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American Express occasionally sends targeted offers to Card Members to activate its Pay Over Time feature. These promotions often include generous Membership Rewards bonuses — sometimes worth tens of thousands of points. Here’s what you need to know about Pay Over Time and how to check if you’re eligible for the current (and lucrative) offer.
What Is American Express Pay Over Time?
Pay Over Time is a feature that allows American Express Card Members to carry a balance on certain charges — with interest. Amex describes it as follows:
“Pay Over Time gives you the flexibility to pay for eligible charges over time, with interest. Eligible charges are automatically added to your Pay Over Time balance up to your Pay Over Time Limit.”
While the added flexibility can be useful, interest rates can be very high. However, you only pay interest if you carry a balance. If you pay your statement in full each month, you can activate, earn the promotional bonus, and never pay a dime in interest.
New Green, Gold, and Platinum card accounts are automatically enrolled in Pay Over Time, and the feature is initially set to Active. That’s why it’s important to keep track of your account; you don’t want to accidentally carry a balance and get hit with interest charges, which can undermine your credit score. That said, if you don’t want to use Pay Over Time, you can always pay in full.
Related: How To Unenroll From Amex Pay Over Time (And Why It's a Good Idea)
20,000 Membership Rewards Bonus for Activating Pay Over Time
If you haven't already activated Pay Over Time, Amex sometimes sends out targeted offers to encourage you to opt in. These promotions can be a great opportunity to earn Membership Rewards points with minimal effort.
Here’s what you need to know about the current Pay Over Time activation offer:
- Targeted Card Members can earn 20,000 Membership Rewards for activating Pay Over Time.
- There’s no cost to activate and no requirement to use the feature.
- Eligible Cards:
- Bonus points typically post within 8–12 weeks after activation.
To see if you're targeted for the Pay Over Time promotion, check your email (or mailbox) for an offer from Amex. You can also log into your account and visit the Amex Offers page to see if it's available elsewhere. Additionally, try this direct activation link to check for eligibility.
You won't be eligible for the bonus if you’ve previously activated Pay Over Time, or if you have accepted this offer on your card account in the past.
Related: Cards That Earn Amex Membership Rewards Points
Final Thoughts
Amex frequently encourages Card Members to activate Pay Over Time, but not all invitations come with bonus points. Before activating, double-check that your offer includes Membership Rewards points so that you don't miss out on a potential 20,000-point windfall.
If you are eligible for this offer, don’t wait — activate right away! It’s one of the easiest ways to earn extra Amex points with minimal effort. And you don't even have to use the feature to get the points.
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