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Deciding on a travel rewards credit card is a big decision, even if you’ve got a few. Forms aren’t fun and neither is crunching numbers. But some decisions can actually be pretty basic, based on one simple answers.

For British Airways and Oneworld flyers, the British Airways Visa Signature Card in the USA has one incredibly effective perk, which offers the simplest way to decide if the card is right for you, without even factoring in the many other useful perks.

BA Visa Signature Card: 10% Off British Airways Flights

Anyone who likes saving 10% on every British Airways ticket? It wouldn’t be hard for that kind of savings to outnumber the annual fee! The simplest and most effective perk of the British Airways Visa Signature Card is found right here.

All cardmembers are able to use a promo code when paying with the card, which takes 10% off all round trip or open jaw airfare. If you are a Oneworld alliance loyalist, flying British Airways or American Airlines across the pond, this is a huge uncapped perk which can save thousands each year.

a woman sitting in a chair with a drink in her hand

Not bad, for a rewards card with just a $95 annual fee and up to 100,000 bonus points as a welcome. And if you do spend heavily on the card, you can also earn a companion voucher after spending $30,000 total within 12 months, which allows a second person to fly for just the cost of taxes and fees when you use Avios points.

There’s also up to $600 in statement credits each year to help offset BA’s pesky fees on reward flights. That’s massively significant, if you use Avios Points for trips! It takes any unpleasantness out of redeeming points, frankly.

Crunching The Numbers Is Easy

The British Airways Visa Signature Card carries a $95 annual fee, which is not waived. The simplest way to look at it, is that you need to get $95 or more of value out of the card to justify getting it, or keeping it. Ideally, a lot more.

If you spend just $1000 on British Airways flights starting from the USA in a year, you’d be able to use your 10% discount to save $100 right away, or more.

If you’re traveling with family, where you might spend many $1000’s on tickets in a year, that 10% goes even further, and isn’t capped. It could represent thousands saved on airfare, for that same $95 annual fee.

You also earn 5x points on flights booked with BA, which means a $1000 ticket earns 5,000 Avios back. That’s worth nearly a one way short haul flight in itself, for every $1k you spend! Solid return.

If, from those flights, or just from your card spending spending, you choose to book a reward flight with Avios, as mentioned, you’ve got $600 in fee credits to burn. You can save $100 on the taxes and fees from each economy or premium economy booking on BA flights using Avios, and $200 on business class or first class points redemptions.

You can use this perk up to 3x per year for up to $600 back in statement credits. So yeah, that $95 a year card can bring truly substantial savings, whether you’re using cash, or points. A 10% discount on flight purchases is huge, and either $100 or $200 off taxes and fees when using points, up to 3x per year is huge too.

an airplane wing with clouds in the background

Travel Together Sweetens The Deal

Right now, if you spend $30,000 you earn a ‘Travel Together’ voucher, which allows a second person to fly for no points, when you use Avios to book your ticket. Taxes and fees aren’t covered, but the fee credits mentioned above definitely help make that less of an issue.

Typically, the best way to use the travel together is to book a first class ticket using Avios, since you’re gaining the most exceptional value without having to use any miles for someone to join you.

So Who Should Get The BA Card?

Simple answers are the best, and this card allows that.

Really, the card can make a lot of sense for anyone who spends more than $1000 USD on British Airways each year, or uses miles to go from the USA to any destination BA flies, on British airways. If either, or both apply – it could absolutely be worth applying.

If travel with British Airways and it’s Oneworld partners is part of your life and you want to save each and every time, this is one of the simplest ways to do so, while also bolstering your points balance. Check out the British Airways Visa Signature Card offer.

Gilbert Ott is an ever curious traveler and one of the world's leading travel experts. His adventures take him all over the globe, often spanning over 200,000 miles a year and his travel exploits are regularly...

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4 Comments

  1. Thanks as always for an interesting email – can you clarify for me if this offer applies to UK citizens or only US ones. Does it only cover flights originating in the US?

    1. Hey, this one is specifically a US credit card issued to US residents or long term visa holders, for flights originating the USA. Amex has the BA relationship in the UK. Cheers, Gilbert

  2. As opposed to what? This is the deal with this card alway at all times everywhere right? Has anything changed?

    1. Um, it usually offers a 50,000 bonus, tops. 100,000 is an exception which comes but a couple times a year. Second, presuming that everyone on earth knows of a value proposition of a card, is not a very valuable way to operate.

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