrade, close or cancel or whatever
side note, i was also told that if you close or downgrade within 60 days of AF charge, it gets credited/waived. not 30. that was my experience with this card and with arrival plus afterwards. 60 days