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Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
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How (and why) to change your airline for your Amex fee credit this year
Nick Ewen is TPG's editor-in-chief and helps readers leverage credit cards (he has more than 25 of them) and loyalty programs to travel more for less. He's been at TPG for over 11 years.
December 27, 2021 • 7 min read
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Quick summary
Some travel cards offer annual airline fee credits that require you to select a preferred airline each year.
Typically, you can only change your chosen airline in January, but this year, some cardholders have been able to adjust their selection later using online chat.
This flexibility allows travelers to match their credits to upcoming trips, especially if plans have shifted due to the pandemic.
Credits generally apply only to incidental fees on the selected airline, not to airfare itself.
What to consider
Changes to your designated airline may only apply to purchases made through December 31, 2021.
The ability to switch airlines outside the usual window is not a formally published policy and may not be guaranteed for all cardholders.
Credits are limited to incidental fees and do not cover airfare or all types of charges.
What you'll miss from the article
Step-by-step guidance on using online chat to change your selected airline and practical scenarios for maximizing your airline fee credits.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Editor’s note: This post has been updated with new information.
Many credit card issuers have made a number of changes to benefits in response to the ongoing pandemic. In some cases, cardholders can earn bonus points in new categories, while in others, you now have new perks or extended time to use existing perks.
On the other hand, some benefits remain as they were prior to the pandemic. One of the most notable examples is the annual airline fee statement credit on several American Express cards. These credits haven’t been extended or publicly modified in any way, so you still have until the end of 2021 to use them.
However, as we approach the end of the year, it’s important to look at any upcoming travel plans that you may have since it’s possible to change your designated airline for this perk.
Here’s how (and why) you can adjust your selected airline this year.
Applicable Amex cards
(Photo by The Points Guy)
Several American Express cards currently provide this perk. Here’s a snapshot of some popular ones (enrollment required):
The Platinum Card® from American Express: Up to $200 per calendar year.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express: Up to $200 per calendar year.
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card: Up to $250 per calendar year.
The information for the Hilton Aspire Amex card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Remember that these credits typically apply solely to incidental fees on the one airline you designate, making the perk much less flexible than travel credits on cards such as the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
Nevertheless, you may be able to enjoy some flexibility this year.
Under normal circumstances, you select your airline when you first get an eligible card, and then you can adjust your selection for these credits once per year, in January. If you do not change it, the system will automatically carry forward your previous year’s airline choice.
But this year, American Express is allowing additional changes — and I was able to adjust the airline for my Hilton Aspire card in just a few minutes by using the online chat feature.
Start by logging in to your account. Navigate to the applicable card, then click Help at the top.
(Screenshot courtesy of American Express)
Scroll down to find the Chat With Us section, then click the Live Chat icon.
(Screenshot courtesy of American Express)
From there, you’ll be asked to type in a sentence to let the automated system know what you want to do. I said, “I would like to adjust my selected airline for my airline fee credit,” and the system gave me the following response:
(Screenshot courtesy of American Express)
I clicked the second option and then answered two additional questions.
(Screenshot courtesy of American Express)
At that point, I was connected with a representative. He reminded me of the terms of the perk then processed the change. I immediately received a confirmation email as well.
(Screenshot courtesy of American Express)
It took less than five minutes from the time I started the chat to when I received the email.
Why you might want to change your airline now
You may want to change your airline fee credit if you have upcoming travel plans. (Photo by Leonard Zhukovsky/Shutterstock.com)
There are a couple of key reasons why this may make sense right now:
Holiday trip(s) on an airline other than the one you previously selected.
The former of these two led me to initiate a change.
In an average year, JetBlue is my airline of choice for the fee credit offers on my American Express cards. I frequently take the carrier from my home state of Florida to New York City for business meetings at the TPG office and to visit family in the area. It’s also my go-to airline for domestic vacations, thanks to extensive service from Orlando (MCO) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL).
While my JetBlue Plus card covers baggage fees when I fly, I will typically max out the credits on my Hilton Aspire and Amex Platinum cards through seat selection on Blue Basic fares or by splurging for Even More Space seats.
However, this year, I’ve only taken a single, round-trip flight on JetBlue and have no upcoming travel on the books. However, I do have a Delta flight coming up for a holiday ski trip, and since I do not have Medallion status or a Delta credit card, I’d be on the hook for some hefty bag fees.
Well, not anymore. By changing my designated airline for the Hilton Aspire card from JetBlue to Delta, I now have up to $250 in credit to use on this trip. The airfare alone was quite pricey, and with lift tickets and equipment rentals, the costs will quickly pile up on this trip. Thankfully, I no longer need to worry about bag fees.
You may find yourself in a similar situation over the next couple of months — taking a holiday trip on an airline other than the one you selected back in January. Or you could use this opportunity to look ahead to your 2021 travel and identify a chance to prepay for seat assignment fees, lounge passes or other incidentals that would trigger the Amex fee credits.
Remember: This change will only apply to purchases made between now and Dec. 31, 2021 — at which point you could always change back to your typical carrier for the rest of 2022.
If you find yourself in either of these scenarios, you may want to log in to your American Express account and request a change. At this time of year and with ongoing concerns over the pandemic, every dollar counts.
The information for the JetBlue Plus card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Bottom line
American Express hasn’t formally adjusted the airline fee credits it offers on several popular cards. Still, I had success changing my selected airline through the issuer’s online chat, and it took less than five minutes to do so. While this flexibility isn’t a formally-published policy, other reports indicate that it’s relatively widespread.
Take a look at your upcoming travel plans through the end of the year and into next year to see if a change makes sense. You could wind up saving some serious money on your next trip.
Additional reporting by Stella Shon.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
