Chase Aeroplan Co-Branded Credit Card: 100,000-Point Sign-Up Bonus

The sign-up bonus on the Air Canada co-branded card is now 100,000 points. The first half only requires $4,000 in spending, while the later $25,000 spending requirement is pretty steep, so you can choose whether to complete it. Air Canada is pretty good for redeeming UA and ANA flights, and it is especially strong for infant tickets. After the card refresh, you can earn Air Canada elite status through spending, and it is also generous with checked bags. Another feature of this card is that you can redeem Air Canada points as travel purchases at a value of 1.25 cents per point, which is great for people who have points they cannot seem to use.

• Aeroplan application link

This card’s sign-up bonus is pretty good, and we have also added it to our credit card sign-up bonus rankings!

• Best U.S. Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses Rankings (Personal Cards)

Chase Aeroplan Air Canada Co-Branded Credit Card Overview

Benefit Analysis

• Monthly spending bonus: Earn an extra 500 points for every $2,000 spent, up to 1,500 points per month. That is effectively an extra 0.25x
• Air Canada-related benefits:
  • You get Aeroplan 25,000 status for one year just for opening the card
  • Spend $15,000 per year to keep Aeroplan 25,000 status; spend $50,000 per year to get a one-tier status bump, up to Air Canada 35,000 status
  • Free first checked bag, usable for up to 8 companions, on AC-operated flights only
  • Enjoy Air Canada preferred pricing, which gives some discount on award tickets
• Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, and NEXUS application fee reimbursement: up to $100 every four years

Points Certificate (No Longer Available)

• Using the points certificate: The flight rewards you get for opening the card are worth 50,000 points, similar to a free night. It is a certificate that can be used for flights worth up to 50,000 points. It can only be used for a one-person booking and is not limited by cabin class. If you book a 65,000-point flight, you need to make up the extra 15,000 points; if you book a 45,000-point flight, the extra value is not refunded. The certificate does not expire, but it will automatically expire if you close the card. The certificate stays in your own account and cannot be transferred, but you can use it to book for someone else

Pay Yourself Back Feature

How it works

The card now offers a Pay Yourself Back-like feature, and you can use Air Canada points to reimburse travel purchases. The redemption rate is 1.25 cents per point, which means 10,000 points can reimburse $125 in travel spending. Eligible travel spending includes airfare, hotels, timeshares, car rentals, third-party travel agencies, cruises, trains, buses, taxis, tolls, parking, and more.

Merchants in this category include airlines, hotels, motels, timeshares, car rental agencies, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites, campgrounds and operators of passenger trains, buses, taxis, limousines, ferries, toll bridges and highways, and parking lots and garages. Some merchants that provide transportation and travel-related services are not included in this category; for example, real estate agents, educational merchants arranging travel, in-flight goods and services, on-board cruise line goods and services, sightseeing activities, excursions, tourist attractions, RV and boat rentals, merchants within hotels and airports, public campgrounds and merchants that rent vehicles for the purpose of hauling. Purchases from gift card merchants or merchants that sell points or miles will not qualify in the travel category.

The redemption feature has the following characteristics:

• Under the new terms, only points from Aeroplan, the Chase Aeroplan Card, and Chase UR can be used for this feature (in theory, points transferred to AC from other programs cannot be used)
• The redemption cap for 2025 is 200,000 (according to FM, I could not find this in the terms)

Only Aeroplan Points earned under the Aeroplan Program, the Chase Aeroplan Card, and Chase Ultimate Rewards® can be used for Chase Pay Yourself Back. Points converted from other programs are not eligible. For information about Chase rewards categories, see chase.com/RewardsCategoryFAQsOpens in a new window. If Aeroplan determines, in its sole discretion based on its data, that you have redeemed ineligible Aeroplan Points, Aeroplan reserves the right to reverse your point redemption or freeze your Aeroplan Membership account.

This feature is especially noteworthy for the following reasons:

• Air Canada points can suddenly be cashed out directly; as long as you have travel spending, you can burn through a lot of AC points
• 【Officially not allowed, and your account could be locked】Air Canada has many transfer partners, such as AMEX, Chase, and Capital One, all at a 1:1 transfer ratio; Marriott is 3:1.25. If you hold this card, you can at least redeem those bank points at a floor value of 1.25 cents per point.
• There are extra bonus offers for transferring bank points to AC points, for example:
  • UR to AC 10% bonus: cardholders can currently see this offer. If you have a card that can transfer UR points to Aeroplan points (for example, Sapphire Preferred/Reserve, the Ink family, etc.), transferring 50,000 points or more at once earns an extra 10% bonus, effectively improving the transfer ratio to 1:1.1. The annual bonus cap is 25,000.
  • UR to AC extra bonus: this appeared in 2024 and offered a 20% bonus. It can also stack with the 10% bonus from the AC card, for a total bonus of 30%.
  • 【Officially not allowed, and your account could be locked】MR to AC 30% bonus: there have been several such promotions before. If you stack the 30% bonus with the 1.25 cents-per-point redemption value, that is equivalent to cashing out MR at 1.625 cents per point
  • 【Officially not allowed, and your account could be locked】Marriott to AC bonus: there have been extra bonuses before, usually a few times a year

According to FM, the Pay Yourself Back (PYB) cap on this card in 2025 is 200,000 points. At 1.25 cents per point, that works out to $2,500 in travel-related spending. Note that, under the new terms, only points from Aeroplan, the Chase Aeroplan Card, and Chase UR can be used for this feature (in theory, points transferred to AC from other programs cannot be used, so be aware of the risk). After thinking about it, the best use is probably to wait until UR to AC transfers have a 20%+10% bonus and then redeem them all, which would give you a value of 1.25*1.3 = 1.625 cents per point. That is a little better than redeeming UR directly for flights at 1.5 cents per point.

Only Aeroplan Points earned under the Aeroplan Program, the Chase Aeroplan Card, and Chase Ultimate Rewards® can be used for Chase Pay Yourself Back. Points converted from other programs are not eligible. For information about Chase rewards categories, see chase.com/RewardsCategoryFAQsOpens in a new window. If Aeroplan determines, in its sole discretion based on its data, that you have redeemed ineligible Aeroplan Points, Aeroplan reserves the right to reverse your point redemption or freeze your Aeroplan Membership account.

Risk warning

I have recently seen a few cases of cards being shut down for overusing the unlimited Pay Yourself Back feature in 2023, so if you are planning to go all in, be careful. Personally, I think next year the redemption cap will be 50,000 points, and staying within that range should definitely be fine. Going higher than that should probably stay under 100,000 to be on the safe side. Also, this PYB feature is mainly meant to give the co-branded card another way to use AC points. If you transfer points from AMEX, Marriott, and others into AC points, that does go somewhat against the original design. So if you move in a lot of points and then redeem them, be extra careful.

Previously shut-down accounts have also been seen restored, and those accounts received a notice. The general idea is that they have the right to close accounts, and only points from AC, the Chase Aeroplan co-branded card, and Chase UR can be used for Pay Yourself Back. Points from other sources (for example MR, Marriott, etc.) cannot be used with this feature. In theory, once points enter AC, Chase can't tell where they came from, so there's no need to worry too much. Personally, I think it's fine as long as the amounts aren't too large. If you're going to go over 50,000 or 100,000, it's better to follow Chase's guidance.

Subject: Update regarding your recent Aeroplan Points ConversionYou have recently converted a significant number of points from a third party rewards program into the Aeroplan® Program and then subsequently redeemed those Aeroplan Points for Pay Yourself Back® on your Chase Aeroplan® Card. Section 6 of the Aeroplan Terms and Conditions provides that “Aeroplan reserves the right, at any time, to impose limitations on the ability of a Member to engage in conversions from a Conversion Program into Aeroplan Points and on the use of such Aeroplan Points upon conversion.”Only Aeroplan Points earned under the Aeroplan Program, the Chase Aeroplan Card, and Chase Ultimate Rewards can be used for Chase Pay Yourself Back. All other conversion programs are not allowed to be converted into Aeroplan Points for use with the Chase Pay Yourself Back program.

Reader Darren also shared that his Aeroplan account was locked. He transferred 260,000 points from Membership to Aeroplan, planning to use them for PYB, but after the redemption went through, the account was locked. So AC points could only be transferred in but not used (he couldn't issue award tickets or use PYB either). A few days ago he also received the email above, and only then did the AC account return to normal. During that time, he contacted Chase, and Chase's final reply was that AC had requested the review, so everything would depend on the outcome of that review, and Chase couldn't provide a solution.

Hotel benefits

Aeroplan has now launched a perk for co-branded credit cards: book hotels with AC points, and for every three nights booked, you get one night free. From the wording, it seems the three nights can be booked separately and don't have to be consecutive. The promotion ends on December 31, 2025, which extends it by another year

• Promotion link

• HotelSaver overview

My take

As a new card, I don't think it's great that the sign-up bonus is not points but a much more restrictive points voucher. Even though the voucher doesn't expire, you still have to keep the card, so you can't just grab the bonus and run. From a benefits standpoint, it's still pretty good: there is 3x on groceries and dining, extra monthly spending bonuses, and annual spending can also earn AC elite status. If you fly AC regularly, you may want to keep it.

How to apply:

• Recently, there have been signs that the Chase 5/24 rule has loosened a bit. I personally think this card is very likely not subject to 5/24, so you can decide for yourself whether to take a shot
• This card requires a credit limit of at least $5,000, so if your income is too low or your credit history is too short, you may not be approved
• This is an Air Canada co-branded credit card. When applying, you can enter your Aeroplan membership number; if you leave it blank, the system will automatically assign you a new one

Chase Credit Card Application Guide

• Chase application status check link (login required). Or call: 888-338-2586
• The 5/24 rule: if you have opened more than 5 new cards in the past 2 years (including cards from other banks), you will not be approved for a new Chase card
• You can be approved for at most two Chase credit cards within every 30 days
• If you have received the welcome bonus on this card within the past 24 months (48 months for the Sapphire family), your application will be automatically denied
• You can call the reconsideration line (800-453-9719) to expedite card approval or request a review of a denied application.
• Having a Chase Checking account can help with getting approved for a credit card
• More on applying for Chase credit cards

Application link: