When Do Air Canada Aeroplan Points Expire?

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Air Canada Aeroplan points expire 18 months after account inactivity. 

Earning, redeeming, donating, transferring, or converting points within that 18-month period will extend the lifespan of your points.

There’s a slim chance your points will expire with so many options available.

However, we’ll still go into detail on what these methods are to guarantee that your points are always safe and secure.

Air Canada Aeroplan points expire 18 months after account inactivity. You can extend the lifespan of your points by earning or redeeming points.
Air Canada Aeroplan points expire 18 months after account inactivity. You can extend the lifespan of your points by earning or redeeming points (Photo: David Preston).

How to Keep Aeroplan Points from Expiring

Resetting the clock on your Aeroplan points typically involves two types of qualifying activities: earning points or redeeming points. Here are some examples below:

1. Flying on Air Canada or a Partner Airline

Earn points whenever you fly with Air Canada, airline partners, and the Star Alliance network.

Star Alliance Star Alliance Airlines
Aegan Airlines Aegean Air Canada Air Canada
Air China Air China Air India Air India
Air New Zealand Air New Zealand ANA ANA
Asiana Airlines Asiana Airlines Austrian Airlines Austrian Airlines
Avianca Avianca Brussels Brussels Airlines
Copa Copa Airlines Croatia Airlines Croatia Airlines
EgyptAir EgyptAir Ethiopian Ethiopian
EVA Air EVA Air LOT Polish LOT Polish
Lufthansa Lufthansa SAS SAS
Shenzhen Shenzhen Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines
South African Airways South African SWISS Airlines SWISS
TAP Portugal TAP Portugal Thai Airways logo Thai Airways
Turkish Airlines logo Turkish Airlines United Airlines logo United Airlines

Just type in your Aeroplan frequent flyer number when booking your reservation.

Redeeming Aeroplan points for flights, extras, and upgrades, can also reset the expiration clock (Points + Cash bookings count).

Aeroplan offers sweet spots for short-haul flights within North America.

2. Stay at a Partner Hotel

You can extend the validity of your Aeroplan points whenever you earn points at a partner hotel or redeem points towards a partner hotel.

3. Book a Car Rental

Earn points when you book a car rental or use your points to book a car rental on the Air Canada portal.

4. Transferring Points to Your Aeroplan Account

American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy are all transfer partners of Air Canada.

So, transferring points from any of these loyalty programs to your Air Canada Aeroplan account will reset your points’ expiration clock.

5. Shop at Partner Stores (online or in-store)

Earn points when you make online purchases on the Aeroplan shopping portal or in-store purchases at partner retailers.

Earn Aeroplan points when you purchase items at partner shops, online or in-store.
Earn Aeroplan points when you purchase items at partner shops, online or in-store (Photo by: Aeroplan).

For example, Amazon lets you earn 2 points per dollar at checkout.

Meanwhile, Starbucks lets you earn 25 Aeroplan points for every $50-$74.99 in-store purchase, or 100 points for every $75+ in-store purchase.

Linking your Aeroplan account and partner-retailer account might be needed for your points to reflect.

6. Buy Gift Cards

You can use your points to buy gift cards from the Aeroplan portal.
You can use your points to buy gift cards from the Aeroplan portal (Photo by: Air Canada Aeroplan).

Use your points to buy gift cards from popular brands like Sephora, Walmart, Costco, and more. Prices may vary depending on the merchant.

7. Events and Experiences

You can use your Aeroplan points to book different types of events and experiences on the Aeroplan portal.
You can use your Aeroplan points to book different types of events and experiences on the Aeroplan portal (Photo by: Air Canada Aeroplan).

Aeroplan members can book different types of events and experiences on the Aeroplan portal such as circus shows from Cirque du Soleil or rail tours from Rocky Mountaineer.

8. Use Your Aeroplan Credit Card

Earn points whenever you use your Aeroplan® Credit Card (review) on eligible purchases.

9. Buy, Donate or Gift Points

Reset your points’ expiration clock by buying, donating, or gifting points

Comparing Aeroplan Against other Program's Expiration Policies

Here are some of the expiration policies of other programs. We’ll keep this table updated if there are any changes.

Airline Expiration
AEROMEXICO LOGO AeroMexico 24 months after inactivity
Air Canada Air Canada (Aeroplan) 18 months after inactivity
Air France Air France (Flying Blue) 24 months after inactivity
Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines 24 months after inactivity
American Airlines American Airlines 18 months after inactivity
ANA ANA 36 months
Asiana Airlines Asiana Airlines 10 years
British Airways British Airways 36 months after inactivity
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines Never
Emirates logo Emirates 3 years
Etihad Etihad 24 months from inactivity
EVA Air EVA Air 36 months
Iberia logo Iberia 36 months after inactivity
Korean Air Korean Air 10 years
Lufthansa Lufthansa 36 months
Qantas Logo Qantas 18 months after inactivity
Qatar Airways logo Qatar Airways 36 months after inactivity
Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines 36 months
Turkish Airlines logo Turkish Airlines 3 years
United Airlines logo United Airlines Never
Virgin Atlantic logo Virgin Atlantic Never

Bottomline

Historically, Aeroplan points expired after 12 months from account inactivity, so it’s great that the program increased it to 18 months.

Frequent flyers shouldn’t have any problems with their points expiring because Aeroplan offers lots of ways to reset them.

However, getting an Aeroplan card is the easiest way to keep your points from expiring. Just keep your card active, make a single purchase within 18 months, and you’re all set.

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