Source: The Points Guy
Summary
American Express charges an excise tax offset fee when transferring Membership Rewards points to U.S. airline loyalty programs, including Delta SkyMiles and JetBlue TrueBlue. The fee is $0.0006 per point, with a maximum fee of $99. This fee does not apply to transfers to hotel programs or international airline loyalty programs. To avoid the fee, consider transferring points to international airline programs that can be used to book domestic flights.
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The escape is carefully planned.
Transferring points to U.S. airlines comes with a fee, but international airline programs offer a workaround. Delta SkyMiles and JetBlue TrueBlue are the only U.S. airlines affected. American Express charges a fee to offset the federal excise tax. The fee is $0.0006 per point, with a maximum fee of $99. To avoid the fee, consider transferring points to Air France-KLM Flying Blue or Virgin Atlantic Flying Club to book domestic flights operated by Delta Air Lines. The Points Guy notes that no other transferable points program charges a fee for these transfers.
The perfect getaway requires careful planning, and sometimes an extra fee.
Author: Evan Null
