Avios transfer with American Express: how it works
How to convert Membership Rewards points from American Express into Avios with British Airways.
Collect points via Membership Rewards
American Express’ Membership Rewards programme allows credit cardholders to collect points every time they make a payment. Whether travelling, shopping in a shop or online shopping. Registering for the bonus programme is quick and easy.
The points collected can be exchanged for attractive rewards in the rewards shop. It is also possible to pay with points in around 60,000 selected shops or restaurants. Participation in Membership Rewards is included with the Platinum Card, the Gold Card and the American Express Card.
Frequent travellers benefit from another option with Membership Rewards: They can convert points into flight miles that they collect and thus secure benefits with their preferred airlines. With British Airways, points can be transferred to Avios, also via the rewards shop.
Explained step by step: the Avios transfer from American Express
If you would like to convert your Membership Rewards points into Avios, proceed as follows:
- Go to the rewards shop and navigate to the "Transfer points to partner programmes" category under "Travel".
- Select "The British Airways Club" from the various programmes available.
- Enter the number of points you want to transfer to Avios.
- Enter your email address.
- Click on the "Transfer now" button.
You will receive two Avios for three Membership Rewards points. The exact value for your desired number of points will be displayed in the process. You must convert at least 1,002 points for each transfer. As the process can take up to five days, you should initiate the transfer in good time before you want to book a flight.
Interesting fact: In order to receive and redeem Avios, you need to be a member of "The British Airways Club" loyalty programme.
Using Avios after the transfer
There are many ways to redeem Avios. The most obvious are flight bookings paid for with Avios. However, upgrades are also an attractive option and turn a trip into an exclusive experience.
You can also pay for the booking of additional baggage or seats with Avios. In addition to flight awards, hotel stays, car hire bookings and leisure activities can also be selected as Avios rewards.
Many more travel benefits with American Express
The Platinum Card from American Express in particular offers extensive benefits when travelling. These include:
- Access to over 1,700 airport lounges and experiences
- Preferential fares with partner airlines
- Benefits at numerous hotels through the two hotel programmes Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection
- Premium status in the loyalty programmes of the Marriott, Radisson, Hilton and Meliá hotel chains
- Special terms for car hire bookings
- Comprehensive travel insurance
- Travel & Lifestyle Service with many benefits and special experiences
The Gold Card also offers travellers a number of attractive benefits, such as two free visits to airport lounges per year, car rental discounts and some insurance policies.
How the Avios transfer works with American Express
As a cardholder, you can collect points through your payments via the American Express Membership Rewards programme. These points can be transferred to Avios for "The British Airways Club" in the rewards shop. For every three points, two Avios are transferred, which you can later redeem for flight bookings, among other things.
Frequently asked questions and answers
Yes, this is possible. If you collect points through the Membership Rewards bonus programme from American Express, you can convert them into Avios in "The British Airways Club" loyalty programme.
You can easily transfer American Express points to Avios in the Membership Rewards shop. There you select the number of points to be transferred, enter your email address and authorise the process.
For every three points you collect, you will receive two Avios which you can redeem for flight bookings or other rewards.
