Mileage Transfer between Qatar Privilege Club and BA Executive Club at 1:1 Rate now Possible

Almost exactly a month ago, Qatar Airways announced that it would switch the currency of its frequent flyer program to Avios. The time has come: QMiles are now called Avios and all existing miles in the Qatar Privilege Club have been converted 1:1.

But more than just the name is changing. The change has brought Qatar and British Airways much closer together, as Avios can now be transferred 1:1 between the associated frequent flyer programs.

This means:

• For every 1 Avios at the QR Privilege Club, you will receive 1 Avios at the BA Executive Club
• For every 1 Avios at the BA Executive Club, you will receive 1 Avios at the QR Privilege Club

Currently, there are apparently no restrictions as far as the transfer is concerned. New accounts can also move Avios back and forth as they wish, as long as the personal data are identical.

How It’s Done

You can easily initiate the linking of the accounts via the Qatar Airways website. As soon as you log into your existing account there, a corresponding pop-up should appear:

You will then be prompted to log in to the BA website with your username and password. When this is done, the following success message appears:

Now you can see how many Avios you have in both frequent flyer programs in the dashboard:

There is only one step left – transferring the miles. You will find the corresponding button under your current mileage. With a click on it, you can select the number of miles to be transferred. To move Avios from Qatar to BA, click on the double arrow (in the middle):

That’s it. The miles are credited immediately and are available on the desired account. Here is an excerpt from the BA website:

It should then also be possible to transfer the Avios to Iberia Plus. This is also possible at a 1:1 rate and is of particular interest for cheap award flights in Iberia’s business class.

Price Adjustments For Award Flights

As part of the transition, both Qatar Airways and British Airways have revised their redemption tables. Specifically, this means:

• At the BA Executive Club, Qatar award flights now cost the same as before in the QR Privilege Club
• At the QR Privilege Club, BA award flights now cost the same as previously in the BA Executive Club

Flights were sometimes more expensive, sometimes cheaper. However, the taxes and fees between the programs sometimes differ significantly. Also, QR flights connecting with British Airways are more expensive.

Cover Picture: © Qatar Airways