Air Canada Embarq: A Free Business Travel Program for Canadian SMBs
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Air Canada is officially launching Air Canada Embarq, a self-serve platform that lets Canadian small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and non-profits manage their business travel in one place. Enrolment is free and there is no minimum spend. Until December 30, 2026, employees earn 50% more Aeroplan points on eligible business flights, and until December 10 the company gets discounts of up to 5% on the base fare.
Milesopedia is enrolled in Embarq: below you'll see the portal the way a business sees it, the details Air Canada shared, and what changes compared with the SMB programs offered since 2023. We also walk you through the fine print and how to stack it all with an Aeroplan business card.
Air Canada Embarq at a glance
- Who it's for: businesses and non-profits that operate in Canada and are registered here for tax purposes, with no existing corporate agreement with Air Canada
- Cost: free, no minimum spend
- Booking: on aircanada.com, with the traveller's Aeroplan account and the "Business travel" option
- For the company: a central portal, reports, booking on behalf of employees, 2% to 5% off the base fare on eligible fares
- For the traveller: 1.5X the Aeroplan points (1X base + 0.5X bonus) on eligible flights flown, Economy Basic excluded
- Offer period: discounts from September 10 to December 10, 2026, and bonus points from September 10 to December 30, 2026, periods Air Canada may extend
- Enrolment: aircanada.com/embarq
How Air Canada Embarq works
Embarq is the self-serve tier of Air Canada for Business, which now has three levels:
- Air Canada Embarq: self-serve, for SMBs and non-profits
- Air Canada Access: structured contracts with an account manager, for businesses in Canada and the United States
- Air Canada Access+: tailored agreements for organizations with international needs
An authorized employee enrols the company by linking their Aeroplan number to the Embarq account. That person becomes the primary travel manager and can then invite colleagues. The portal has several roles:
- Travel manager (primary or not): manages the company account and can book for others
- Travel arranger: books on behalf of travellers, without managing the account
- Eligible traveller: an enrolled employee or contractor who books their own business trips
- Guest traveller: someone who isn't enrolled (a consultant, for example) for whom the company books a business trip
Travellers keep booking on aircanada.com. They sign in to their Aeroplan account and select "Business travel": the flight is then assigned to the company. In the portal, the manager sees current and upcoming trips on an interactive map and can download the booking list to track spending.
Air Canada built the technology with consulting firm ZS and Traverse, powered by ARC. Traverse is a business travel booking platform (formerly nuTravel) majority-owned by Airlines Reporting Corporation, the clearinghouse for transactions between airlines and travel agencies in the United States.
Our look inside the Embarq portal
Milesopedia is enrolled in Embarq, and the use case speaks to us directly: our team is spread across Canada (Milesopedia.com), France (Milesopedia.fr) and the United States (Milesopedia.us), and team meetings and events keep us travelling. Being able to book, track and find all those trips in one place makes organizing much simpler. The portal is clean and takes a few minutes to learn. Here's what you'll find:
- People: the list of travellers with their role and team, pending invitations, guest traveller profiles and a list export
- Teams: groups to organize reports and traveller tracking, with a default team
- Trips: a map to follow travellers in real time, with date filters
- Reports: two views, by trip and by flight segment, exportable as a CSV file for your accounting
- Settings: company details and trusted email domains
One point to note: according to the portal, travellers need an email address tied to one of the company's trusted domains. A contractor who uses a personal address, or one from their own business, may have to go through a guest traveller profile.
Another limit to know for an international team like ours: the terms exclude flights from Europe, the Middle East, India or Africa to Canada from both the discounts and the bonus points, as well as flights from the United States to those regions. A colleague based in Paris who books Paris–Montreal gets neither a discount nor a bonus. In the other direction, Montreal–Paris is eligible.
What Air Canada clarified
At Air Canada's press briefing on Embarq, Alexandre Lefèvre, Vice President, Network Planning and Global Sales, shared several details that matter for your business:
- The target: companies with 50 employees or fewer. There is no minimum or maximum number of employees, but Air Canada reserves other solutions (Access and Access+) for larger organizations.
- Six months of interviews with SMBs: the Canadian businesses Air Canada met mainly asked for more control, more visibility on travel spending and respect for their travel policy.
- Travel arrangers at the heart of the tool: often an executive assistant or a team member, they can book, change and cancel their colleagues' flights.
- Company policy comes first: the company sets the allowed fares and cabins, and an employee can't book above them, even by paying the difference themselves. That isn't planned for now, but Air Canada doesn't rule it out. Groups let you grant different access, for example to senior management.
- The bonus adds to existing perks: the 1.5X stacks with what the traveller already gets, for example through Aeroplan Elite Status. Under the terms, however, it doesn't multiply the status bonus.
- One profile, business and leisure: Embarq is built into Air Canada's ecosystem, which recognizes the traveller as one person whether they fly for work or for fun. Future Air Canada features, including AI, will also come to Embarq, with nothing specific announced yet.
- A soft launch: a few companies enrolled in the previous program have been testing the platform in real conditions for about three weeks, which explains why the Embarq pages were online before the announcement.
- Aeroplan rewards: Air Canada hasn't yet said whether you'll be able to book tickets paid with points for your employees through Embarq.
Discounts for the company: up to 5%
The press release talks about "savings" without putting a number on them. The program terms are more specific: during the offer period, Embarq bookings get a discount on the base fare, before taxes, fees and surcharges. The discount depends on the fare, and Economy Basic is excluded.
| Fare | Flights within North America | Canada to Europe, Africa, the Middle East, India and other international flights (round trip / one way) |
|---|---|---|
| Business Class (Standard, Latitude) | 5% | $120 / $60 |
| Premium Economy (Standard, Latitude) | 5% | $80 / $40 |
| Economy Flex, Comfort and Latitude | 5% | $50 / $25 |
| Economy Standard | 2% | $16 / $8 |
| Economy Basic | No discount | No discount |
For an SMB, the key number is the 2% on Economy Standard, often the most-booked fare for short business trips. The full 5% only applies to flexible fares (Flex, Comfort, Latitude), Premium Economy and Business Class. Discounts don't apply to Flight Passes or group bookings.
What employees earn: 1.5X Aeroplan points
Eligible travellers earn 1.5X the Aeroplan points on eligible flights booked through Embarq: the usual base points (1X) plus a bonus equal to half of those points (0.5X). Base points are calculated on the base fare and carrier surcharges, in Canadian dollars, excluding taxes and fees.
Air Canada gives its own example of a flight whose base fare and surcharges total $600: 600 base points, to which Embarq adds a 300-point bonus, for 900 points in total.
A few important limits from the terms:
- Economy Basic is excluded from the bonus
- Only flights operated by Air Canada (including Air Canada Express and Air Canada Rouge) qualify: no codeshare or partner flights, no flights bought through Air Canada Vacations, no special fares
- The bonus only multiplies base points: it doesn't apply to the Aeroplan Elite multiplier or other promotions
- Bonus points don't count as Status Qualifying Credits (SQC) or toward lifetime status
- Points are credited within 4 weeks after travel, and no points are awarded if the booking is cancelled or refunded
- Group bookings are excluded, as are unused Flight Pass credits at the time the company migrates to Embarq
The bonus stacks with the company discounts. The points go to the traveller's personal Aeroplan account, not the company's.
What Air Canada offered SMBs before
Embarq didn't come out of nowhere. It's the third version of Air Canada's SMB offer in three years.
The former Air Canada for Business (until 2025). For years, Air Canada offered businesses a tiered program based on annual spending. The more a company spent, the more discounts and perks it got: preferred seats, Maple Leaf Lounge passes, Maple Leaf Club memberships and upgrade credits for travellers. Air Canada froze enrolments and tiers on October 3, 2023. Rewards had to be claimed by March 31, 2024, and the booking platform closed on January 31, 2025. The 1.5% cash back program on American Express Aeroplan Corporate cards ended on December 31, 2024.
The 2025 SMB program. In February 2025, Air Canada introduced an "all-new Air Canada for Business" for SMBs, free and open to anyone with an Aeroplan account and a business email address. It already offered:
- 1.5X Aeroplan points for travellers
- up to 5% off flexible fares
- 5,000 Status Qualifying Miles for every $50,000 of travel flown, which the company could keep or share with its travellers
What Embarq changes. The 1.5X bonus and discounts of up to 5% carry over almost unchanged. The new features are mostly in the tool: roles and permissions, booking for guest travellers, a trip map and booking exports, and explicit access for contractors and non-profits. On the other hand, the status bonus for the company is gone from Embarq's benefits, and the points bonus itself doesn't count toward SQC.
Stacking Embarq with an Aeroplan business card
Embarq rewards the flight. The credit card the company pays with adds a second layer of points. The three Aeroplan business cards available in Canada offer a boosted rate on eligible purchases made directly with Air Canada:
- American Express Aeroplan Business Reserve Card: 3 Aeroplan points per dollar
- CIBC Aeroplan Visa Business Card: 2 Aeroplan points per dollar
- TD Aeroplan Visa Business Card: 2 Aeroplan points per dollar
Let's take Air Canada's example again, with a $600 ticket paid with the American Express Aeroplan Business Reserve Card:
- Flight points with Embarq: 900 points in the traveller's account (600 base + 300 bonus)
- Card points: 1,800 points for the cardholder (3 points per dollar)
- Total: 2,700 points for a single ticket, split between two accounts
To compare every option, see our ranking of the best business credit cards and our review of the American Express Aeroplan Business Reserve Card.
| Credit card | Annual fee | Welcome offer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| $599 | |||
| $0 | |||
| $0 |
Who is eligible
Under the terms, the business or non-profit must operate in Canada or have an office here and be registered in Canada for tax purposes. Excluded:
- organizations that already have a corporate agreement with Air Canada
- travel agencies, wholesalers and tour operators
- bookings made by an agency on the company's behalf
On the traveller side, you must be an employee or contractor of the company, travel for business with expenses paid directly by the company, be an Aeroplan member and be approved by Air Canada. Each booking is limited to one passenger. Good to know: the traveller's booking data (flights, dates, fare class) is shared with the company for reporting. Finally, a company account can be deactivated without notice after 12 months without at least two tracked trips.
Good news for the self-employed: Air Canada says there is no minimum number of employees. A one-person business can enrol, as long as it meets the other criteria. If that's you, our guide to business credit cards for the self-employed explains how to get a business card with no minimum income required.
What we don't know yet
Four questions remain open for your business:
- Aeroplan rewards: can you book tickets paid with points for your employees through Embarq and see them in the reports?
- After the end of 2026: will the discounts and the 1.5X bonus be renewed or changed?
- Migration of 2025 SMB program members: is it automatic?
- The status bonus for the company: is it gone for good?
Air Canada hasn't clarified these points yet.
Our take
If your employees fly Air Canada, enrolling your business in Embarq is a no-brainer: it's free, there's no threshold, and every traveller earns 50% more points by booking exactly as before. The portal also brings real visibility on travel spending, something many small businesses have been missing since the old Air Canada for Business closed.
Still, keep expectations in check. Embarq largely repeats the 2025 SMB program, drops the status bonus for the company and caps the discount at 2% on Economy Standard. Under the current terms, the discounts end on December 10, 2026 and the bonus points on December 30, 2026. And the platform is built first for spend control: a points-savvy employee who'd like to pay the difference for a Flex fare or a higher cabin can't if company policy doesn't allow it. For a business owner, the best return comes from combining Embarq with an Aeroplan business card.
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Is Air Canada Embarq free?
Yes. Enrolling in Air Canada Embarq is free and there is no minimum spend. The company enrols through an authorized employee, who links their Aeroplan number to the account.
What size of business is Air Canada Embarq for?
According to Air Canada, Embarq mainly targets companies with 50 employees or fewer. There is no minimum or maximum number of employees. Larger organizations have access to other solutions, Air Canada Access and Access+.
How many Aeroplan points does a flight booked with Embarq earn?
The traveller earns 1.5X the Aeroplan points: the usual base points plus a 50% bonus. In Air Canada's example, a flight whose base fare and surcharges total $600 earns 900 points instead of 600. Economy Basic is excluded and only flights operated by Air Canada qualify for the bonus.
Do Embarq bonus points count toward Aeroplan Elite Status?
No. Under the offer terms, bonus points aren't Status Qualifying Credits (SQC) and don't count toward lifetime status. The bonus adds to the perks you already get, but it doesn't multiply the Elite Status bonus.
What discount does a company get with Embarq?
Up to 5% off the base fare on flights within North America for Flex, Comfort, Latitude, Premium Economy and Business Class fares, and 2% on Economy Standard. To Europe and other eligible international destinations, the discount is a fixed amount, from 8 to 120 Canadian dollars. Economy Basic gets no discount.
Until when are Embarq's discounts and bonus points available?
Under the terms published by Air Canada, the discounts apply to bookings made from September 10 to December 10, 2026, and the 1.5X bonus from September 10 to December 30, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern. Air Canada may extend these periods.
Can an employee pay the difference for a better fare or a higher cabin?
Not for now. The company sets the allowed fares and cabins in Embarq, and an employee can't book above them, even by paying the difference themselves. Air Canada said this isn't planned for now, without ruling it out for the future.
Can you book Aeroplan rewards (tickets paid with points) through Embarq?
Air Canada hasn't said yet. Under the terms, the discounts and the 1.5X bonus only apply to fares paid in cash, and a reward ticket doesn't earn base points. It remains to be seen whether a points booking can go through Embarq and show up in the company's reports.
Can a self-employed person use Air Canada Embarq?
Yes. Air Canada says there is no minimum number of employees: a one-person business can enrol, as long as it operates in Canada and is registered here for tax purposes.
My company already has a corporate agreement with Air Canada. Can it join Embarq?
No. Organizations that already have a corporate agreement with Air Canada are excluded from Embarq. They fall under the Air Canada Access or Access+ programs.
Sources: Air Canada press release of October 8, 2026; Air Canada press briefing with Alexandre Lefèvre; Air Canada Embarq program terms, program discount terms and 1.5X Aeroplan points offer terms on aircanada.com; Aeroplan announcement of February 2025; former Air Canada for Business transition page.
