The British Airways Avios program (and its affiliate companies) is without a doubt one of the single most valuable points ecosystems on Planet Earth. Here in North America, we often overlook it because we are spoiled for choices between traditional fan favorites such as Air Canada’s Aeroplan, or superlative programs from the United States such as Alaska Miles.
However, Avios is incredible because of its ability to open to the North American traveler the entirety of the Oneworld alliance’s portfolio, and thus the peerless destinations to which they fly. Avios are also incredibly valuable as they can be transferred back and forth between partnered loyalty programs with ease, further increasing their utility.
Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about how to transfer Avios between partnered loyalty programs so you can implement this tool in your miles and points strategy.
The Value of Avios & Being Able to Transfer Them Amongst Partnered Loyalty Programs
British Airways’ availability for partner redemptions from its many sister airlines on desirable products such as Qatar’s famous QSuites is hard to beat. Moreover, Avios doesn’t just act as a points program for British Airways. Instead, it functions like a currency shared between many different airline loyalty programs.
This unique value proposition of Avios opens myriad pathways for the canny voyager to get to their dream destination at a minimum monetary cost.
The reason for this is that British Airways’ points system, Avios, operates like a currency. Much like how the Euro is a common medium of exchange across many different countries in the European Union, so too is Avios a common system of points shared between various Oneworld-liveried airlines.
For this article, we are going to talk about how to get Avios points in the most straightforward way possible, which is via the British Airways Executive Club. This acts as a sort of central “bank account” whence the currency of Avios can then be transferred amongst several different airlines on an as-needed basis before you make that perfect points booking you’ve always dreamt of.
If you are interested in a deeper dive into some of the best angles for transferring to the various Avios-adjacent programs, check out my article on “The Value of Transferring British Airways Avios to Partner Programs“.
Another added perk of the Avios system is that British Airways permits household points sharing amongst an entire household’s Executive Club account, allowing for even greater flexibility for those who wish to pool all their points in one place for better redemptions.
The Best Ways to Earn Avios in Canada
Before we get into the technical details of how to exchange Avios like so much coinage, we must consider the best way to earn them in Canada.
It can seem counterintuitive to imagine earning points from Britain in a colonial offspring of a country as far away as Canada, but really it’s surprisingly easy and highly lucrative. In fact, after Air Canada Aeroplan, Avios is the single easiest airline currency to earn as a Canadian.
While the RBC British Airways Visa Infinite card is the only credit card in Canada denominated in Avios, it’s not the only way to earn Avios points. On the other hand, its welcome bonus of 60,000 Avios points for an annual fee of $165 certainly isn’t to be ignored.
The RBC British Airways Visa Infinite card earns Avios and gives cardholders the opportunity to earn 2x Avios on all British Airways-related purchases.
Check out our RBC British Airways Visa Infinite review for more details.
60,000 Avios
$6,000
$855+
$165
Yes
–
That being said, it’s worth further considering the RBC Avion Visa Infinite card and its welcome bonus of 55,000 Avion points if you really want to build your Avios balance. While it can be a bit confusing for the layperson to consider Avios and Avion, the single letter at the end makes all the difference.
The RBC Avion Visa Infinite card earns Avion Elite points and gives cardholders the opportunity to earn 1.25x Avion Elite points on all travel purchases.
In 2024, we awarded this card as the Best Flexible Points Travel Credit Card.
Check out our RBC Avion Visa Infinite card review for more details.
55,000 Avion
$0
$925+
$120
Yes
Nov 25, 2024
Avios is the currency of British Airways. Avion conversely is the internal points currency of RBC. However, Avion can always be exchanged for Avios at a rate of 1:1 so long as you are transferring to the British Airways Executive Club, with there routinely being promotional transfer bonus offers of up to 30% bonus points. Not too shabby.
Lastly, the eternally-favored American Express Membership Rewards program is also transferable to Avios at an evergreen rate of 1:1 with the occasional transfer bonus (though never at the generosity of 30% extra). A premium travel card such as the American Express Platinum card can offer not only a nice nest egg of these Membership Reward points but also complimentary premium airport lounge access and access to other valuable travel benefits as well.
The American Express Platinum card earns Membership Rewards and offers cardholders a variety of benefits including an annual $200 travel credit, complimentary airport lounge access, an annual $200 dining credit, and instant elite status with many hotel loyalty programs.
In 2024, we awarded this card as the Best Credit Card for Airport Lounge Access.
100,000 Membership Rewards
$10,000
$1,401+
$799
Yes
–
How to Transfer Avios Between Partnered Loyalty Programs
There are several partnered loyalty programs that you can move Avios between, including British Airways Executive Club, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, Finnair Plus, Iberia Plus, and Aer Lingus.
Transferring Avios To/From British Airways Executive Club
The most straightforward way to access and manage Avios is via the British Airways Executive Club.
This is a fairly simple procedure that requires only that you sign up via British Airways’ website. It’s best to ensure that you keep your personal information updated as tickets are booked by default under the account holder’s name.
Equally important to note is that the address on the Executive Club file is used to charge additional costs such as boarding fees or fuel surcharges (of which there are many), so keep it up to date so you’re paying in Canadian dollars.
Once you’re all signed up, you can use your British Airways Executive Club number to receive Avios from transferable currencies such as American Express Membership Rewards or RBC Avion Rewards. You can also use it to earn Avios on Avios-denominated credit cards in either Canada or the United States.
The best part of the Executive Club, though, is that it acts as a great central point into which to transfer all the points you want to keep as Avios. Remember that once you’ve transferred Avios in from an external program such as Membership Rewards, there’s no reversing it so it’s best to transfer only when you’re getting ready to book!
From here, you can transfer them into the loyalty programs of several other OneWorld partners.
For the rest of this article, it is imperative that you remember that your “home base” is the British Airways Executive Club portal. This is the only place that allows you to transfer points in the way that you want, even if its layout leaves something to be desired.
Transferring Avios To/From Qatar Airways Privilege Club
As the provider of the world-renowned QSuites business class product, Qatar Airways ranks as one of the most aspirational airlines for every traveler. In fact, booking Qatar Airways QSuites with Avios is one of the best options available for Canadians. Even Qatar’s economy product is usually praised for its customer service and efficiency, thus making every cabin an attractive prospect on which to use your Avios.
In order to be able to transfer your Avios to Qatar Airways Privilege Club as a Canadian, you’ll need to have set up your British Airways Executive Club as detailed above. Then, you’ll need to make a Qatar Airways Privilege account.
Once you’ve created your account, simply log in and go to your dashboard. From here, you’ll be able to link your British Airways account. Once linked, you will see your combined balance between both accounts.
To transfer Avios between British Airways Executive Club and Qatar Airways Privilege Club, visit this page while logged in. Scroll down to see the “Combine your Avios” feature which is the tool you need to use to transfer Avios between programs. If you want to adjust the transfer direction, click the two arrows between the programs.
Transfers between programs are instant and can be done back and forth instantly with no fee or negative impact.
Transferring Avios To/From Finnair Plus
Not to be outdone by Qatar Airways, icy Finland’s flag carrier Finnair is another transfer partner that has recently entered into the Avios currency union.
Unlike the Finnish language, which is so complicated albeit poetic that it was used by JRR Tolkien to invent the Elvish tongue of Quenya, Finnair Plus’ linking process with British Airways is quite simple.
All you’ll need to do is create a Finnair Plus account on their website and enable two-factor authentication. You can then link the account to your Executive Club account, and transfer points freely between the two. You can link your accounts here.
Transferring is easy once you have linked your Finnair Plus and British Airways Executive Club accounts.
Once you’re done transferring, you can then book any flights you may be interested in on the Finnair site. Personally, Finnair is one of the more interesting options I’ve seen to get to and from Japan as their business class product to and from Osaka (KIX) to Helsinki (HEL) sometimes has lovely availability.
Transferring Avios To/From Iberia Plus
While it is possible to transfer your Avios from the Executive Club to Iberia Plus, I need to warn you that the process can be quite a headache.
Do not proceed unless you really, really want to take an Iberia product, or a flight whose inventory award space is only listed on the Iberia Plus website and nowhere else. You’ll see why in a second; however, be assured that this recommendation comes only because of the potential barriers Iberia Plus presents.
It’s also worth noting that Iberia doesn’t fly directly from anywhere in Canada, thus meaning this process may only be enticing for those of our readers residing in the United States.
In order to transfer to an Iberia Plus account, you can use the Executive Club’s transfer function… so long as your Iberia Plus account meets its minimum conditions.
Meeting these conditions is a pain. On the one hand, the account must have been open for at least 90 days prior to transferring Avios in. On the other, it must “organically” have earned points. This can be achieved in one of two ways. The first is through flying on Iberia or one of its partners on a revenue fare (with the points being credited to your Iberia Plus account). The second is via a points transfer from an external transferable points currency.
There are no banks in Canada currently partnered with Iberia (because it doesn’t fly here), therefore you’ll need to use a transferable currency from the United States, such as their version of Amex’s Membership Reward points.
Only after the minimum age requirements and the transfer of points have been completed will you be able to transfer in Avios from the combine points tool on British Airways Executive Club located here. Congratulations, now you can go all the way to Iberia Plus’ website and make bookings there and only there.
As I said, this is probably not worth your time unless you know exactly what you’re doing and have a detailed plan on how to use the points once they are transferred.
Transferring Avios To/From Aer Lingus
Aer Lingus’ offerings are some of my favorite to take. This is because, with Avios points, you can easily island hop across all the British Isles. You can then avoid the costly Air Passenger Duty (APD) by taking your return flight to Canada from Ireland.
Aer Lingus’ melodic business class is therefore an excellent candidate for these sorts of tax-dodging shenanigans to which Dublin is no stranger, and you can book it easily via Avios.
What you’ll need to do to transfer points is to create an Aer Lingus AerClub account on their website. The tricky thing to remember is that thereafter all decisions to manage your AerClub Avios points must be made from the British Airways Executive Club account.
Once you’ve logged into British Airways, you can select the option to transfer points on this page. You’ll then be offered the option to “Combine Avios.” When you’re combining those points, you’ll be led to a screen where you can log in with your AerClub credentials. After this, you can add or subtract Avios into your AerClub account at will.
However, you’ll need to go to Aer Lingus’ website to book your flights. Once you’ve ensured that you have transferred enough points, feel free to log in and use your Avios to book a flight.
Conclusion
Avios is one of the best currencies available to Canadians even if it is sometimes overlooked. While Avios can also be a tad confusing to use, we hope that today we have assisted you in navigating the intricacies of the British Airways Executive Club.
Remember, if you think of Avios as a currency that can be used at many different retailers (which all happen to be airlines), and the British Airways Executive Club as your main “bank account,” then the web of Avios partners becomes a tad less confusing.
Until next time, fly OneWorld in style.
Kirin Tsang
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Do Avios points expire? Do transferred points expire?
Seems like a good place to pool points before closing a CC?
Hi Dave – your Avios won’t expire as long as you collect, spend, buy or share at least one Avios every 36 months. It doesn’t matter where they come from.