Five Avios credit card sign-up bonuses you can get which will arrive by 28th April

The last day to book Avios redemption tickets before the massive devaluation kicks in is April 28th.  Whilst that is still 11 weeks away, you may already be too late if you need to top up your account before you can book.

The next Tesco conversion date, for example, will not be until late April or early May.  There is no guarantee that you will have your vouchers by April 25th which is probably the last realistic day to convert.

You PROBABLY still have time to pick up a large amount of Avios points from a credit card or charge card sign-up bonus.  The key issue is whether you can hit the target spend in time.

Here are five options:

British Airways American Express card  (no fee)

Here is my full review – please read it before applying.  The bonus is 9,000 Avios points if you apply before February 11th or 3,000 points afterwards.

The bonus points will show on your Amex statement about 3 days after you pass £1,000 of spending.  However, they will NOT go over to your British Airways Executive Club account until six days before your next statement date.  At worst, this could mean a three week delay from when they show as available online.

You would therefore need to hit the target spend within, lets say, six weeks of getting the card to ensure that the Avios points are transferred over with your second statement.  Your third statement would be too late.

The representative APR is 15.9% variable.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus card (£150 fee)

Here is my full review – please read it before applying.  The bonus is 25,000 Avios points if you apply before February 11th or 18,000 points afterwards.

The bonus points will show on your Amex statement about 3 days after you pass £3,000 of spending.  However, they will NOT go over to your British Airways Executive Club account until six days before your next statement date.  At worst, this could mean a three week delay from when they show as available online.

You would therefore need to hit the target spend within, lets say, six weeks of getting the card to ensure that the Avios points are transferred over with your second statement.  Your third statement would be too late.

The representative APR is 56.4% variable including the annual fee based on a notional £1200 credit limit.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold charge card (no fee for first year)

Here is my full review – please read it before applying.  The bonus is 20,000 American Express Membership Rewards points which, when transferred to BA, becomes 20,000 Avios.

The bonus points will show on your Amex statement about 3 days after you pass £2,000 of spending.  As soon as they are showing you can transfer them.  This gives you a little more flexibility than the British Airways cards – as long as you pass the spending target by, say, April 15th you should have the Avios in your BA account by April 28th.

American Express Platinum charge card (£450 fee)

Here is my full review – please read it before applying.  The bonus is 30,000 American Express Membership Rewards points which, when transferred to BA, becomes 30,000 Avios.

The bonus points will show on your Amex statement about 3 days after you pass £2,000 of spending.  As soon as they are showing you can transfer them.  This gives you a little more flexibility than the British Airways cards – as long as you pass the spending target by, say, April 15th you should have the Avios in your BA account by April 28th.

Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card (£75 fee)

Here is my full review – please read it before applying.  The bonus is 10,000 Starwood Preferred Guest points which, when transferred to BA, becomes 10,000 Avios.

The bonus points will show on your Amex statement about 3 days after you pass £1,000 of spending.  However, they will NOT go over to your Starwood Preferred Guest account until six days before your next statement date.  At worst, this could mean a three week delay from when they show as available online.  Once in your Starwood account, you need to do another transfer to get them across to British Airways Executive Club which could take another week.

You would therefore need to hit the target spend within, lets say, six weeks of getting the card to ensure that the Avios points are transferred over with your second statement.  Your third statement would be too late.  For safety, because you cannot be sure how quickly Starwood will move the points to BA, you really want to hit the £1,000 target with your first statement.

The representative APR is 39.7% variable including the annual fee based on a notional £1200 credit limit.

Lloyds Avios Rewards cards (£24 fee)

Here is my full review – please read it before applying.  There is NO sign-up bonus.  However, if you are referred by a friend then you will receive 4,500 Avios points when your application is accepted.  Email me at rob at headforpoints.com if you need a referral.

The 4,500 bonus points arrive very quickly so you should have no problem receiving them in time to book.  Remember that this card earns points in avios.com, not British Airways Executive Club, so you will need to have an avios.com account number available when you apply.

The representative APR is 23.7% variable including the annual fee based on a notional £1200 credit limit.

Other cards

There are some other credit cards available which offer a sign-up bonus which converts into Avios points.  These include the IHG Rewards Club Visa, IHG Rewards Club Premium Visa and the Marriott Rewards Mastercard.

Unfortunately, the operators of these cards are not as efficient as American Express and there is no guarantee – in fact, I would bet against it – that the points will arrive in time.  Even if the credit card company sent them to IHG or Marriott, transfers out of those two schemes into airlines can be slow.

There is also a bonus of 1,000 Clubcard points available if you are referred by a friend for the Tesco Mastercard.  (This can also be backdated – if you have taken out the card in the last two months, email me at rob [at] headforpoints.com and I will send you the form.)  However, the next batch of Tesco vouchers are unlikely to arrive before April 28th.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – September 2024 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: Until 26th September 2024, sign up for FREE Barclaycard Avios Mastercard and you will receive a sign-up bonus of 10,000 Avios. This is double the usual bonus! You only need to spend £1,000 within 90 days. Our full review is here. Click here to apply.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

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.

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:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 22nd October 2024, the bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased to up to 80,000 Membership Rewards points, worth 80,000 Avios. You will receive 8 points per £1 spent for the first three months, on up to £10,000 of spending. Click here to read our full card review. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 22nd October 2024, the bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased to up to 40,000 Membership Rewards points, worth 40,000 Avios. You will receive 4 points per £1 spent for the first three months, on up to £10,000 of spending. The card is FREE for your first year. Click here to read our full card review. Click here to apply.

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.