American Express gives you SIX months to hit your bonus sign-up spend – should you apply?

American Express has finally bowed to pressure, including from us, and extended the qualifying period to earn a sign-up bonus on its cards to SIX MONTHS.

This means, if you apply today, you would have until early November to hit the spending target.

This rule change is backdated.  Anyone who applied after 30th January 2020 has had their qualifying period extended to six months.  This will already be showing on your online statement page if you take a look.

It is now a lot easier to earn an American Express sign-up bonus

A six month period to hit your bonus spend changes the game massively.  Almost anyone should now be able to hit the target, even in lockdown.

Taking the free British Airways American Express as an example, you now have 26 weeks to spend £1,000.  This is just £38.50 per week.

At the top end, with The Platinum Card, you now have 26 weeks to spend £4,000.  This is £154 per week.  It could be a squeeze for a single person, but manageable for a family.  In any event, if you assume you will be back at work or travelling before the six months is up, you should be able to ‘back end’ the £4,000.

What are the American Express sign-up bonuses?

For personal cards:

The Platinum Card: 30,000 Membership Rewards points (=30,000 Avios) when you spend £4,000 in six months

Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card: 20,000 bonus Membership Rewards points (=20,000 Avios) when you spend £3,000 in six months

British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card: 25,000 Avios when you spend £3,000 in six months

British Airways American Express Credit Card: 5,000 Avios when you spend £1,000 in six months

Nectar Credit Card: 20,000 Nectar points (= £100) when you spend £2,000 in six months 

Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card: 20,000 Marriott Bonvoy points (= 6,666 Avios) when you spend £3,000 in six months

The American Express Rewards Credit Card: 5,000 Membership Rewards points (=5,000 Avios) when you spend £2,000 in six months

Platinum Cashback Everyday Credit Card: 5% cashback on your purchases for six months (up to £100) 

Platinum Cashback Credit Card: 5% cashback on your purchases for six months (up to £125) 

Which bonuses can I still get?

Probably not many.

If you have had ANY card on the list in the last 24 months as a primary cardholder (not a supplementary) then the only bonuses you MIGHT be able to get are British Airways Premium Plus and The Platinum Card.  You are blocked from the bonus on all the others.

You could get British Airways Premium Plus if you’ve not had either of the British Airways cards in the last 24 months.

You could get The Platinum Card if you’ve not had any Membership Rewards cards (Gold, Platinum, Centurion, Green, Amex Rewards Credit Card) in the last 24 months.

If you’ve only had Business Gold or Business Platinum in the last 24 months, you are free to get the bonus on ANY of the cards above.

For clarity, you are free to apply for any card at any time.  You won’t receive a sign-up bonus if you don’t fit the criteria, but this doesn’t mean you won’t be accepted.

Does your partner qualify for a bonus, if you don’t?

Whilst you may be disqualified from a bonus, would your partner, adult children etc qualify?  It doesn’t matter if they have previously had supplementary cards on your account as long as they haven’t had cards of their own.

They can issue you a supplementary card, allowing you to do the bulk of the spending if required.

How about the Business cards?

This offer also applies to the Business cards:

The Gold Business Card: 20,000 Membership Rewards points when you spend £3,000 in six months

The Platinum Business Card: 40,000 Membership Rewards points when you spend £6,000 in six months

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business Card: 2,200 On Business Points when you spend £3,000 in six months

The bonus rules here are a lot more flexible.

You can have the Business Gold or Business Platinum bonus as long as you haven’t had a Membership Rewards card (personal or business) in the previous SIX (not 24) months.

There are NO RESTRICTIONS AT ALL on getting the bonus on the British Airways Accelerating Business card, as long as your business qualifies.

Conclusion

This is a welcome change of heart by American Express, especially for anyone who took out a card in good faith in February expecting to be able to hit the spending target easily before lockdown measures.

Given that six months takes you to early November, when you should be back to something close to your normal spending as long as your job is secure, there are some good opportunities here.  It is very possible that people who have not previously applied for Amex cards due to concerns over hitting the bonus spending target can now jump in.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 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.

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 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and 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.