Chase British Airways, Iberia, and Aer Lingus Credit Cards: 100K Offer

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As travel starts to pick back up, many people are starting to plan international trips, especially since Europe has opened up to Americans again. 

If you’re looking for a way to make travel more affordable, it’s worth considering the new offers that just launched on the British Airways Visa Signature® Card, Iberia Visa Signature® Card, and Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card: 100,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening.

In addition, for the first year, new cardholders can earn 5x Avios on flight purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and LEVEL, and 3x Avios on accommodations booked directly with hotels (after the first year, you’ll earn 3x and 2x in these categories, respectively). The cards earn 1x Avios on all other purchases.

Read more: The best travel rewards credit cards in 2021

Even if you don’t have plans to fly with British Airways, Iberia, or Aer Lingus, earning their points — called Avios — can be a good strategy for booking award flights on partner airlines. British Airways and Iberia are members of the Oneworld alliance, which means you can use Avios from their frequent flyer programs to book award flights on other Oneworld carriers, including American Airlines and Cathay Pacific.

It’s also possible to transfer Avios between your British Airways, Iberia, and Aer Lingus accounts, so you can book through the program with the best award pricing for your travel plans.

All three cards carry a $95 annual fee, and come with additional travel and shopping benefits. Plus, none of these cards add foreign transaction fees, so they’re a good choice if you’re planning a trip overseas.

If you’d rather not be locked into a specific airline program, but want the ability to earn Avios, you’ll be better off opening a card that earns transferable Chase Ultimate Rewards points, because all three of these airlines are Chase transfer partners. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is currently offering an all-time-high bonus of 100,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening — and you’ll have a lot more flexibility in how you redeem your rewards.

Read more: The Chase Sapphire Preferred’s new 100,000-point bonus is worth at least $1,250 in travel, making it one of the year’s hottest offers

Here’s what to know about all three offers to help you decide if you should apply.

The previous offer on the British Airways Visa Signature® Card was just 50,000 Avios after meeting minimum spending requirements, so the new bonus of 100,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening is a big jump.

In addition, if you spend $30,000 or more in a calendar year, you’ll receive a Travel Together Ticket, which gets you a second seat for a companion when you book a British Airways award flight originating in and returning to the US. You won’t have to pay any additional Avios for your companion, but you’ll be responsible for any taxes and fees (which can be quite substantial).

Other card benefits include:

• A 10% discount on paid British Airways round-trip flights to London (and beyond) when you book through BA’s Chase site and use promo code CHASEBA10 (see terms and conditions for exclusions)
• Baggage delay insurance of up to $100 per day for three days if your luggage is delayed by six hours or more
• Lost luggage reimbursement of up to $3,000 per passenger
• Extended warranty of an additional year on eligible US warranties of three years or less
• Purchase protection against damage or theft within 120 days of an eligible purchase, up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account

Read more: The best credit card rewards sweet spots that get you the most from your hard-earned points and miles

When you redeem British Airways Avios for British Airways flights, you’ll usually get stung with very high surcharges that can make the redemption much less lucrative. However, there are some sweet spots in the British Airways award chart, particularly for short-haul flights on partners like American Airlines. For example, flights within the US start at 7,500 Avios one-way, and outside the US award flights can be had from just 6,000 Avios. 

The Iberia Visa Signature® Card is also offering 100,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening, but there are a few minor differences between it and the British Airways version.

Instead of a Travel Together Ticket, Iberia Visa Signature® Card cardholders will receive a $1,000 discount voucher when they spend $30,000 or more in a calendar year. It’s valid for use on the purchase of two paid tickets on the same itinerary, and you must book your tickets through Chase’s Iberia site to get the discount.

Read more: I used credit card points to fly round-trip from the US to Spain in business class for only $232, thanks to an under-the-radar strategy

Cardholders are also eligible for a 10% discount on paid Iberia flights from any destination when they book through Chase’s Iberia site — but be sure to read the terms and conditions as there are some exclusions. You’ll also receive the same travel and purchase protections as on the British Airways Visa Signature® Card.

Iberia has a distance-based award chart, like British Airways, but the award pricing and rules are slightly different. It’s also possible to redeem Iberia miles on Oneworld partners.

Although Aer Lingus isn’t a member of the Oneworld alliance, the Avios it earns are still useful. New Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card cardholders can earn 100,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening, and you can keep those Avios in your Aer Lingus account or transfer them to your British Airways or Iberia account if you prefer those award programs for booking flights.

You’ll receive a Companion Ticket after you spend $30,000 or more in a calendar year, but this one works a little differently from the British Airways version. It’s only valid between the US and Ireland, on round-trip award flights originating in and returning to the US. However, your companion will fly completely free — there are no taxes, fees, or surcharges added to the second ticket — so this could represent a much better deal than the British Airways Travel Together Ticket.

Read more: 10 airline credit cards that offer companion deals so you can bring along a friend for only taxes and fees

There aren’t any discounts available for paid flights, but you will get priority boarding (where available) if you present your card at the gate on any Aer Lingus-operated flight to or from the US. The same travel and purchase protections offered by the other Avios cards also apply to the Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card.

Are you eligible for a Chase Avios credit card?

Like other Chase cards, the British Airways Visa Signature® Card, Iberia Visa Signature® Card, and Aer Lingus Visa Signature® Card are subject to the Chase 5/24 rule. If you’ve opened five or more credit cards (from any bank, with the exception of some small-business cards) in the past 24 months, you aren’t eligible for these offers.

You also won’t be approved if you currently have the same card open, or have received a welcome bonus for the exact card in the past 24 months.

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