Aeroplan has just announced that starting in April 2016, it will be possible to pay for an award ticket in full with aeroplan miles, including taxes.

Pay taxes and other surcharges with your Aeroplan miles

As of April 2016 (exact date not yet determined), it will be possible to use your Aeroplan miles to pay for taxes, fees and other surcharges (i.e.“carrier surcharges“) associated with your award ticket.

A“Pay for everything with miles” option will be offered once your flight is selected.

And this option will be available for both fixed mileage air awards (all Star Alliance carriers) and market rate air awards (Air Canada only).

Will it be beneficial?

That is the real question. We do not yet know the rate that will be applied to redeem your Aeroplan Miles for taxes.

I checked with Aeroplan, and the only answer I could get was that it would be a variable rate depending on the destination.

As you know, it is now possible to travel with little extra cost thanks to airlines that do not charge a carrier surcharge such as Swiss, United or Turkish Airlines.

Just as it is possible to find good prices in miles on market rate premiums. This Air Canada flight (non-stop) is available for 17,100 miles and $588 (due to Air Canada’s carrier surcharge).

This same “fixed mileage” award flight costs 60,000 miles and $588.

While on the same dates, airlines without carrier surcharges offer a flight (with stopovers) at 60,000 miles and $188.

Bottom Line

How will Aeroplan calculate the value of miles for these taxes? We’ll find out soon enough!

I just hope it will be an attractive rate, unlike the one that was charged in March 2015, during a pilot test: 1200 miles = $10, or 1 mile = $0.008.

For an economy class flight on Air Canada to Paris at the “fixed mileage” fare, the Aeroplan miles required would be incredibly high:

60,000 miles for the award ticket
70,560 miles for taxes ($588)
That’s 130,560 Aeroplan miles!

You might as well travel in business class on Swiss for “only 110,000 miles”!

The only solution for Aeroplan, in my humble opinion, to keep the operation attractive: the higher the taxes, the higher the value of the miles so that the customer can find his way (e.g.: 1 mile = $0.016)

Answer in 1 month when it will be implemented!