Can you transfer Avios points to someone else?

Can you transfer your Avios points to someone else?  Today I want to look at whether it is possible to move your Avios points to the account of another person.

As with many things to do with Avios, the question is never that simple.

For most members, you cannot transfer your Avios points to someone else without paying.

However, let’s look at some different permutations because there are way around it:

Can you transfer your Avios points to another person for free?

If you are a Blue, Bronze or Silver member of British Airways Executive Club, you cannot transfer your Avios to another person for free.

However, if you are a Gold member of British Airways Executive Club, you can give them to another member for free.  You can send a maximum of 27,000 Avios per year from your account to the account of anyone on your ‘Friends & Family’ list.  The maximum number of Avios you can transfer in total is 162,000 per year.

Full details are on this page of ba.com.

Can you transfer your Avios points to another person if you are willing to pay?

Yes you can.  Take a look at this page of ba.com.

You can send up to 27,000 Avios per person per calendar year, up to an annual cap of 162,000 Avios.

The snag is that you have to pay – and it is quite a lot.  The current fees are:

1,000 to 6,000 Avios – £25

7,000 to 12,000 Avios – £65

13,000 to 18,000 Avios – £100

19,000 to 24,000 Avios – £140

25,000 to 27,000 Avios – £175

These are extortionately high and I don’t recommend paying them unless 100% necessary.   It is shocking that BA would take £175 off you simply for moving some Avios from one account to another.  No new points are being created so it is pure profit for the airline.

Can you book an Avios flight for another person from your account?

Instead of transferring your Avios points to another person, can you simply book a flight for them from your account?  If you don’t have enough to book a return, remember that you can book one-way Avios flights.

This article explains how to book an Avios flight for someone else using your points.

Can you pool your points for free by forming a Household Account?

One other option is to form a Household Account with someone else.  Following a 2021 change, you no longer need to have matching addresses to join a Household Account.

This process pools up to six sets of Avios together and any person in the Household Account can make a redemption for themselves or for anyone else in the account.

This article explains in more detail how British Airways Avios household accounts work.  You may find it a more convenient – and of course far cheaper – option than paying to transfer points to someone else.

(This article is part of our ‘BA Q&A’ series which explains how British Airways Executive Club works.  You can see all of our ‘BA Q&A’ articles here. )

(Head for Points is the UK’s biggest frequent flyer website with 2.4 million monthly page views.  Want to learn more about earning and spending Avios?  Click here to read our latest news stories and click here to join the mailing list for our weekly or daily email newsletters.)

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (January 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also good bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These are available to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.