New Avios opportunities with Sixt and Iberia Express
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There are two recent Iberia partnerships worth knowing about.
You will need an Iberia Plus account to earn Avios points with these, but they can be quickly transferred across to an avios.com or British Airways Executive Club account using the ‘Combine My Avios’ feature online.
The only condition is that your Iberia Plus account must have been open for at least 90 days before you can transfer in or out of it. I have already joined up.
Iberia Express is the new low-cost airline formed by Iberia to compete with Ryanair etc, and has been the cause of the recent industrial action by Iberia staff. Iberia Express flights earning NOTHING if credited to BAEC, but they do earn in Iberia Plus at the same rate as standard Iberia flights.
Current overseas destinations are Dublin, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Riga, Naples and Mykonos, all from its Madrid hub. (I understand that you WILL earn Avios in BAEC if you book an Iberia Express flight under its BA or Iberia codeshare via ba.com or iberia.com but you will not earn anything in BAEC if you book it directly via Iberia Express’s website.)
Sixt is now a car rental partner with Iberia which is handy as it is not a BAEC partner. (Here is my previous overview of car rental earning opportunites to gain Avios, although Europcar is no longer a BMI partner.) Until 31st August you earn double Avios points with Sixt when credited to Iberia Plus. Standard rates are 300 per day for a Standard or Tiny car and 400 for a Compact or larger (less 50% if booked on a corporate rate code), with a maximum of four days.
During this promotion, the maximum earning is therefore 3,200 miles (400 x 2 x 4 days).
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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (January 2025)
As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!
In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
British Airways American Express
5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
50,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large 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, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.
Capital on Tap Visa
NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review
Capital on Tap Pro Visa
10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review
There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:
British Airways American Express Accelerating Business
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.
American Express Business Platinum
50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year 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.
