How to Transfer Amex Points to Avios

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Transferring your American Express Membership Rewards is fairly straightforward – but in this post, we’ll walk you through what you need to know if it’s your first time transferring your points. Most of the instructions here apply to other American Express transfer partners as well, in case you need to transfer your points to a different loyalty program.

Let’s take a look at the step by step process for how to transfer your Amex points to British Airways Avios:

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Amex Membership Rewards transfer to Avios at a 1:1 ratio, unless there is a British Airways transfer bonus promotion, which has historically been 30% for Canadians, and 40% for Americans.
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Step 1: Create an Avios Account

If you haven’t already done so, head on over and create your British Airways Executive Club account. From there you’ll be able to manage your Avios, book flights, and check reward availability.

Once your account is setup, make a note of your membership number. We’ll need that in the next step.

You can even set up a household account to pool your miles. This can be very worthwhile if your friends or family travel partners also collect Avios.

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Make sure to setup your British Airways Executive Club account in the same name as the primary cardholder you wish to transfer Amex points to. Otherwise your points will bounce back and the transfer will not be completed.
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Step 2: Link Your Avios Account to your American Express Account

Now that you’ve created your Executive Club account, it’s time to login to your American Express account and navigate to the British Airways Executive Club transfer page.

From your Amex account summary dashboard > Click on “View and Redeem Points” >

Click on the “Travel” navigation tab > Frequent Traveler Participants

You’ll see a list of loyalty programs you can transfer your Amex Membership Reward points to. Click on British Airways Executive Club.

Under “Account Info” click “Add Another Account”.

On the page titled “Enter Your Existing Partner Loyalty Program Account Details”, add your Executive Club membership number, and billing address details. Remember, the Executive Club account you’re trying to link must match your name as the primary Amex Cardholder. Your billing details should also be the same.

Now that you’ve linked your account, it’s time to transfer your points on the Transfer screen. But first…

Step 3: Confirm Reward Availability with Avios

This is your last chance to confirm reward availability with British Airways with the Book Online with Avios tool if you are transferring your points for immediate travel plans.

If your travel plans can wait, feel free to transfer your points and book your travel at a later date.

The transfer time for American Express points to British Avios can take up to 5 days, but in most cases, it will be much sooner, sometimes within 2 days.

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The transfer delay is important to be aware of.

In some unlucky cases, while waiting for your points to transfer, someone else may have booked the reward spot you were after. Of course, this is the worst case scenario, but be prepared – it can happen. Understandably, this can be a little nerve wracking, especially for new travel hackers.

That’s why it’s always good to have a backup plan for redeeming your points. Chances are there will be another suitable flight you can book instead.

If you can, transfer your points to your Avios account in advance so they’re available immediately when you’re ready to book.

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Step 4: Transfer Your American Express Points to Avios

Enter the amount of points you want to transfer. You can click the calculator button to get a points conversion, but in our case for British Airways, our Amex points transfer at a 1:1 ratio so it’s an easy calculation.

You’ll also need your physical Amex Card handy, as you’ll need to enter your four digit CID number (on the front of your card), and 3 digit CSC code (on the back of your card).

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If there is a transfer bonus promotion, American Express doesn’t make it obvious. Of course, they’d rather you not redeem it! So be smart, and expect it to happen around September/October for Canadians each year. If applicable, there will be a note about the 30% transfer bonus buried in the accordion list of “Product Information” and “View Terms & Conditions” – so watch closely for that.

Also, the Transfer Bonus is not reflected during the transfer (if applicable)

The user interface for transferring points is terribly designed here.

Even when there is a transfer bonus, the calculator, and final transfer confirmation screen do not reflect it. In fact, the transfer bonus isn’t even reflected until the points are in your Avios account several days later, which can understandably be a little unnerving!

This process makes me nervous every single time! American Express really needs to fix this.

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Once you click “Confirm Transfer” you’ll see a confirmation screen pop up:

Click “Complete Transfer” to transfer your points. A final confirmation message will appear with details sent to your registered email address.

The points will be taken from your American Express account and reflected immediately. Once they’ve floated around in the air for a few days before landing in your Avios account, which only then can you confirm the transfer bonus was applied and your points are where they should be.

Points can take up to 5 business days to transfer (but usually sooner). You’ll receive an email when your points have transferred.

The next thing to do is book your trip as soon as possible if you have immediate travel plans. Otherwise, kickback and wait for the perfect travel opportunity to present itself.

For the last segment of our Beginner’s Guide to Mastering British Airways Avios, check out How to Book Your Flight with Avios to learn how to book your flight and turn your travel dreams into reality using your travel rewards.

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