Understanding Points and Miles Expiration — And How to Avoid Losing Your Rewards

As much as we would like our points and miles to last forever, that's often not the case. More often than not, loyalty program points and miles expire. Some loyalty programs are stingy, only giving you six months' validity. Other programs offer mileage validities of up to 10 years!

The best programs are those whose points and miles do not expire as long as your account is open. In these, you can focus on earning and redeeming your miles without worrying about losing them to expiration.

We've put together this post to give you a single point of reference. Here, you can find the expiration policies of major loyalty/rewards programs. Click through to the individual posts for each program's expiration policy details. We have over 70 posts covering expiration policies for every major program — from Accor to Wyndham and Aegean to WestJet.

However, the easiest way to keep track of your expiration is by tracking loyalty programs through AwardWallet. We'll give you advance warning before your points and miles expire, giving you plenty of time to act.

Don't have an AwardWallet account yet? Sign up for free and track unlimited rewards programs and travel plans!

Get in touch via the comments if there's a program that you care about missing below. We will do our best to add a detailed post about how to avoid expiration in that program.

Airline Frequent Flyer Program Expiration Policies

U.S. airlines

• Alaska Mileage Plan: Miles do not expire; however, your account can be deactivated for inactivity.
• American Airlines AAdvantage: Miles expire if you have no earning or redemption activity on your account in 24 months.
• Delta SkyMiles: As a rule, Delta SkyMiles do not expire; however, in certain situations like account misuse, your account can be closed and your balance forfeited.
• Frontier Miles: Miles will expire if your account has no accrual activity in the last 12 months.
• Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles: Miles do not expire as long as your account remains open.
• JetBlue TrueBlue: Points do not expire so long as your account remains open.
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards: Points do not expire as long as your account remains open.
• Spirit Airlines Free Spirit: Points expire if members have no earning or redemption activity on their account for 12 months.
• United Airlines MileagePlus: Miles do not expire as long as your account remains open.

Track your points and miles expiration for 630+ loyalty programs and get email alerts before your miles expire by signing up for a free AwardWallet account.

Credit: Lisha Riabinina/Unsplash

Other airlines in the Americas

• Aeromexico Rewards: Points do not expire.
• Air Canada Aeroplan: Points expire if your account has no earning or redemption activity for 18 consecutive months. However, Aeroplan expiration is currently paused.
• Avianca LifeMiles: Your miles will expire if your account has no accrual activity for 12 months.
• Azul TudoAzul: Points expire 24 months after earning; unlike many other programs, their validity can not be extended.
• GOL Smiles: GOL miles expire, but their validity depends on your status when you earn the miles. Validities vary from 36 months to up to 120 months.
• LATAM Pass Miles: Miles are valid for 36 months; however, those earned from flights with associated airlines are valid for three calendar years.
• LATAM Pass Points: Points are valid for 36 months from the flight date on which they are earned.
• WestJet Rewards Dollars: Base dollars do not expire. However, bonus dollars expire per the deadline specified in the promotion in which they were earned.

European airlines

• Aegean Airlines Miles + Bonus: Miles do not expire as long as your account is active. Keep your account active by taking an Aegean flight once every five years.
• Aer Lingus AerClub Avios: Miles expire after 36 months of the earning date with no activity on your account. Book hotel stays car rentals, or experiences to keep your Avios active.
• Air Europa SUMA: Miles expire after 24 months of inactivity
• Air France–KLM Flying Blue: Miles expire if you have no qualifying activity on your account for two years. Note that flying activity is required to extend the expiration of miles earned via flying.
• British Airways Executive Club: Avios expire if your account has no activity for 36 months; expired miles cannot be reinstated.
• Finnair Plus: Avios expire if you have no redemption or earning activity on your account for 18 months.
• Iberia Plus: Avios expire after 36 months if you have no earning or redemption activity on your account.
• Lufthansa Miles & More: Miles expire after 36 months from their earned date.
• TAP Portugal Miles & Go: Miles expire three years after the date they were earned. However, some bonus miles can expire one year after they were earned.
• Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles: Miles expire three years after the date they were earned.
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club: Points do not expire.

Korean Air business class. Credit: Korean Air

Middle East, Asia, and Oceania airlines

• Air Asia BIG Points: Points expire 24 months after they were issued; once expired, they can not be reinstated.
  
• Air India Fling Returns: Points expire after 24 months of no flying activity; taking a flight extends the expiration by 24 months.
• Air New Zealand Airpoints: Unused points expire on your account opening anniversary four years after being earned.
• ANA Mileage Club: Miles expire 36 months after they are earned; there is no way to extend your mileage validity or reinstate them once they expire.
• Asiana Airlines Asiana Club: Depending on your status when you earn the miles, they expire after 10 or 12 years.
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles: Miles expire if your account has no qualifying activity for 18 months.
• Emirates Skywards: Miles are valid for three years from the date of travel at the end of the calendar month they were earned.
• Etihad Guest: Etihad Guest miles expire if you have no activity on your account for 18 months. Etihad Guest Platinum members' miles do not expire.
• EVA Air Infinity MileageLands: EVA Air Infinity MileageLands miles do expire at the end of the month 36 months after they were earned.
• Japan Airlines JAL Mileage Bank: Miles expire 36 months after they were earned at the end of the month they were earned.
• Korean SKYPASS: Miles expire ten years after they were earned; however, miles earned before July 1, 2008, never expire.
• Malaysia Airlines Enrich: Points expire three years after they were earned, at the end of the month they were earned.
• Qantas Frequent Flyer: Points expire if your account has no qualifying activity for 18 months.
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club: Avios expire if you have no earning or redemption activity on your account for 36 months.
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer: Miles expire 36 months after they are earned, at the end of the month they were earned.
• Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus: Miles expire three years after they are earned, at the end of the quarter in which they were earned.
• Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer: Points expire if you do not earn or redeem points on your account for 24 months.

Hotel Rewards Expiration Policies

Accor Live Limitless

Accor points expire if you have no qualifying activity on your account in a 12-month period. According to Accor, any activity that earns at least one point will count towards extending the validity of your Accor points.

Hilton Honors

Hilton points expire if a member has no qualifying activity on their account for a consecutive 24-month period. For expiration purposes, Hilton classifies various activities as qualifying, including earning, redeeming, and purchasing Hilton Honors points. Any of these will reset your points expiration clock. If your points have expired, you can pay to have up to 1,000,000 points reinstated at a rate of 0.25 cents per point.

Hilton Singapore Orchard. Credit: Hilton

IHG One Rewards

IHG points expire if the member doesn't have qualifying activity on their account for 12 months. To keep your points from expiring, all you need to do is earn or redeem points at least once every 12 months. The only exception to the points expiration policy is IHG One Rewards elite members with elite status.

Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott points expire if you have no qualifying activity on your account for 24 months. To keep your account active, you need to earn, redeem, or purchase Marriot Bonvoy points at least once every 24 months. Once forfeited, there is no way for members to reinstate their expired Marriott points.

Radisson Rewards

Radisson Rewards points expire if you have no activity on your account for a period of 24 months. Fortunately, there are many ways to earn or redeem Radisson Rewards points, including spending on co-branded credit cards and transfers from bank programs.

World Of Hyatt

Hyatt points expire if you have no qualifying activity on your account for a 24-month period. In terms of what counts as qualifying activity, earning, redeeming, and transferring points will count towards extending the validity of your points. You don’t have to worry about your points expiring if you have a Hyatt credit card.

Andaz Maui At Wailea Resort. Credit: Hyatt

Other hotel programs

• Best Western Rewards: Points do not expire, letting you focus on building your balance and planning your redemptions.
• Brilliant by Langham: Points expire if you have no earning or redeeming activity for 24 months.
• Choice Privileges: Points expire if you have no qualifying activity on your account for 18 months.
• OneKeyCash: OneKeyCash expires if you have no eligible earning or redemption activity on your account for 18 months. Some promotional rewards may have shorter validity depending on the offer.
• Sonesta Travel Pass: Points expire if your account has no activity for 24 months.
• Wyndham Rewards: Points expire after 18 months with no activity on your account.

Car Rental Rewards Expiration Policies

• Avis Preferred: Points expire if you have no activity on your account for 12 months.
• Hertz Gold Plus Rewards: Points expire if your account has no redemption or rental activity for 12 months, but each point has a finite lifespan of five years.
• Enterprise Plus: Points expire if you do not have at least one rental activity on your account every 36 months.
• National Car Rental: Rental Credits do not expire. However, things change once they are converted to Free Days.
• National Car Rental Free Days: Free days credits are valid through December 31st of the following year.

Bank Rewards Expiration Policies

• American Express Membership Rewards: Points do not expire as long as your account is open and in good standing.
• Capital One Rewards: Capital One Rewards do not expire as long as your account remains open and in good order.
• Citi ThankYou Points: Citi ThankYou Points can expire depending on the card they were earned with. Card-depending points expire after three years, five years, or not as long as your card is open.
• Chase Ultimate Rewards: Points do not expire as long as your account is open and in good standing.
• Discover Cashback Bonus: Bonus does not expire even if you close your account.
• Wells Fargo Rewards: Points won't expire as long as your card is open.

Other Rewards Programs

• Amazon Rewards Card Points: Points do not expire as long as you are a cardholder.
• Amtrak Guest Rewards: Points expire if your account has no activity for 24 months.
• CVS ExtraBucks Rewards: Points expire 90 days from the end of each calendar quarter following their date of issue.
• Disney Vacation Club: Points expire at the end of your “use year.”
• Honey PayPal Rewards: Points will expire if you don't earn at least 10 points within each consecutive 365-day period.
• OpenTable: Points in an account expire if that account hasn’t had a seated reservation for 12 months.
• Starbucks Rewards: Stars expire after six months at the end of the month in which they were earned.

Three Types of Points and Miles Expiration Policies

Every loyalty program has its own set of rules governing points expiration. While each program will have its nuances and unique set of criteria, expiration policies generally fall into one of three categories:

• Points that never expire, regardless of how long you have held them or lack of activity on your account.
• Points that will expire on a given date.
• Points that expire unless you take specific action to stop them from doing so.

Points and miles that never expire

These are the easiest programs to deal with and the simplest in which to build up large balances. Simply put, your points will not expire regardless of any activity or inactivity on your account. These types of programs offer you peace of mind of knowing that you can safely accrue points and miles without the risk of losing them. This lets you build up a balance towards a huge redemption opportunity.

Examples of programs with miles that do not expire include Delta SkyMiles and United MileagePlus.

However, even programs with no expiration policy can have other rules that could result in your points being lost. These rules include things like prohibited behavior or a repeated lack of response to a communication from the program. Or, in some cases, if your account is inactive for several years, some loyalty programs will terminate your entire account. Keep this in mind.

Just because a program does not have an expiration policy does not mean your points are there forever.

Credit: Andrew Neel/Unsplash

Points and miles that expire regardless of activity

The flipside of “never expire” points and miles expiration policies is “expire no matter what”. Some loyalty program miles/points have a fixed validity — meaning miles will expire a certain amount of time after being earned. You can do nothing to extend your points' validity in these programs. Once their lifespan is over, the miles expire and are gone.

An example of this is Emirates Skywards. In this complicated program, Skywards miles are valid for three years. Earning or redeeming miles won't change the expiration date.

Points and miles with an Extendable validity

By far, the bulk of points and miles expiration policies fall into this category. Points and miles are valid for a specific period of time (generally between 18 and 36 months). During this time, you need to complete a “qualifying activity” to reset the clock on your points. If the validity period elapses without you completing the required “qualifying activity,” your miles will expire and be forfeited.

As a rule, “qualifying activity” varies, but it generally means earning or redeeming points or miles with the program.

Can You Reinstate Expired Miles?

Your mileage will vary here (pun intended). Several programs allow you to reinstate expired points for a fee while other programs won't let you reinstate expired miles at any cost. In the latter case, if you call the customer service number, an agent might be able to reinstate your points or miles for you free as a gesture of goodwill. So, it does not hurt to ask.

For the programs that allow you to reinstate your points or miles for a fee, beware that it's typically expensive and the reinstatement window is typically limited. For instance, you can only reinstate points that have expired in the past six months. Another limitation is that there may be a restriction on the number of points you can reinstate at a time or per year.

Another thing to keep an eye out for is that the reinstated points may have a short validity. If you plan to pay cold, hard cash to reinstate some points, make sure you have a pretty quick use for them.

In short, it is best not to allow your miles to expire in the first place.

Credit: Averie Woodard/Unsplash

Are All “Qualifying Activity” Requirements the Same?

Programs requiring qualifying activity to extend the validity of your points each have their own criteria on what counts. Quite often, what counts in one program does not in another — and vice versa.

For instance, some programs will accept transfers from credit card points or even point purchases as qualifying activities that will reset the expiration clock on your points. Others may not accept this and insist that only points earned or redeemed directly with the program itself are what counts towards resetting your expiration clock.

If your loyalty program requires you to complete certain “Qualifying Activities”, ensure that you read all the fine print so that you are totally informed about what counts and what doesn’t count. This helps to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Do Expiration Policies Change?

Yes, airlines and hotels may update their loyalty program terms and conditions — including their points and miles expiration policies. For example, Hertz recently made an unannounced change to its expiration policy, dropping the Hertz Gold expiration policy from 18 to 12 months.

However, these changes aren't always negative. In quite a few recent cases, airlines have made improvements to their expiration policy. An example of this was when United abolished its expiration policy entirely. After that change, United miles don't expire.

Even if the change is not a radical one (like the United example above), it may be a minor tweak like disqualifying particular activity from resetting your mileage validity clock. This could be problematic if you were counting on using this newly-disqualified method. If that was your preferred method for keeping points alive, and it no longer works, you could wind up losing points to expiration.

So, it is best to stay on top of the changes to your rewards programs.

Remember, one of the easiest ways to keep track of all your points' expiration dates to keep them alive is to use AwardWallet to track your programs and notify you of impending expiration.

Final Thoughts

While putting together a spreadsheet to track points and miles validity is excellent, it is tedious. Whether you are a member of one program or fifty, your best option is to use AwardWallet to track the validity of your miles. Using AwardWallet, you will get timely reminders about when you have some points or miles about to expire.