Do American Express Membership Rewards points expire?

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The American Express loyalty program is one of the most popular credit card rewards programs, competing with Chase Ultimate Rewards and CitiThankYou Rewards. That’s because American Express points are easy to earn and flexible to use.

You can earn points with any eligible American Express card, such as B. American Express’ Platinum Card®, American Express® Gold Card, or American Express’ The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card. You earn points on all purchases you make with your card, as well as bonus points for certain categories of purchases (which vary by card). You can then redeem your points for gift cards, store credits, travel, merchandise, American Express airline and hotel partner transfers, and more.

Before you apply for a card to earn American Express Membership Rewards points, you might be wondering: Do American Express points expire?

Will you lose American Express points?

American Express Membership Rewards points have no expiration date, and there’s no limit to how many points you can earn. However, you may lose points under certain circumstances, as detailed in the Membership Rewards Program Terms and Conditions:

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Your account will be terminated

If you cancel your American Express spending card or checking account and do not have at least one other eligible linked American Express card, you will lose all points earned. But there is one exception: If you cancel your American Express Corporate Card, you can redeem points for up to 30 days after canceling your account.

On the other hand, American Express reserves the right to terminate your card or checking account for any reason, including inactivity, death, insolvency or bankruptcy. You will not lose points if your account is cancelled in error. However, if your card is cancelled due to inactivity, you must use your points within 90 days if you do not want them to expire.

You delay payment

If you do not pay the minimum amount due on your credit card statement, you will lose any American Express points earned on that American Express card during that billing cycle. However, lost points can be made up in this way. To do this, you must:

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Pay any money you owe.
Contact American Express within 12 months of the applicable billing cycle to claim your points.
You must pay a fee of $35 for each account and billing cycle for which you claim lost points.

As a best practice — not only to keep your American Express points, but to keep your balance in good shape and avoid penalties — be sure to pay your credit card bills in full and on time.

You are abusing the loyalty program

American Express may suspend or revoke your points or terminate your account if American Express believes you have engaged in or attempted to engage in “abuse, misappropriation, or gambling in connection with the earning or use of points.”

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You have a negative score

If you:

Revoke your points for abuse
Returned a purchase but you do not have enough points in your account to cover the point chargeback
You have received a point award in error and you do not have enough points in your account to pay for cancellation points.

In this case, any points you collect in the future will be credited to your points balance first. Once you reach a positive balance, you can use your points again.

Your business card is blocked

If your American Express Corporate Card is frozen for any reason – such as B. insolvency or bankruptcy – American Express will also suspend your ability to use American Express points. Once the suspension is lifted, you will regain your points.

Don’t Lose Your Points – What to Do Before Closing Your American Express Account

If you want to close a credit card that earns American Express Membership Rewards points, you should first make sure you have another credit card that can earn points through this program. This is because, according to the terms and conditions of American Express, if you close your card account and do not have another credit card worthy of the same type of rewards, you will lose your unused American Express points.

For this reason, many consumers apply for the annual fee-free American Express Membership Rewards card before switching off premium cards like American Express Platinum or American Express Gold. For example, if you sign up first with a free card such as the American Express Blue Business Plus Credit Card or Blue Cash Everyday® Card, you can maintain your points balance after closing other credit card accounts.

As a final note, make sure your American Express Membership Rewards points don’t expire before you have a chance to redeem them. According to a recent review by The Points Guy, each point you earn through this program is worth about 2 cents when redeemed for travel with a transfer partner. Therefore, these points are more valuable than many other reward currencies you can earn with your credit card.

Final result

Although American Express Membership Rewards points do not expire, you may lose earned points under certain circumstances. Make sure these situations don’t apply to you by paying your bills on time and in full, keeping your account active, and adhering to the terms and conditions of American Express.

Learn more:

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