Last Chance: 40% AMEX Transfer Bonus to British Airways Avios

40% AMEX Transfer Bonus British Airways Avios

5/13/22 Update: Last few days for this bonus transfer offer, which expires Sunday, 5/15/22. Transfer bonus offers such as this one are another reminder, along with frequent flyer award inflation, of how important it is to diversify your miles and points. A new client who only has United miles and Chase Ultimate Rewards points wants to reserve an award flight where the least expensive option is with Alaska Mileage Plan miles. The next best bet is this 40% AMEX transfer bonus to British Airways Avios, but the client has none of these miles or points, only United MileagePlus miles and Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which will result in a more expensive award booking.

Transfer AMEX Points with a 40% Bonus to British Airways Avios, a great way to use Membership Rewards points for award flights (although not on British Airways, as we explain below).

Log into AMEX and select the “Transfer to Partners” option
Ensure that the name on your AMEX account exactly matches the name on your British Airways Executive Club account
Minimum transfer is 1000 Membership Rewards points
Earn the 40% transfer bonus for transfers until 5/15/22
Transfers from U.S. AMEX accounts to British Airways are typically instant
Transfers from AMEX to frequent flyer accounts are permanent and can't be reversed. Check award space before transferring.

Best Uses of British Airways Avios

British Airways Avios typically are best used for short haul flights, such as American Airlines domestic flights or flights from the U.S. to the Caribbean, intra-Asia flights on JAL or Cathay Pacific, intra-Australia flights on Qantas, etc., but with the 40% discount, Avios awards are also a great deal for Qatar Qsuites Business Class flights to the Maldives, the Middle East, and India, as well as JAL Business Class Sky Suite flights to Japan (once Japan opens to tourists). For example, LAX-DOH-MLE, which is 77,250 Avios + $197 in Qatar Business Class, is 56,000 American Express points each way given the 40% transfer bonus. Since the roundtrip flight typically runs $9000-$12,000 or more, that's roughly 8-10 cents or more in value per Membership Rewards point (many if not most AMEX card holders get 1-2 cents per point in value for more common redemptions, such as Pay with Points or gift cards). You want to avoid using Avios for travel on British Airways, given the high fuel surcharges and taxes on flight into and out of the UK.