The calendar year of 2023 comes to an end three weeks from now, so here is our annual reminder to use up all travel credits that are attached to your credit card accounts, especially the U.S. Amex Platinum card.
Many of these credits are based on the calendar year, so if you don’t use them right now, they will disappear into thin air, and you lose whatever full or residual value is left of them.
A variety of premium credit cards in the U.S. market (and abroad as well nowadays), offer an annual travel credit that ranges between $100-$300 in value and that can be used in many different ways, some more flexible than others.
There are also additional annual benefits and credits that should be used up before the new year begins, so let’s have a look at what you should do in order to be in the clear or even decide that the card no longer makes sense for you.
While many card products officially say they allow the credits to be used for incidentals such as baggage fees, upgrades, and lounge passes, it’s often possible to also use the credits for gift cards, which then, in turn, can be turned into flexible free flights that also collect miles.
American Express offers this Airline Fee Credit in the form of a reimbursement after transactions are charged to the eligible card account, and in the past, it worked quite well, for example, with the United Airlines Travel Bank in amounts of up to $100. There have been reports of this working on and off, but I never had a problem getting the credit.
Getting reimbursements for gift cards is officially no longer possible as the purchase now codes differently, but buying actual tickets that cost below $100 will usually see the reimbursement kick in. The same goes for paying taxes on award tickets.
As far as Amex goes, the Platinum Card has a $200 annual airline credit, and Corporate Gold comes with $100 that runs based on the calendar year, which means if you have a new card account, you can actually get the credit twice within the first membership year that overlaps Jan 1.
The Amex Platinum US$200 hotel credit for Fine Hotels and Resorts (1 Night minimum), as well as The Hotel Collection (2 Night minimum), is probably the most valuable credit that should definitely be used.
I wrote an update on this previously:
Update On How To Best Utilize The $200 American Express Platinum Hotel Credit
There should be something for everyone as far as the hotels are concerned, and even if you don’t want to use the hotel stay right now, you can always prepay for a future date, and the credit applies as long as you book before the end of December.
The Amex Green offers another $100 for Loungebuddy, which also counts per calendar year.
Another Amex Platinum item that should be used is the SAKS 5th Ave credit of $50 bi-annually. You can get $50 reimbursed for your purchases between JAN-JUN and JUL-DEC.
Usually, when I’m in the U.S. I just go to a store and buy a $50 gift card and pool them after a while for a bigger purchase but that wasn’t possible this time so I ordered a pair of swim shorts on sale:
I used Rakuten for a 10% additional cashback on this order during Cyber Monday.
Other cards, such as the Chase Sapphire Reserve, have a $300 travel credit, which is generally much more flexible based on their interpretation of “Travel”:
Merchants in the travel category include airlines, hotels, motels, timeshares, car rental agencies, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites, campgrounds and operators of passenger trains, buses, taxis, limousines, ferries, toll bridges and highways, and parking lots and garages.
Any purchases (not just ” airlines incidentals” in these categories will be automatically adjusted until the $300 are used up, however the credit runs per revolving card member anniversary so even the first year you can only get it once. The advantage of the Chase credit (or disadvantage, depending how you look at it) is that these funds don’t expire on DEC 31st but are based on your membership year.
Check if your credit card has an annual allowance for travel credits and then the expiry date of it!
This year, I already used my Amex credit on the Platinum Card for a renewal of my CLEAR membership (they offer an additional discount for United members).
Do I use CLEAR frequently? Maybe a few times per year, as I’m not living in the U.S. or visit all too frequently, but it is better than nothing, and I like the service.
To avoid leaving quite a bit of money on the table, it’s important to also focus on using up the Dining or streaming credits each month. The good thing about the dining credit, for example, on my Amex Bonvoy Brilliant, is that it can be used internationally as well and not just with U.S. outlets. However if your card credit is valid at U.S. outlets only and you are abroad, reloading your Starbucks card with the respective amount usually triggers the credit.
Last but not least, there will be another UBER credit for December, and for Amex Platinum cards, that’s a whopping $35 rather than the usual $15/month as a special December bonus. You can only use these funds in the U.S. so that’s really a shame. I usually offer friends who are currently traveling or living in the U.S. to order a UBER Eats pickup meal at a nearby restaurant. This way, it won’t go to waste, and someone can enjoy it.
There are many, many cards that offer annual credits, and you should familiarize yourself in detail with what the card offers, especially if it’s expensive as far as the annual fee is concerned. I focused so much on the Amex Platinum because it has really become an epic coupon book rather than a credit (charge) card. The amount of planning and headache associated with that card has become staggering.
Conclusion
These annual credits are quite useful if you apply them properly, and with so many different credit card products around that most of us carry in our wallets, it pays off to know all the benefits associated with each card. It would be a shame if these credits would go unused.
Keep in mind it takes a few days until the charge actually hits your account and then another couple of days to get your adjustment, so it’s really the last chance these next few weeks if your benefits are based on the calendar year!
I’d also take the opportunity to evaluate which credit cards and memberships have been most beneficial to you and if it’s maybe time to cancel the one or other card to avoid paying the annual fee needlessly.
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