Marriott Bonvoy: Transfer points between accounts now available online!

Transfer of points possible online

Marriott already allowed its members to transfer points between them. But this required calling customer service and asking them to make the transfer.

Good news: this process is now a thing of the past!

No need to call Marriott from now on! The Bonvoy program has launched its points transfer tool that allows you to do it yourself online, whenever you want on its website. The tool is in English only for the moment.

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Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card

American Express Marriott Bonvoy

Annual fee: $120
Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$600Total$600Plus $100 of bonus paid after the first year, not counted in this total.Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.: $600
Welcome offerAfter $3,000 in 3 months: Up to 70,000 points

The Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card is the best credit card in Canada for free hotel nights.

New Cardmembers can earn up to 70,000 Marriott Bonvoy^® points with the current offer:

Earn up to 60,000 points after you spend $3,000 on your Card in your first 3 months of Cardmembership.
Plus, earn 10,000 points after you spend $500 on your Card in your 13th month of Cardmembership.

The annual fee is $120, and there is no annual fee on Additional Cards, so you can add a partner or a family member at no extra cost.

Every year after your first Card anniversary, you receive an Annual Free Night Award good for a redemption of up to 35,000 points at eligible hotels and resorts worldwide. At a valuation of 0.9 cents per Marriott Bonvoy point, that certificate is worth roughly $315, which on its own more than covers the $120 annual fee. That is the main reason to keep this Card year after year instead of cancelling it.

To get the most out of the certificate, aim it at a night that would otherwise price close to the 35,000 point ceiling.

The Card also gives you 15 Elite Night Credits each calendar year and automatic Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status. Those credits count toward the next Elite tier, so you begin every year 15 nights ahead of where you would otherwise start.

You move up to Gold Elite status automatically when you reach $30,000 in purchases on the Card in a year, or when you combine 10 qualifying paid nights within one calendar year with the 15 Elite Night Credits from your Card.

Marriott Bonvoy points are generally valued at 0.9 cents each. On that basis, the 70,000 point welcome offer is worth about $630, and an Annual Free Night Award used at its full 35,000 point ceiling is worth about $315.

Marriott Bonvoy points pull their weight on free nights rather than on gift cards or merchandise, which is why this Card should be judged on the hotel stays it produces.

You earn 5 points per dollar on eligible purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels and 2 points per dollar on all other purchases. Points can be redeemed for free nights with no blackout dates at more than 7,000 hotels around the world.

The Card carries a solid package of coverages: $500,000 travel accident insurance, flight delay, baggage delay, lost or stolen baggage and hotel or motel burglary at $500 each, car rental theft and damage up to $85,000 for rentals of up to 48 days, Purchase Protection for 90 days and a one year Extended Warranty.

Two things to plan around: the 2.5% foreign transaction fee on purchases made in a foreign currency, and the 21.99% purchase interest rate, which makes this a Card to pay in full every month. Like all American Express Canada Cards, no minimum income is published for this Card, and you can see whether you would be approved before you apply, with no impact on your credit score.

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Annual fee

Primary card$120

Additional card$0

Annual income required

Individual$0

Household$0

Conversion fees

2.5%

Earning rate

5xMarriott Bonvoy hotels
2xAll spending

Value

1st Year Value$1,110

2nd Year Value$312

Travel insurance

Delayed BaggageUp to $500

Lost BaggageUp to $500

Flight DelayUp to $500

Hotel BurglaryUp to $500

Travel AccidentUp to $500,000

Purchase protection

Purchase ProtectionIncluded

Extended Warranty+1 years

Auto Rental Collision (primary)Up to $85,000 / 48 days

Criterias for the transfer

However, certain criteria must be met:

A maximum of 100,000 points can be transferred to another member in a calendar year
A member can receive up to 500,000 points from other members during the same period.
Both accounts must have been open for at least 30 days if qualifying activity has occurred in them
If there is no qualifying activity, both accounts must be open for 90 days
If you transfer points to an inactive account, the points are transferred but cancelled.
Maximum of 6 transfer transactions per calendar year, with a maximum of 2 transfer transactions per month. A transaction is defined as a member giving or receiving transferred points.

If a member reaches the maximum annual limit of 6 transactions before reaching the maximum points limit (100,000) to be given or received, he or she will not be able to make any transactions until the following calendar year.

If the member reaches the monthly transaction limit, he/she will be able to make transactions in the following calendar month, unless he/she has also reached the annual transaction or points limit. So calculate your transfers carefully!

To complete the transfer, you must log into your Marriott Bonvoy account. Then, enter the recipient’s first and last name and account number.

You can transfer any amount of points between 1,000 points and 100,000 points.

Marriott Bonvoy: Transfer points between accounts now available online! - Marriott Transfert points

The advantage of such a transfer is that it combines the points of members of the same family (or group of friends) to facilitate reservations when they travel together.

The process is now simpler and faster. You have access to all the points in one account, so you can book more nights or better hotels (kind of like the Aeroplan family sharing principle!).

It’s a good idea to pool the points in the account of the person with the highest Elite status to get the associated benefits.

Transferring points is also convenient if a member’s points are about to expire, and that person does not plan to use them soon.

Bottom Line

This is news the community has been waiting for! This is a significant improvement and makes the process much faster.

Will you use this tool to transfer your points?