Qatar Airways offering 30% bonus for Citi and HSBC points transfers

If you’re sitting on a stash of Citi points or HSBC Reward Points, there’s a new transfer bonus on offer from Qatar Airways running between now and 31st May 2024, which means you can score 30% more Avios than usual when converting.

While this doesn’t match up to the airline’s 40% bonus offered back in June 2022, it still allows you to achieve great value Qatar Airways redemptions, like Business Class from Singapore to Europe for the equivalent of only 50,000 miles transferred from credit card points.

Oneworld awards like Cathay Pacific from Singapore to Bangkok in Business Class for the equivalent of 13,000 Citi Miles transferred are also possible with this deal, as is a partner redemption on Bangkok Airways from Singapore to Koh Samui for the equivalent of just 4,700 miles.

This follows the programme’s return to 2018 redemption levels, including the Qsuite from Singapore to Europe from 70,000 miles, with no fuel surcharges.

You can even now fly Finnair Business Class from Singapore to Helsinki using only 62,500 BA Avios points plus $87 in taxes, following a free 1:1 transfer from Qatar Avios, which during this deal requires a transfer of only 48,100 Citi Miles.

Unfortunately Qatar Privilege Club (QRPC) does have award surcharges of US$35 to US$70 per sector, which spoils the value slightly, but still makes it well worth considering, especially with a bonus like this running.

Better still, a recent reduction in Oneworld and partner award costs of up to 60% opens up a wide variety of great awards on other carriers, plus you can still switch your Avios across to British Airways 1:1 instantly and fee-free, for additional options you can search and redeem online.

30% bonus miles offer

For transfers made between 1st May 2024 and 31st May 2024, Qatar Airways will award:

• 30% bonus Avios for any transfer from selected bank and credit card partners, with no upper cap.

That means any transfer, the whole amount gets a 30% boost.

Here’s how it works:

Log in to the rewards account that you have with your bank.
Choose to convert your reward points into Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios.
Enjoy 30% bonus Avios credited to your Privilege Club account.

Note that bonus Avios will not be awarded instantly.

You may have to wait until 15th June 2024 before receiving the bonus miles as a separate transaction. The bonus will also not be reflected by your bank during the transfer process itself (Qatar Airways is giving you the bonus, not your bank).

That’s disappointing, since it will be no use to those hoping to use the bonus to jump on a redemption ticket in the coming weeks, or even one you have your eye on in the coming months (will it still be available in mid June?).

Full terms and conditions for the transfer bonus are available here.

Citi and HSBC to Qatar Privilege Club

Qatar Airways is partnering with no fewer than 18 banks around the world during this transfer bonus, but for those of us based in Singapore only Citi and HSBC are included.

Citi Miles, earned exclusively through the Citi PremierMiles card in Singapore, usually transfer into Qatar Privilege Club at a 1:1 ratio.

With this offer you’ll get 13,000 Qatar Avios for every 10,000 Citi Miles converted instead (1:1.3 ratio).

Transfer Ratio Citi Miles    QR Avios 10,000 : 10,000 10,000 : 13,000

Citi ThankYou Points (TYPs), earned through cards like the Citi Prestige and Citi Rewards, usually transfer into QRPC at a 2.5:1 ratio.

With this offer you’ll get 13,000 Qatar Avios for every 25,000 Citi TYPs converted instead (1.92:1 ratio), as shown below.

Transfer Ratio Citi ThankYou Points    QR Avios 25,000 : 10,000 25,000 : 13,000

Citi Miles transfer into Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles at a 1:1 ratio and Citi ThankYou Points at a 2.5:1 ratio, the same as the regular Qatar conversion rates, so this 30% bonus for Qatar it’s definitely worth considering if you think you’ll use Qatar (or BA) Avios in the near future.

With HSBC the proposition is a little different, as transfers to Qatar Airways are currently only available from the TravelOne card at a lousy 3.5:1 ratio.

With this offer you’ll get 13,000 Qatar Avios for every 35,000 HSBC Reward points converted instead (2.69:1 ratio), as shown below.

Transfer Ratio HSBC Reward Points    QR Avios 35,000 : 10,000 35,000 : 13,000

Since you can transfer from HSBC Reward points earned on the TravelOne card to British Airways Avios at a better 2.5:1 ratio year-round, then simply transfer those Avios straight to Qatar Airways Privilege Club 1:1 if you wish, there is no point in transferring from HSBC even with this 30% bonus in play.

HSBC is rolling our its full list of transfer partners to all its credit cards (e.g. the Revolution and Visa Infinite) from 28th May 2024, but the same issue applies – with the poor transfer ratio it’s still better to do a BA transfer at any time of year than take part in this promo.

QRPC applies award surcharges

When it shifted to using the Avios currency, Qatar Airways rather sneakily reintroduced a carrier-imposed booking fee on award redemptions, in addition to the taxes and fees normally payable, and of course in addition to the unchanged Qmiles (now Avios) redemption rates themselves.

Surcharges apply sector-by-sector and are applied at the rates shown below:

• Economy: US$35
• Business / First: US$70

The problem for most of our readers is that the sector-by-sector nature of the additional charge means paying at least twice for a redemption from Singapore (e.g. to Europe) and then twice again on the way back home if you’re also using Avios on Qatar for the return trip.

For a round-trip Business Class award (e.g. SIN-DOH-MAD-DOH-SIN) that’s potentially an additional US$280 (~S$380) cash outlay per person, compared to previous charges.

Very few people are merely going from Singapore to Doha and back, in which case the surcharge would only be applied once for a one-way award and twice for a round-trip.

Business Class to Europe from 54,000 miles

For our readers based in Singapore, one of the best value redemptions on Qatar Airways is to Europe and back in Business Class.

Here’s an example of how you can use this 30% bonus to fly from Singapore to Athens and some other cities in Business Class on Qatar Airways for just 54,000 Citi Miles + S$260 in taxes.

QRPC
Business Class redemptions from Singapore
(one-way)

Route
	QR Avios	Citi Miles (30% bonus)	KF Miles
Singapore Doha	50,000 +S$163	38,462 +S$163	n/a
Singapore Athens	70,000 +S$310	53,846 +S$310	n/a
Singapore London	75,000 +S$310	57,692 +S$310	103,500 +S$65
Singapore New York	95,000 +S$340	73,077 +S$340	111,500 +S$90*

* S$127 to S$161 if routing via FRA

As you can see, a transfer of just 54,000 Citi Miles to Qatar Privilege Club is enough to net you 70,000 Avios in the programme, including the bonus, enough to get you from Singapore to Athens via Doha in Qatar Airways Business Class with around S$260 in taxes and fees to pay.

That shorter Europe zone also includes destinations like Bucharest, Sofia and Mykonos.

For longer Europe flights like London and Paris, a transfer of 57,692 Citi Miles into QRPC will be enough to redeem in Business Class at the 75,000 Avios rate (usually 103,500 miles with KrisFlyer!).

Granted you can’t actually transfer 57,692 Citi Miles into QRPC, since the transfer blocks are in 10,000-mile denominations, but even assuming you have a zero Qatar balance right now – 60,000 miles is a great deal (giving you 78,000 Avios in QRPC after the bonus pays out, so you’ll have 3,000 Avios left over for future use).

Singapore – USA trips in Business Class don’t normally represent a huge saving using Avios on Qatar Airways versus KrisFlyer on SIA, but with this bonus running you’d only need to transfer 80,000 Citi Miles (73,077 in fact) for such a routing – a great deal compared to 111,500 miles under KrisFlyer.

While a transit in Doha is inconvenient, do remember that Qatar Airways is serving many cities in Europe and the USA which require a transit anyway when you fly with SIA – like Madrid or Washington.

Note: Do note that the rates above refer to off-peak pricing on Qatar Airways flights, which apply for around 70% of the year. The carrier now charges peak rates across some date ranges, which are around 20% higher. This does not apply to partner redemptions, only Qatar Airways ones.

Finnair Business Class to Europe for 48,100 miles

As we recently reported, Finnair has joined the Avios ecosystem this year and that means you can now tap amazing value 62,500 Avios + S$87 awards in Business Class from Singapore to Helsinki on board the carrier’s new Airbus A350 AirLounge Business Class product.

This is an incredibly attractive rate for a Singapore – Europe Business Class award redemption, and makes Finnair by far the cheapest award option from Singapore to Europe in this cabin.

Booking must currently be via the British Airways Avios (BAEC) portal, which means you’ll have to transfer your Avios points 1:1 from your QRPC account to your BAEC account to book this award, but that’s free, instant, and well worth doing in this case!

Qatar has slashed its Oneworld and partner award rates

Back in June we revealed that Qatar Airways Privilege Club had cut Avios award costs for redemptions on Oneworld and partner airlines by up to 60%, matching its chart with the British Airways one.

That now allows you to redeem good value short-haul redemptions on other Oneworld carriers and partners at the BA Avios rates, which are far better than the old Qatar Avios rates when used to redeem Oneworld flights directly.

Here are some examples of the good value partner redemptions you can now unlock with the programme’s revalued award chart by transferring Citi Miles (or Citi TYPs) to Qatar Avios with a 30% bonus.

QRPC
Business Class partner redemptions from Singapore
(one-way)

Route			Using KrisFlyer orAsia Miles
	QR Avios	Citi Miles (30% bonus)
Singapore Kuala Lumpur (MH)	12,500 +S$75	9,615 +S$75	21,000 +S$65
Singapore Bangkok (CX)	16,500 +S$67	12,692 +S$67	24,000 +S$67
Singapore Hong Kong (CX)	22,000 +S$65	16,923 +S$65	34,000 +S$65
Singapore Colombo (UL)	22,000 +S$167	16,823 +S$167	43,000 +S$65
Singapore Perth (QF)	38,750 +S$86	29,808 +S$86	40,500 +S$96
Singapore Sydney (QF)	62,000 +S$113	47,692 +S$113	68,500 +S$104
Singapore Sydney (BA)*	80,000 +S$474	61,538 +S$474
Singapore Tokyo (JL)	62,000 +S$283	47,692 +S$283	52,000 +S$65
Singapore London (QF)	108,250 +S$69	83,269 +S$69	103,500 +S$65
Singapore London (BA)*	87,500 +S$276	67,308 +S$276

* Based on off-peak travel dates. BA charges more Avios for travel on its own flights during peak periods.

These now include fuel-surcharge-free Cathay Pacific awards between Singapore and both Bangkok and Hong Kong, bookable online, as we recently covered in detail.

Remember that a Business Class award on these carriers is also your ticket to the famous “Oneworld lounge safari” at Changi Airport prior to departure, even when taking the short hop to KL on Malaysia Airlines.

Qatar’s Avios Economy Class pricing for Oneworld partners is also worth looking at here, with the following examples representing good value versus a KrisFlyer Saver Economy or Asia Miles award.

BA Avios via QRPC
Economy Class redemptions from Singapore
(one-way)

Route			Using KrisFlyer orAsia Miles
	QR Avios	Citi Miles (30% bonus)
Singapore Kuala Lumpur (MH)	6,000 +S$75	4,615 +S$75	8,500 +S$52
Singapore Koh Samui (PG)	6,000 +S$126	4,615 +S$126	10,000 +S$126
Singapore Colombo (UL)	11,000 +S$167	8,462 +S$167	20,000 +S$52
Singapore Perth (QF)	13,000 +S$86	10,000 +S$86	21,500 +S$76
Singapore Sydney (QF)	20,000 +S$113	15,385 +S$113	30,500 +S$84
Singapore Sydney (BA)*	25,000 +S$252	19,231 +S$252
Singapore Tokyo (JL)	20,750 +S$283	15,962 +S$283	27,000 +S$52
Singapore Helsinki (AY)	31,000 +S$52	23,846 +S$52	40,000 +S$52
Singapore London (QF)	35,000 +S$69	26,923 +S$69	42,000 +S$52
Singapore London (BA)*	40,000 +S$242	30,769 +S$242

* Based on off-peak travel dates. BA charges more Avios for travel on its own flights during peak periods.

This includes the cheapest option for redeeming miles from Singapore to Koh Samui, at the equivalent of just 4,615 miles transferred during this 30% bonus offer.

We’d definitely snag Singapore to Perth in Qantas Economy Class on a daytime A330 flight with the great 2-4-2 configuration – perfect for couples by the window – at 10,000 Citi Miles each way (Singapore Airlines wants more than double the number of KrisFlyer miles).

Virgin Australia flights from 4,700 Avios

As we reported only last week, Qatar Airways has now added partner Virgin Australia to its list of awards bookable online, which unlocks rates as low as 6,000 Avios points for domestic flights in Australia, like Sydney to Melbourne.

Under this 30% bonus deal, you can unlock those from as little as 4,700 Citi miles, while a transfer to BA Avios then unlocks the same low rates for Qantas domestic services too.

It also works for transfers to BA Avios

Since Qatar Airways shifted its frequent flyer currency into Avios, the loyalty points of the IAG Group in which the airline has a 25% stake, these frequent flyer points aren’t only good for redeeming only on the airline itself.

You can now easily link your British Airways Avios and Qatar Airways Avios accounts together (see this guide) and make unlimited instant transfers back and forth between the two.

This allows you to tap the same good value short-haul redemptions on other Oneworld carriers at via the BA Avios site, which allows online searching and booking for most partners.

Transferring resets the expiry clock

Since July 2020, Qatar’s Qmiles (now Avios) work on an activity-based expiry policy, meaning any earning or redemption will ‘reset the clock’ for all Avios in your account – keeping them alive for another 36 months (as with BA Avios).

That means any credit card points you transfer during this campaign will be valid for three years, even if your account is empty right now. Alternatively a transfer will not only top up any existing Avios, but then ensure your entire balance is good for another three years.

Do note that transfers between Qatar Avios and British Airways Avios do not reset the expiration clock (that would be too easy!).

Remember the lead time

One important condition for this promotion is that you won’t receive a 30% bonus for Qatar Avios credited to your account after 31st May 2024, even if the transfer from your bank was initiated before that date.

“The bonus Avios will not be awarded if the conversion transaction occurs outside the campaign period under any circumstances.”

Qatar Airways

It’s therefore vital to allow sufficient time between initiating the transfer at the bank side and the closing date of this offer.

Our recent conversions of Citi Miles in Singapore across to Qatar Privilege Club have seen the miles credit to the account between two to four days after initiating the transfer., but HSBC Reward points transfers should be instant.

Other bank transfer partners are included

If you have credit card points in banks outside Singapore, don’t forget this Qatar Privilege Club offer is open to a variety of partner banks.

Options here include Citi points accrued in Australia, Indonesia and the USA, or with HSBC in Hong Kong, for example.

For a full list of the banks included in this offer – click here.

Is Privilege Club trustworthy?

Here’s perhaps the biggest concern with this otherwise great deal.

Qatar Airways has previously devalued its Qmiles overnight, without notice, by a whopping 40% (and on some routes by 80%).

That has always led us to recommend that QRPC is not a frequent flyer programme to trust with a large miles balance in your account for too long.

We would only recommend transferring miles if you have a specific redemption in mind to book in the near future, even with this bonus rate on offer.

The ability to combine your Avios 1:1 with your British Airways account does hopefully provide some partial insurance here, since even if Qatar Airways devalues its own awards you should still be able to tap good value Avios redemptions in the region.

Qatar Privilege Club has a fantastic 30% bonus offer for those transferring Avios into the programme from partner bank reward points, which includes both Citi and HSBC in Singapore this time round, between now and 31st May 2024.

While that’s not as generous as 2022’s 40% bonus offer, there are still great value long-haul and regional awards available using Avios points, some of which we’ve outlined above.

These include Finnair Business Class awards to Europe for the equivalent of 48,100 miles and Cathay Pacific Business Class to Bangkok for the equivalent of 12,700 miles.

If you’re going to take advantage, build in a good lead time for the transfer to complete before the cutoff. Qatar’s terms are quite clear – if the base miles land in your account on or after 1st June – no bonus for you.

As always, we do advise you to have a redemption plan in mind before too long, given Qatar’s history of decimating its own redemption rates without notice.

Will you be transferring your Citi points into the Qatar Privilege Club Avios during this deal? If so, let us know which routes give you good value in the comments section below.

(Cover Photo: Airbus)