Chase Ultimate Rewards to lose Emirates Skywards as a transfer partner Oct. 16
Chase Ultimate Rewards is saying goodbye to one of its 11 airline transfer partners. The program plans to end its partnership with Emirates Skywards at 12 a.m. EDT on Oct. 16, View from the Wing first reported. We confirmed this in the Chase app, too.
This isn't the only bad news to come out of Emirates Skywards this year.
Over the last few months, Emirates Skywards suffered devaluations at the hands of two other transfer partners. Citi ThankYou Rewards lowered its transfer ratio to Emirates from 1:1 to 5:4 in July, while American Express Membership Rewards announced it will follow suit, effective Sept. 16.
In May, the program began restricting first-class award redemptions to elite members, making the carrier's luxurious suites unattainable for many travelers.
Though losing transfer partner options is rarely a good thing, this news likely won't upset many Ultimate Rewards members. Emirates Skywards has lost so much value over recent years that transferring Chase points to the program is no longer a popular redemption option.
In light of the recent string of transfer partner shake-ups, it's possible Emirates' other transfer partners will follow suit by devaluing Emirates transfers or dropping the program completely. But for now, you can still transfer Bilt Rewards Points and Capital One miles to Emirates at a 1:1 ratio, meaning these rewards will go further on Skywards redemptions.
With Emirates leaving the Chase Ultimate Rewards program Oct. 16, should you consider transferring points while you still can? In general, the answer is no. Since points transfers are irreversible, we don't recommend transferring points until you have a redemption in mind and you've confirmed award availability.
Bottom line
If you're hoping to spend your Chase Ultimate Rewards points on an Emirates redemption, you have until Oct. 15 to transfer them — so start searching for those award flights now. (We love Seats.aero for this purpose.)
Beyond that, Chase still has plenty of other airline transfer partners with which you can get outsize value from your points.
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