Avianca LifeMiles expire 12 months from the last time you earned at least one LifeMile. It has one of the shortest expiration dates of any loyalty program.
Plus, you can only extend the expiration date of your miles by earning more miles. Redeeming miles won’t keep them from expiring.
Quite a bummer, right? Don’t worry. This guide will help you navigate through the ins and outs of keeping your miles from expiring. Let’s get right into it!
Related Article: Best Credit Cards for Earning Lots of Avianca LifeMiles.
How to Keep Avianca Lifemiles from Expiring?
Generally, Avianca Lifemiles will expire 12 months after account inactivity.
You need to earn at least one Lifemile to extend its validity for another 12 months.
However, there are exceptions to this rule:
- Elite members can reset their mileage validity for 24 months after earning at least one mile.
- Cardholders of the Avianca Vida Visa® Card or Avianca Vuela Visa® Card (regardless of elite status) can reset their mileage validity by 24 months after earning at least one mile.
Unfortunately, redeeming Avianca Lifemiles won’t reset its expiration clock.
Earning Lifemiles is the only qualifying activity. Let’s explore the different ways to earn them.
Fly with Avianca or Its Partner Airlines
You can earn Lifemiles when you fly with Avianca, Star Alliance airlines, Aeromexico, or Iberia.
While Aeromexico is a part of Skyteam and Iberia is a part of Oneworld, you can still earn Lifemiles with them since they’re partners with Avianca.
Unofficially: Transfer Points to LifeMiles
LifeMiles rules state that transferring credit card points to LifeMiles does not extend the validity of the miles, but in reality, this rule is generally not enforced.
Thus, transfers from Capital One Miles, Citi ThankYou Points, Brex Rewards, and American Express Membership Rewards should reset your mileage validity.
Stay at Hotel Partners
Earn up to 14,000 Lifemiles per night when you book a stay with partner hotels and platforms.
Some of these partners include Marriot Bonvoy, IHG, Best Western Rewards, Booking.com, and Hotels.com.
Here’s an example of how many miles you’ll earn per partner:
- Booking.com: Earn 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent
- Hotels.com: Earn 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent
- Rocketmiles: Earn between 500 to 10,000 Lifemiles per night
- IHG Hotels & Resorts:Earn up to 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent on eligible stays or convert 10,000 IHG points to 2,000 Lifemiles
- Marriott Bonvoy: Earn up to 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent on eligible stays or convert 9,000 Marriott points to 3,000 Lifemiles
- Kaligo.com: Earn between 3 to 20 Lifemiles per dollar spent
- Wyndham Rewards: Earn up to 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent on eligible stays or convert 6,000 Wyndham Rewards Points to 1,200 Lifemiles
- Barcelo: Earn 1 Lifemile per dollar on eligible stays
- Accor Live Limitless: Convert 2 ALL Rewards points to 1 Lifemile
- Best Western Rewards: Earn 250 Lifemiles per stay or convert 5,000 points to 1,000 Lifemiles
- Radisson Rewards: Convert 2,000 Radisson Rewards points to 200 Lifemiles
Book a Car Rental
Earn miles for your next car rental with partners including Hertz, Avis, National, and Budget.
Here’s an example of how many miles you’ll earn per partner:
- Avis: Earn 500 Lifemiles per car rental and get a 10% discount.
- Hertz: Earn 50 Lifemiles per day of car rental
- Sixt: Earn 500 Lifemiles per car rental
- Alamo: Earn 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent on car rentals
- Budget: Earn 500 Lifemiles per car rental
- Thrifty: Earn 50 Lifemiles per day of car rental
- Dollar: Earn 50 Lifemiles per day of car rental
- National: Earn 2 Lifemiles per dollar spent on car rentals
- Rentalcars: Earn 5 Lifemiles per dollar spent on car rentals
Get a Co-branded Card
Avianca offers two types of co-branded cards: Avianca Vuela Visa and Avianca Vida Visa.
You can earn Lifemiles whenever you use these cards for eligible purchases.
Shop or Dine at Partner Merchants
Earn miles when you shop or dine at a host of partners in Latin and South America.
Some of these partners include major brands like Adidas, Bath and Body Works, Esprit, Kappa, and Sony.
Related Article: Ultimate Guide to Redeeming LifeMiles.
Comparison of Mileage Expiration Policies
Below are the mileage expiration policies for the major airline points programs worldwide.
| Airline | Expiration |
|---|---|
AeroMexico
|
24 months after inactivity |
Air Canada (Aeroplan)
|
18 months after inactivity |
Air France (Flying Blue)
|
24 months after inactivity |
Alaska Airlines
|
24 months after inactivity |
American Airlines
|
18 months after inactivity |
ANA
|
36 months |
Asiana Airlines
|
10 years |
British Airways
|
36 months after inactivity |
Delta Air Lines
|
Never |
Emirates
|
3 years |
Etihad
|
24 months from inactivity |
EVA Air
|
36 months |
Iberia
|
36 months after inactivity |
Korean Air
|
10 years |
Lufthansa
|
36 months |
Qantas
|
18 months after inactivity |
Qatar Airways
|
36 months after inactivity |
Singapore Airlines
|
36 months |
Turkish Airlines
|
3 years |
United Airlines
|
Never |
Virgin Atlantic
|
Never |
Bottomline
Avianca Lifemiles has one of the strictest expiration policies in the frequent flyer world.
Its miles expire after 12 months of account inactivity. Plus, earning miles is the only way to extend your miles’ validity.
Redemptions and point transfers don’t count as qualifying activities.
However, when it comes to award flights, Avianca is one of the best programs out there. It offers fantastic deals and regular bonus transfers.
So, if you’re willing to put in the effort to keep your account active, the rewards can be well worth it.
