Whether you’re just getting started with points and miles or have a handful of great award redemptions under your belt, it’s always worth paying attention to when your rewards expire. While that may seem obvious, it can be surprisingly easy to forget about, especially if you’re not a frequent flyer.
To make matters worse, each credit card, airline, and hotel loyalty program has its own rules regarding expiration dates. Some will let you redeem your rewards as long as your account is open and in good standing, while others let them expire after a given amount of time if your account isn’t active.
American Airlines AAdvantage does fall into the latter category, and unlike other popular airline loyalty programs (United Airlines MileagePlus, Delta SkyMiles, and Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards to name a few), your miles can actually expire after 24 months. Note, however, that this stipulation doesn’t apply to members who are under the age of 21.
Luckily, there are a few easy things you can do to keep that from happening — and worst case scenario, it’s even possible to get your AAdvantage miles reinstated for a fee should the expiration date accidentally slip your mind.
Here’s everything you need to know about keeping your account active, as well as a few reasons why American Airlines would consider closing it and how to get your miles back if they do eventually expire.
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How to keep your AAdvantage miles from expiring
On the bright side, keeping your AAdvantage account open is pretty easy, especially if you plan to book a flight, redeem miles for a future trip, or sign up for an American Airlines co-branded credit card.
Earning miles
Keep in mind that anytime you book a flight with American Airlines or one of its Oneworld alliance partners, that expiration date slides forward. The same goes for when you reserve a stay via AAdvantage Hotels or with hotel partners like IHG One Rewards, World of Hyatt, and Marriott Bonvoy (you can pick up 500 miles per participating Hyatt stay, and earn two miles per dollar spent on qualifying purchases at select IHG and Marriott properties).
You’ll also earn miles when you rent a car with Avis or Budget, shop and dine through certain AAdvantage programs (more on that below), book travel through American Airlines Cruises or American Airlines Vacations, or buy event tickets via AAdvantage Events.
Additional ways to pick up miles and extend your expiration date include filling out online surveys with Miles for Opinions, joining Shell’s Fuel Rewards program to earn miles at gas stations, and enrolling in other partner promotions. You’ll also score 10 miles per dollar donated to Stand Up to Cancer (donations must be over $25 to qualify).
Redeeming miles
If you’ve been dragging your feet on redeeming that pile of AAdvantage miles you’ve so diligently built up, a looming expiration date might be the perfect excuse to finally make a move. Using miles to book a last-minute flight on American Airlines or one of its Oneworld alliance partners buys you an extra 24 months, with one-way redemptions starting at just 7,500 AAdvantage miles.
Alternatively, miles can be used to reserve a rental car or hotel stay and to upgrade seats when flying on American Airlines, Iberia, Qantas, or British Airways. You can also use AAdvantage miles to book vacations through American Airlines or tickets to concerts and other experiences through AAdvantage Events. If you’ve got a long layover coming up, consider purchasing a one-day pass to an Admirals Club lounge for 7,900 miles, which would count as a qualifying expiration date extension activity.
Getting an American Airlines co-branded credit card
Of course, the easiest way to accumulate airline miles quickly is to sign up for one of American Airlines’ co-branded credit cards. If you’re able to hit the minimum spending requirement responsibly and are in the market for a new travel rewards credit card, doing so will keep you free and clear of any upcoming expiration date issues as long as your account is in good standing.
There are several co-branded credit cards to choose from. These include:
- American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® Mastercard®
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
- Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard®
- AAdvantage® Aviator® World Elite Red Mastercard®
Be sure to keep your personal travel needs and financial boundaries in mind, as your included benefits will vary by card. If, for instance, you’re constantly flying and willing to pay a higher annual fee to gain access to Admirals Club lounges, the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® is worth considering.
Small business owners, however, may prefer the Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard® for its perks, while casual travelers might find one of the other three cards listed above is a better fit.
If you must close your co-branded credit card account for whatever reason, be aware that any miles you’ve accumulated may expire if you don’t earn or redeem miles within four months, or within 24 of your last qualifying activity via the AAdvantage loyalty program (whichever date comes later).
Using AAdvantage Shopping and Dining programs
Should you be in the mood for some retail therapy or a night out on the town, the AAdvantage eShopping portal and AAdvantage Dining programs offer a quick and easy way to earn miles, all while pushing that pesky expiration date forward.
Simply shop online at over 1,200 stores through the portal using any credit card, or link your preferred credit or debit card to your account through the dining program before dining at a participating restaurant.
Buying, gifting, donating, and transferring miles
If you’re feeling particularly generous, transferring your miles to another AAdvantage member or buying them for yourself or others all count toward extending that dreaded expiration date.
You can also pay it forward by donating miles to the Miles for Our Heroes program — which supports first responders, veterans, military members, and their families — or to American Airlines Miles for Social Good, which focuses more on disaster response, fighting world hunger, and other humanitarian causes. Two other programs, Miles for Our Planet and Miles for Global Health and Well-being, let you donate miles to support environmentally forward organizations as well as charities like Stand Up To Cancer, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Make-A-Wish, and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
It’s also possible to prolong your expiration date by switching points over from Marriott Bonvoy. While the transfer ratios aren’t ideal — you’ll receive one AAdvantage mile for every three Marriott Bonvoy points — it’ll work in a pinch if you’re coming up against the deadline.
As of June 2024, Bilt Rewards is no longer a transfer partner of American Airlines, so there is currently no way to convert miles directly between AAdvantage and any major credit card loyalty program, such as Chase Ultimate Rewards or Amex Membership Rewards.
That said, it’s still possible to use those credit card points to book American Airlines flights through their respective travel portals — for instance, Amex points can still be used towards American Airlines flight bookings via the Amex Travel website.
Reasons why American Airlines would close your account
Even if you manage to spend all your AAdvantage miles, your American Airlines loyalty account will remain open as long as you keep earning and redeeming. If, however, you don’t complete any qualifying activities within 36 months — or you don’t happen to have a co-branded credit card or any lifetime perks such as Million Miler status — your account could be closed.
Reactivating expired miles
Even if you do somehow manage to let your AAdvantage miles expire, it’s not the end of the world, as they can be reactivated for a fee, which varies based on how many miles you need back. This can be done online through your American Airlines membership account or by calling AAdvantage customer service. Unfortunately, the carrier doesn’t publish the exact amounts and declined to specify any pricing details when we reached out for further clarification, though we’ve heard of rates starting at 60 for 5,000 miles and going up from there.
Either way, you can reactivate up to 500,000 miles that have expired in the last 24 months and only need to complete one earning or redeeming activity to extend that deadline by an extra 24 months. You should see them back in your account in about 24 hours — note, however, that these miles can’t be put toward reaching elite status with the airline once they are returned.
Summary
If you’re worried about your AAdvantage miles expiring anytime soon, just remember that every little earning opportunity or redemption — whether you’re shopping online through the portal, booking a last-minute getaway, or donating miles to help those in need — counts toward extending that expiration date. As long as you keep your account open and active, there’s little cause for concern. Besides, you can always pay to have those miles reinstated if they’ve only expired within the last 24 months.
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