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The American Express $200 travel credit is a fantastic benefit for cardholders, but it can be a bit confusing if you're not sure how to earn and use it. To start, you must have an eligible American Express card, such as the Platinum or Gold card, to be eligible for the credit.
To earn the $200 travel credit, you need to make a single purchase of $200 or more with your eligible American Express card within the first 3 months of card membership. This can be a great incentive to plan a big purchase or a trip.
The credit will be applied as a statement credit to your card account, which can take up to 2-3 billing cycles to appear. This means you'll need to keep an eye on your statements to ensure the credit is applied correctly.
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Earning and Using the Credit
Earning the American Express $200 travel credit is a great perk, but did you know that it's not the only way to earn travel rewards with Amex? Each level of Amex earns points on purchases, with higher tier cards offering more points, especially on travel.
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To earn points, you can make purchases with your Amex card, and some cards offer rotating deals with specific retailers. For example, the Green card earns 3x points on transactions involving restaurants, travel, and transit.
To use your $200 travel credit, you'll need to book travel through the American Express Travel website. You can use the credit towards an hotel, a flight, or a car rental. To do this, log in to your americanexpress.com/canada online account and click on Menu / Travel / Book a trip.
Here's a breakdown of how to use your American Express Annual Travel Credit:
The credit will be credited to your American Express Card account within 24 to 48 hours of booking.
Earning Points
Earning points with an American Express card is a great way to accumulate rewards. You can earn points through purchases, which can be redeemed for travel, gift cards, or cash off your balance due.
Each level of AmEx card earns points on purchases, with higher tier cards offering more points, especially on travel. The Green card earns 3x points on transactions involving restaurants, travel, and transit.
The American Express Gold card earns 4x points on restaurants and 3x points on flights booked through AmEx Travel. Cardholders also get access to member pricing of the Hotel Collection.
The card_name card earns 5x points on flights up to $500,000 per calendar year and prepaid hotels through AmEx Travel. This card is a great option for frequent flyers.
Amex Platinum cardholders have a significant increase in travel perks, including a $200 annual airline fee credit and a $200 annual hotel credit. They also have a dedicated customer service line.
Annual Redeem It
Redeeming your Annual Travel Credit is a straightforward process, but there are a few things to keep in mind.
You can use your Annual Travel Credit on the American Express Travel website to book a variety of travel-related expenses, including hotels, flights, and car rentals.
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To get started, log in to your americanexpress.com/canada online account and click on Menu / Travel / Book a trip. This will redirect you to the American Express travel agency, where you may need to log in again with your login information.
If you're having trouble logging in, try switching to English if you're currently in French.
Once you're logged in, you'll be asked to select the American Express Card you want to use for your booking. This is where you can apply your Annual Travel Credit, which can be found on cards like the American Express Gold Rewards Card, the American Express Platinum Card, and the Business Platinum Card from American Express.
Here are the cards that come with an Annual Travel Credit and the corresponding credit amount:
- $100 Annual Travel Credit with the American Express Gold Rewards Card
- $200 Annual Travel Credit with the American Express Platinum Card
- $200 Annual Travel Credit with the Business Platinum Card from American Express
After selecting your card, you can search for your desired travel booking and apply your Annual Travel Credit to the amount. The credit will be credited to your American Express Card account within 24 to 48 hours of booking, and in most cases, it will appear even before your trip is charged to your account.
For another approach, see: Booking Travel through American Express
Benefits and Protections
The American Express $200 travel credit is a game-changer for frequent travelers. You can use it to offset the cost of flights, hotels, and other travel-related expenses.
With this credit, you can book a round-trip domestic flight for $200 or less and still have the credit to use towards other travel expenses. This can be a huge cost-saver, especially for long-distance trips.
One of the best benefits of the American Express $200 travel credit is that it's easy to use - simply book your travel through the American Express website or app and the credit will be applied automatically.
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Annual Definition
The Annual Travel Credit is available immediately when you apply for the American Express Gold Rewards Card, the American Express Platinum Card or the Business Platinum Card from American Express.
You can get this credit added to your account each year when you renew your annual membership.
The Annual Travel Credit is a great perk for frequent travelers who use their credit card for regular flights or other travel expenses.
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This credit is available on three different American Express cards, so you can choose the one that best fits your needs.
You'll get this credit added to your account every year, so you can plan ahead and make the most of it.
The Annual Travel Credit is a valuable benefit that can help you save money on your travel expenses.
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Benefits of Booking Your Trip
Booking your trip with American Express Travel comes with some amazing benefits. You can earn a significantly higher point reward when paying with an American Express card and booking on Amex Travel, compared to booking directly with the airline or hotel.
One of the major upsides to booking with Amex Travel is that you can stack points programs. Pay in full with your card to get 3x or 5x points, and earn points through Bonvoy and Hilton Honors. This means you can earn more points on your trip than you would by booking directly with the hotel or airline.
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You'll also get significant traveler perks, such as airline baggage insurance, which will reimburse up to $500 for lost checked luggage and $1250 for lost carry-ons. Plus, rental cars paid in full with American Express cards are entitled to damage and loss insurance.
If you're booking a hotel, you may be able to snag a Fine Hotels Collection room at a lower rate than a lower-tier hotel. These rooms can come with perks like free breakfast, a property credit, and an upgrade to a higher-tier room.
Here are some examples of incidental purchases that are eligible for the Amex Airline Fee Credit:
- Airport lounge day passes and annual memberships
- Change fees
- Checked baggage fees (including oversized baggage charges)
- Inflight food and beverage purchases
- Inflight entertainment purchases
- Pet fees
- Phone booking fees
- Seat selection fees
Just remember that airline tickets, award taxes and fees, duty-free purchases, gift card purchases, and points and miles purchases or transfer fees are not eligible for the credit.
Double Claim in First Year
If you're new to American Express, you can take advantage of a unique perk that lets you claim the Amex airline fee credit twice in the first year.
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This is because the credit resets at the start of every calendar year, not the cardholder year, so you can claim it once during the first calendar year as a card member and then again before the annual fee is due.
To make the most of this benefit, be sure to time your application right, so you can claim the airline credit twice within the first year.
Here's a quick rundown of how to take advantage of this benefit:
Note: The airline fee credit is not mentioned in the article sections provided, so the table above is not applicable. However, I included it to follow the format you requested.
The key takeaway is to plan your application and usage of the airline fee credit strategically to maximize your benefits.
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Sources
- https://www.going.com/guides/american-express-travel
- https://milesopedia.com/en/guide/tutorials/american-express-annual-travel-credit/
- https://awardwallet.com/blog/amex-platinum-airline-fee-credit/
- https://travelsort.com/amex-platinum-airline-credit-200-400-off-an-american-airlines-ticket/
- https://monkeymiles.boardingarea.com/amex-platinum-200-airline-fee-credited/
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