New – higher – British Airways American Express bonuses now available

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My top article today outlines the special 20,000 Starwood points sign-up bonus that is now available again on the SPG Amex card.

At the same time, Amex will also today temporarily increase the sign-up bonus on the two British Airways cards:

The Premium Plus version, with the £150 annual fee, now offers 25,000 Avios instead of 18,000 Avios. You must spend £3,000 within three months to receive the bonus.

The basic, free, card now offers 9,000 Avios instead of 3,000 Avios. You must spend £1,000 within three months to receive the bonus.

Note that, if you are reading this first thing on Thursday morning, the higher rates may not yet be showing. Give it a little time.

My full review of the benefits of the Premium Plus card is here. Amex’s own home page is here.

My full review of the free card is here. This is actually the most improved deal jumping from 3,000 to 9,000 Avios. Amex’s own home page is here.

How to earn Avios points from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways BA Amex American Express card

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways BA Premium Plus American Express Amex credit card

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios? Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)

Category

British Airways American Express

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

Corrine says:

7 Nov7 November 07:05

Anyone know roughly how long these sign up bonuses last for? I am just finishing my amex gold min spend ! I would like to take 2 x spg cards (one for me one for hubby) pref with a month interval 🙂 but I don’t want to miss out on the sign up bonus ! thanks
- John says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 07:13
  
  Wanted to ask the same thing, as my wife has only had the gold card for 5 months – when would it be safe for her to apply? She does not have much credit history
  - Corrine says:
    
    7 Nov7 November 07:34
    
    We have only had our Gold Cards since September, I think you’re allowed 2 amex cards each ??
    - Simon says:
      
      7 Nov7 November 11:10
      
      I’ve had the free BA card for a few years but I managed to get the Nectar card in Nov 2012, Gold card in Jan 2013 & SPG card in May 2013. I’m not a big spender so was surprised AMEX gave me 3 new cards in the space of 7 months.
  - Rob says:
    
    7 Nov7 November 08:36
    
    Nothing to lose, although also nothing to lose by waiting another month before doing it as the promo should run until January based on last year
- Ian says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 08:07
  
  I have the Amex Gold card since September and my wife is a suplementary card holder…. Will it be okay for her to apply for the new British Airway Amex in her own name ?… My wife doesn’t have much credit history at the moment and we want to improve it –
  - Rob says:
    
    7 Nov7 November 08:32
    
    Worth a try, being a supplementary holder doesn’t stop her getting a bonus on her own card
thesaver79 says:

7 Nov7 November 07:30

The T&C for the SPG card don’t seem to mention any restrictions about having held the same card in the previous 6 months.
- Rob says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 08:35
  
  Agreed, its gone. Mistake or on purpose? You never know with Amex.
- Amy says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 14:52
  
  When you click on apply for the SPG it says:
  You will not be eligible for any Welcome Bonus award if you currently hold or have held any Starpoints enrolled American Express Card in the past six mont
Bsuije says:

7 Nov7 November 07:57

Am I just making this up or did the income threshold on the free BA Amex used to be £20k??
- Rob says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 08:33
  
  Yes, I think it was at one point. For a free card, £30k is a little high, albeit it is household income.
Gary says:

7 Nov7 November 08:26

Corrine, Amex will let you have 2 x credit cards and 2 x charge cards – the Gold cards are charge cards. Back in the summer I had SPG, Gold and Amex. Got rid of SPG in September and for some reason got the full £75 fee back!
- Corrine says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 08:48
  
  Thank you Gary! let’s hope I get it back too 😉
What's the Point says:

7 Nov7 November 08:29

Glad to see this promo back, as its the next credit card on my list.
Unfortunately I only cancelled my standard BA Amex card 4 months ago. Has anyone applied for a card within the 6 month time frame and still got the bonus points?
GlennM says:

7 Nov7 November 08:59

This is great timing for me – Thanks Raffles for the early warning too – I was about to push on the 18,000.

Does anyone have any views on the six month time-frame for reapplying? I’m into the seventh month, but keen to no if any issues arise. Also, what if someone had an Amex Free and then applied for the Amex Plus, and vice versa.
Jude says:

7 Nov7 November 09:39

Hi sorry if I am being a bit blonde but how do you get 45,000 avios ? I work out 25,000 bonus plus the £3000 spend at a rate of 1.5 = 29,500 Avios. I am more than happy to be proved wrong though 🙂
- Toby says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 10:45
  
  I got 20K from lloyds as well…….
  
  (sorry could have been clearer)
mrtibbs1999 says:

7 Nov7 November 10:19

Raffles, is the fee refunded pro rata?
- Rob says:
  
  7 Nov7 November 10:34
  
  Yes, terms and conditions will confirm this if you go through them