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Yes, your Iberia Avios will expire if you do not earn or spend Avios on your account for 36 months. Per the Iberia Terms and Conditions:
“Regulation stipulates that you earn or spend Avios at least once every 36 months to make sure the entire Avios balance doesn't expire.”
Earning & Using Avios
- Earn Avios for flights with Iberia, British Airways, or Aer Lingus.
- You also can earn Avios for flights with Oneworld partners.
- Earn Avios for your next car rental with Avis and Budget.
- Credit your next hotel stay to earn Avios via a host of partners, including Booking.com, IHG, Marriott Bonvoy, and Best Western.
- Earn Avios for everyday purchases on your Iberia Visa Signature® Card.
- Collect Avios when you dine with The Fork or Club Del Vino.
- Earn Avios when you take the Heathrow Express in the United Kingdom.
- Collect Avios with an Economist subscription or when you transfer money with Midpoint.
- Redeem your Avios for Iberia or Oneworld partner awards.
- Spend your Avios with a host of other partners, including hotels, car rental and more.
One thing Iberia makes clear is that Avios transferred to your account do not count towards keeping your points alive, so this won't alter the date on which your miles expire. Per the terms and conditions:
“Issuing or receiving Avios transferred to you is not considered to be an activity.”
Once your Avios have expired, they can not be reinstated.
Redeeming Your Avios Wisely
With Iberia, British Airways, and Aer Lingus all being part of the same company — IAG (International Airlines Group) — you have lots of opportunities to leverage Avios earned with one program for excellent value via another.
You can transfer Avios between British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Iberia virtually, instantaneously, and at a ratio of 1:1. With some proper planning, you can take advantage of this to avoid the dreaded BA fuel surcharges. Using your Avios to fly to Europe on Iberia or Aer Lingus can save a fortune in fuel surcharges.
Bottom Line
Even though Iberia is not one of the biggest airlines globally, it is a Oneworld member and shares a points currency with British Airways and Aer Lingus — and soon Qatar. This brings a whole host of benefits and perks. It also makes the Iberia Plus program a great option when looking to maximize your Avios' value. With multiple ways to earn or use your Iberia Avios, there is no reason any of your Avios should ever expire.
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Yes it does. The only activity in my IB account has been e-Rewards transfers since late 2015 and no miles have ever expired. The initial transfer even counted as a qualifying first activity to earn the 200 miles bonus.
Awardwallet doesn’t calculate the expiry correctly. It said my miles will expire in December 2022 but they already expired in August – mainly because for redemptions, the Iberia shows the date of the flight, rather than the date of redemption – but then uses the date of redemption to calculate to 36 month. Very sneaky and Awardwallet needs to change the algorithm to account for this.
Thomas: Thank you for the heads up on that. We at AwardWallet take expiration seriously and are really sorry that this expiration date was miscalculated. I’ve shared this with the team to address ASAP.
Does donating Iberia Avios extend the expiration date? What is the minimum amount that can be donated? Thanks
It *seems* like that would qualify as a spending activity. But I can’t find any explicit confirmation of that on Iberia’s website. The minimum donation seems to be 900 Avios.
Does a transfer from e-Rewards move the expiration date?
I wouldn’t assume so considering that Iberia clarifies in the T&C: “Issuing or receiving Avios transferred to you is not considered to be an activity.”
However, Iberia could simply be referring to transfers between accounts. We would love to have a data point from you if you were able to extend your expiration date by transferring points.