Earn more Avios when you fly Finnair in business class

After Qatar Airways, Finnair is probably the oneworld partner which is most popular with British Airways Executive Club members, at least amongst those who are suitably switched on.

(Yes, Iberia may be a sister company of BA, but it has a fairly eclectic long haul route network and it tends not to launch price wars with its sibling.)

Before Russian airspace was closed, Finnair was a popular way of flying to Asia from the UK. Transiting in Helsinki didn’t delay you too much because it is ‘on the way’, and the airline would often launch aggressive fare sales for UK departures.

You would also earn Avios and tier points from your flight. You’d actually earn more tier points than you would if flying with British Airways, since (in Business Class) you got an extra 80 tier points each way for the hop between London / Manchester / Edinburgh and Helsinki.

Whilst Finnair has had to cut back its long haul flights to India and Asia due to Russian airspace restrictions – although some routes are still operating – you may still end up flying with them if heading to Helsinki. British Airways has now dropped this route, leaving it to Finnair.

You now earn more Avios when flying Finnair in business class

On 1st June, British Airways sharply increased the Avios you earn if you fly Finnair in Business Class and credit your flight to Executive Club.

You can see the earning rates for Finnair, and indeed all other British Airways partner airlines, on this page of ba.com.

Here are the old earn rates for flights up to 31st May:

Economy lowest (A, G, N, O, Q, S, W, Z)	25%
Economy low (K, M, P, T, L, V)	50%
Economy flexible (H)	70%
Economy flexible (Y, B)	100%
Business (J, C, D, I, R)	125%

Here are the new rates for Finnair flights from 1st June:

Economy lowest (Q, O, A, G, Z)	25%
Economy low (K, L, M, V, S, N)	50%
Economy flexible (Y, B, H)	100%
Premium economy lowest (E, T, P)	100%
Premium economy flexible (W)	150%
Business lowest (R, I)	150%
Business flexible (J, C, D)	250%

The percentages are based on the number of miles flown.

The key changes are:

• Premium Economy earning is added in, as Finnair has just launched this cabin

• Non-refundable Business tickets increase from 125% to 150% of miles flown

• Flexible and semi-flexible Business tickets increase from 125% to 250% of miles flown

The latter makes Finnair substantially more attractive for business trips if your employer lets you book flexible tickets.

Finnair has a brand new Business Class cabin featuring a unique ‘no recline’ seat, pictured above. Here is our news story on the new Finnair seat and here is my review of Finnair’s new Business Class, albeit on the short hop to Helsinki.

It is easy to tell if your aircraft has the new seat because it will also have Premium Economy seats for sale, although the old Finnair Business Class seat certaintly isn’t terrible – it’s a step up from old-style British Airways Club World.

If you collect Finnair Plus points and want to learn how to earn them from UK credit cards, read our guide here.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (March 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:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

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.

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to 120,000 points. You receive 80,000 points when you spend £12,000 within three months and a further 40,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 60,000 points. You receive 40,000 points when you spend £6,000 within three months and a further 20,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.