Prevent your Avios from expiring: What to know to protect your rewards

Avios are the reward currency of British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Plus, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, Aer Lingus AerClub and now Finnair Plus.

Avios are easy to earn, and with so many different ways to use them, they are definitely a currency you should know about.

Related: 5 Versions of Avios: When to Use Aer Lingus, British Airways, Finnair, Iberia and Qatar Airways

Passengers can earn Avios with the right credit card by taking flights on any Oneworld alliance partner and many non-airline partners. The same applies to redemption in general: passengers can redeem Avios for flights on any of the airlines mentioned above and many more.

However, holding large amounts of Avios does come with some risks. The first risk is devaluation, an unfortunate reality of the points and miles industry. Devaluation typically means that earning rates go down or spending rates go up.

While some points and miles, like Delta Air Lines SkyMiles, never expire, Avios do. Knowing when they expire is important so you don’t suddenly see your hard-earned balance disappear.

The good news is that Avios programs have generous expiration rules compared to other programs. We look at the rules for each program and explain some tips for keeping your Avios alive.

Avios Expiration Policy for British Airways Executive Club, Aer Lingus AerClub, Qatar Airways Privilege Club and Iberia Plus

Your Avios will not expire on your British Airways, Iberia, Qatar Airways or Aer Lingus accounts if there is earning or spending activity on them every 36 months.

Earning activities include:

Related: How to Transfer Your Avios Between British Airways, Qatar Airways, Finnair, Iberia and Aer Lingus Accounts

You can also prevent your Avios from expiring by spending them. These options include:

• Book a reward flight with Avios, either by direct redemption of Avios or by a combination of Avios and cash
• Upgrading a flight using Avios
• Use Avios to save money on flights in cash
• Book a hotel or rent a car with Avios
• Transferring Avios from your British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Plus, Aer Lingus AerClub or Qatar Airways Privilege Club accounts to another programme’s Avios account

Avios Expiration Policy for Finnair Plus

Finnair Plus has a stricter expiration policy than other Avios programs. Avios in your Finnair Plus account expire after just 18 months (half the time of other Avios program accounts) when no Avios have been “collected or used”. While most of the above activities would keep your Avios alive, please note that Finnair Plus only works with one credit card currency, Capital One miles.

Additionally, the programme expressly excludes the transfer of Avios from another Avios programme (e.g. British Airways Executive Club) to reset the expiry timer.

Therefore, if you want to keep your Avios in your Finnair Plus account, you will have to pay much more attention to their stricter expiration than you would if they were in another Avios program.

Related: Move over, British Airways: Finnair Plus now offers some excellent Avios points

How to earn Avios with a credit card

There are five Avios credit cards available in the United States, including three from Chase, which offer generous welcome bonuses:

Cardless now offers two Qatar Airways-branded credit cards, including the Qatar Airways Privilege Club Visa Signature Credit Card, which has a $99 annual fee and a welcome offer of up to 40,000 Avios: 20,000 Avios after your first transaction and an additional 20,000 Avios after spending $3,000 in the first 90 days.

There is also the Qatar Airways Privilege Club Visa Infinite credit card, which has an annual fee of $499 and a welcome offer of up to 50,000 Avios: 25,000 Avios after your first transaction and another 25,000 Avios and 150 Qpoints after spending $5,000 in the first 90 days. This card also comes with Privilege Club Gold status.

Information for the Qatar Airways Privilege Club Visa Infinite and Signature cards has been independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Here are some of the best cards that allow you to accumulate points or miles that you can convert into Avios:

• American Express® Gold Card: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases with your new Card within the first six months of Card Membership, plus 20% off global dining (up to $100) within the first six months of Card Membership.
• The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on card purchases in your first six months of membership.
• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in purchases in the first three months of account opening.
• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening, plus $250 Capital One Travel credit in your first year of cardmembership.

Bottom line

You work hard to build up your Avios balance, so you should do everything you can to ensure you don’t accidentally lose your rewards. The good news is that there are plenty of ways to earn and redeem Avios, especially since many programs now use Avios as their reward currency.