Amex BA companion voucher expiry query (regarding return flight)

[MJShafik]

Hi there,
new to the forum.

I am about to hit the spend amount to trigger/claim the companion voucher and can basically trigger it on any of the next transactions I choose to make with my amex.

I know now that you have to use/book AND fly before the expiry date of the companion voucher (for the outgoing flight).
Is this the same for the return flight?

So for example, if my voucher is triggered say 1st April does both the outgoing and returning flight BOTH have to take place before the following 1st of April or is it the outgoing flight only? Following this, if say the voucher for the outgoing flight is April 1st, does the return flight have to be within a certain window of time etc?

Just wanted to double and triple check before triggering the voucher so that I don’t trigger it and then find I’ve snookered myself and have to return by a certain date.

Thanks in advance for the help and clarification. 🙂

[JDB]

@MJShafik – there are two separate ‘expiry’ elements here – the voucher expiry and IATA ticketing expiry. The voucher is valid for one year (basic BA Amex) or two years (BAPP) from the date of issue.

Your outbound travel must take place before the expiry of the voucher and the return flight must be booked before the outbound travel date, but can be flown on a date after the expiry of the voucher but under ticketing rules that cannot be later than one year after the outbound flight.

[MJShafik]

Thank you for replying so promptly and with detail.

So if I am interpreting these rules correctly, that means if my voucher begins April 1st 2025 it expires April 1st 2026.
That means my outgoing flight has to be before April 1st 2026.
Then for the returning flight it can be after April 1st 2026 but within a year of the outbound flight so if outbound was March 31st 2026, the return flight must be before March 31st 2027?

So even though the voucher would expire April 1st 2026, if I choose to return April 30th 2026 it all works out find within the expiry rules?

Sorry just trying to get my head around all these date malarky. :/

[NorthernLass]

Is your Amex the free one or the BAPP (with £300 annual fee)?

If it’s the free one, then your dates are correct. You can only use this voucher to book seats in economy, however. You must book your return flight before taking the outbound.

[JDB]

@MJShafik – yes, the above is correct.

[pgabriel]

You can fly the return after the voucher expires, but the T&Cs say that you must book your return flight at the same time you make your outbound reservation.

Not sure how enforced this rule is if you book online at T-355 and request half of the Avios, possibly depends on the agent.

[MJShafik]

@JDB – Thank you so much for the help and clarification.

@NorthernLass – My amex is the BA one so yeah it is just economy seats.

Everybody’s help and clarification has been useful and makes sense now and has helped me get my head fully around the whole dates and validity stuff.

If there are any more tips, tricks or advice anyone might have please do pass them on, it is appreciated and incredibly helpful.

[NorthernLass]

If you get time, have a read through the “How to book the return with the 241” thread and jot down anything you think might be useful! It’s a long read but a goldmine of information.

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

MJShafik wrote:

So for example, if my voucher is triggered say 1st April does both the outgoing and returning flight BOTH have to take place before the following 1st of April or is it the outgoing flight only? Following this, if say the voucher for the outgoing flight is April 1st, does the return flight have to be within a certain window of time etc?

Be very careful with the expiry dates and make a careful note of it once the voucher hits your account.

Surely a voucher issued on say the 1st April 2025 would expire on 31st March 2026 and that is the date the outbound flight needs to take place by and the inbound booked by

[MJShafik]

@BA Flyer IHG Stayer

Oh yes, good points there. Thank you for reiterating and clarifying that. Really useful.

[MJShafik]

@NorthernLass do you happen to have a link to the “How to book the return with the 241” thread?

@BA Flyer IHG Stayer Ah yes, I had not considered that. Good observation, thank you 🙂

[NorthernLass]

It’s at the bottom of the page, it’s updated quite regularly so tends to stay current.

[Heather2101]

From.the outbound flight is it before the expiry date or on, E.g. my companion vouchers expires on 26 March 2026, can I fly on that date or would it need to be before that date? Thanks

[NorthernLass]

You should be able to fly on that date, but it doesn’t give you much flexibility if you needed to cancel as it would expire at that point. In another week or so you should be able to make a dummy booking which will show you exactly what is the latest date you can book for your outbound leg.