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Avios are slowly but surely becoming a dominant force as an airline points currency. The recent adoption of the Avios platform by Qatar Airways Privilege Club and more recently by Finnair Plus means there are now five airlines that share the currency. Now, you can transfer Avios between all of them — Aer Lingus, British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, and Qatar Airways — at a 1:1 ratio.
The ability to transfer Avios earned from one airline to another opens several opportunities. This new flexibility allows you to consolidate your Avios into one account and opens earning and redeeming opportunities.
You can credit paid flights to the account that will earn the most, knowing you can combine the Avios elsewhere later. You can also book award flights with the best program since you can freely move Avios into it from other programs.
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Which Airlines Can You Transfer Avios Between?
While you can eventually get Avios between any of the five Avios-earning programs, not all transfers can be done directly. To move points between certain programs, you have to move them to one program first before transferring them to their final destination. You can move your Avios as follows:
| From / To | Aer Lingus | British Airways | Finnair | Iberia | Qatar Airways |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aer Lingus | -- | Use this British Airways webpage | Transfer to British Airways, then Finnair | Transfer to British Airways, then Aer Lingus | Transfer to British Airways, then to Qatar Airways |
| British Airways | Use this British Airways webpage | -- | Use this British Airways webpage | Use this British Airways webpage | Use this British Airways webpage |
| Finnair | Transfer to British Airways, then Aer Lingus | Use this British Airways webpage | -- | Transfer to British Airways, then Iberia | Transfer to British Airways, then Qatar |
| Iberia | Transfer to British Airways, then Iberia | Use this British Airways webpage | Transfer to British Airways, then Finnair | -- | Transfer to British Airways, then to Qatar Airways |
| Qatar Airways | Transfer to British Airways, then to Aer Lingus | Use this British Airways webpage | Transfer to British Airways, then Finnair | Transfer to British Airways, then to Iberia | -- |
Moving Avios between Aer Lingus, Finnair, Iberia, and Qatar can be a pain involving multiple steps, but it can be worth it.
Imagine you have an AerClub Avios balance that's too small to redeem for a free flight. Combining these with Avios in your British, Finnair, Iberia, or Qatar accounts can let you leverage your Avios for a redemption.
Transfer Avios Between British Airways and Iberia or Aer Lingus
Transferring Avios between British Airways and either Iberia or Aer Lingus is perhaps the easiest of them all. The best way to do so is through the British Airways Club website. To move Avios in either direction, log into your British Airways Club account and then click this link to get to the “Combine your Avios” page.
On this page, you'll find options to combine Avios with Iberia, AerClub, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, or Finnair Plus. In the “Iberia Plus and AerClub” section, click the “Combine my Avios' button.
Select “Iberia Plus” from the dropdown menu. British Airways will then prompt you to enter your Iberia Plus login credentials. Once you do, click “log in & continue” to proceed to the next step.
Next, British Airways will show your accounts side-by-side with the balances in each account. Select whether you'd like to transfer Iberia Plus Avios to British Airways or the reverse. Then, enter the number of Avios you want to transfer between accounts.
Once you have selected your transfer amount and direction, click the “Review my transfer” button. Confirm that this is the transfer you'd like to make, and then you're all set!
Transfer Avios Between British Airways and Qatar
You can combine Avios between British Airways and Qatar easily on either program's website. However, before you can initiate transfers, you must link your British Airways Club and Qatar Privilege Club accounts — which you can do through either site. However, we find the process to be more straightforward through Qatar's website.
When you log into your Qatar Airways Privilege Club account, the site will prompt you to link your British Airways account. If you have not been prompted upon logging in, you can head to the Avios linking page and select “Link my accounts.”
You will then be asked which account you want to link. In this case, the only option is the British Airways Club.
A pop-up will open, explaining the process; click on ‘Link accounts'.
At this point, you will need to enter your British Airways Club login credentials.
You will need to complete a two-step verification process to finish linking the accounts.
Your accounts are now linked. At this point, you can view your balances in each program.
To transfer Avios between British Airways and Qatar Airways on the British Airways website, log into your British Airways Club account and then browse to this page. If you've already linked your accounts, you should see both of your Avios account balances.
Just below that box, you can transfer Avios between accounts. Select the transfer direction and the number of Avios you want to transfer between your accounts. Then click “Combine my Avios.”
You can also conduct these transfers on Qatar's website. In fact, using the Qatar Airways website to conduct transfers to/from British Airways is advantageous. If you transfer on the British Airways website, your Avios balances aren't visible during the transfer process. However, your balances are displayed on the Qatar Airways website.
Transfer Avios Between British Airways and Finnair
Finnair Plus is the newest Avios partner. At the time of writing, you can only transfer Avios between Finnair and British Airways — and not any of the other Avios-earning airlines. That means knowing how to convert Avios between these two partners is key to getting Avios into or out of your Finnair Plus account.
Start by logging into your British Airways Club account. Then head to this page. Here, you'll be prompted to link your British Airways Club and Finnair Plus accounts. Click “Link Accounts Now” to start the process.
In order to link your British Airways and Finnair accounts, you'll need to activate two-factor authentication on your Finnair Plus account. If you haven't done so already, you'll be prompted to do so before you can link your accounts.
Once you've finally linked your accounts, you can transfer Avios between British Airways and Finnair using a transfer facility further down on the same landing page.
Price Arbitrage Between Avios Programs
When Qatar originally joined the Avios program, Qatar modified its award pricing to harmonize with British Airways and eliminate arbitrage options. Essentially, if you are looking to book a specific flight on a British Airways-operated flight from London to Bangkok, you will pay the same amount of Avios whether you book it via the British Airways or Qatar Airways website.
However, Qatar hasn't matched recent British Airways devaluations. That opens the door to price arbitrage between the Avios programs.
For example, British Airways and Iberia now charge 20,000 Avios for an award flight from the U.S. West Coast to Hawaii. But, Qatar Privilege Club still charges just 13,000 Avios each way on these routes.
Also, keep in mind that Qatar tends to have lower taxes and fees than the outrageous surcharges BA often levies on award flights. So, even when the Avios price may be the same, there could be a substantial saving on taxes and fees by booking through Qatar Airways Privilege Club. However, make sure to account for the ‘per segment' award booking fee with Privilege Club.
Great Credit Card Transfer Options
The ability to transfer Avios between Aer Lingus, British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, and Qatar has opened up many opportunities to transfer credit card points between airlines.
For example, British Airways and Iberia are transfer partners of Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One Miles, and Bilt Rewards. Qatar isn't a transfer partner of any of those programs, but it's the only Avios-earning program that's a Citi ThankYou transfer partner.
These transfer options also mean that credit cards earning any of these currencies could be used with the other programs. You could earn a sign-up bonus from one of these cards and then transfer those Avios to any of the other programs, earning in a four-pronged approach.
- Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card — Earn 75,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- British Airways Visa Signature® Card — Earn up to 100,000 Avios - 75,000 Avios when you spend $5,000 within 3 months of account opening, and 25,000 additional Avios when you spend $20,000 within the first 12 months of account opening.
- Iberia Visa Signature® Card — Earn 75,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Our Take
The ability to transfer Avios freely between Qatar Airways, British Airways, Iberia, Finnair, and Aer Lingus is a welcome move. Anything that adds flexibility and increases your usage options for your points, miles, or Avios is to be welcomed. Hopefully, additional airlines will consider joining the Avios program, making them even more flexible and valuable!
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