Add someone to your Amex account for 1,000 Membership Rewards points or 500 Avios
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American Express has two on-going bonus schemes to encourage cardholders to add supplementary cardholders to their accounts. After all, the more people who are carrying a card, the more spend they can accumulate!
There are two offers, one for American Express Platinum and one for the British Airways American Express card.
The Platinum offer gives 1,000 Membership Rewards points for every supplementary cardholder you add.
Your first supplementary cardholder gets a Platinum card and can apply for all of the Platinum benefits including the Carlson Gold, Starwood Gold and Accor Platinum hotel statuses. They also receive their own Priority Pass giving them access to 600 airport lounges, together with a guest.
Four other people can be give Gold supplementary cards on your account. These do not qualify for the perks above apart from the travel insurance benefits.
In all cases, the charges for the spending on the supplementary cards appear on your statement. You are legally responsible for their payment!
This is applicable to either the free BA Amex card or the fee-paying Premium Plus version. It is not clear how many supplementary cards you can add to a British Airways American Express account but I know people with 3-4.
Note that it can take American Express a while to process applications for supplementary cards – it is not unusual for it to take six weeks.
PS. One of the most common questions I am asked is ‘does having a supplementary card on my partners account stop me signing up for my own Platinum / Gold / BA Amex later?’. The answer is No. You can still apply in your own right and receive a sign-up bonus.
Want to earn more points from credit cards? – March 2023 update
If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current 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.
SPECIAL OFFER: Successfully apply for either of the Barclaycard Avios credit cards by 2nd April 2023 and you will be entered into a free draw to win ONE MILLION AVIOS! Full details are on the application forms here (free) and here (paid). This competition is exclusive to Head for Points readers. T&C apply.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher for spending £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher for spending £20,000 Read our full review
You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus
25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

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

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
15,000 points bonus and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review
Earning miles and points from small business cards
If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:
Until 30th March 2023, the sign up bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased to 120,000 Membership Rewards points – click here. The bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased to 60,000 Membership Rewards points – click here. T&C apply, see the application forms for details.

American Express Business Platinum
Crazy 120,000 points bonus (to 30th March) and a £200 Amex Travel credit every year Read our full review

American Express Business Gold
60,000 points sign-up bonus (to 30th March) and free for a year Read our full review

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

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa
Get a 10,000 points bonus plus an extra 500 points for our readers Read our full review
For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.

Barclaycard Select Cashback credit card
1% cashback (3% for 3 months if you apply by 31st March) and no annual fee Read our full review
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