Sign Up Bonus
The best offer for the card is:
- Earn 20,000 Aeroplan Points after your first purchase,
- Earn 40,000 Aeroplan Points after spending $10,000 within the first 180 days of account opening.
- Earn 25,000 Aeroplan Points after spending $15,000 within the first 12 months of account opening and after the second annual fees have been paid.
- Earn 12,500 to 20,000 Aeroplan Points for spending $10,000 within the first 180 days of account opening.
- Earn 6,250 to 10,000 Aeroplan Points for spending an additional $5,000 within the first 12 months of account opening.
In the first 180 days of account opening, you can earn at least 82,500 to 90,000 Aeroplan Points.
Within the first year of account opening, after paying the second annual fee, you can earn 103,750 Aeroplan Points.
Benefits
The annual credit benefits of holding the credit card are:
- $100 NEXUS statement credit every 4 years.
The lounge benefits of holding the credit card are:
- Complimentary Visa Airport Companion Program by Dragonpass with six lounge visits each year.
- Maple Leaf Lounge access located in Canada and United States when departing on an Air Canada or Star Alliance member flight for yourself and one additional companion.
The insurance benefit of holding the credit card are:
- Travel Medical Insurance
- Trip Cancellation Insurance
- Trip Interruption Insurance
- Flight Delay Insurance
- Baggage Delay Insurance
- Hotel Burglary Insurance
- Lost or Stolen Baggage Insurance
- $500,000 Travel Accident Insurance
- Car Rental Insurance
- Travel Emergency Assistance
- Purchase Protection Plan
- Mobile Device Insurance
The car rental benefits of holding the credit card are:
- Avis President’s Club membership
The following travel benefits apply for yourself only:
- Earn 1,000 Status Qualifying Miles (SQM) for every $5,000 in eligible net purchases charged to your credit card,
- Earn 1 Status Qualifying Segment (SQS) for every $5,000 in eligible net purchases charged to your credit card,
- Roll over of up to 200,000 unused Status Qualifying Miles when you have qualified for Air Canada Elite Status by meeting the Status Qualifying Dollar requirement and either the SQM or SQS requirement,
- Roll over of up to 50 eUpgrade credits received in the prior status year.
The following travel benefits of holding the credit card are available on Air Canada for yourself and 8 other passengers on the same reservation:
- Priority Airport Check-In
- Priority Boarding (Zone 2)
- Priority Baggage Handling
- Priority Airport Standby
- Free first checked bag up to 23kg or 50lbs
The travel benefits of holding the credit card are:
- Priority security lane at international and domestic security checkpoints at Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Ottawa
- Up to 20% discount off parking at Vancouver, Montreal and Ottawa
- Priority airport taxi and limo lane at Vancouver
- Dedicated parking spots in Vancouver and Ottawa
Earning Points
You will earn:
- 2 Aeroplan Points for ever $1 spent directly on Air Canada or Air Canada Vacations,
- 2 Aeroplan Points for every $1 spent on Rocky Mountaineer,
- 1.5 Aeroplan Points for every $1 spent on eligible gas, groceries, travel, dining and food delivery services in Canada,
- 1.25 Aeroplan Points for every $1 spent on all purchases.
Ongoing Spend Bonuses
When you spend $25,000 per card membership year, you will receive one Annual Worldwide Companion Pass. This companion pass will allow you to buy an accompanying Air Canada economy class ticket for a companion at a fixed base fare depending on the destination, plus taxes, fees, charges and surcharges:
- $99 within Canada and continental USA
- $299 to/from Hawaii, Mexico, Central America and the Carribbean
- $499 from South America, Europe, Middle East or Africa
- $599 from Asia, Australia or New Zealand
Fees
Annual fee of $599,
Supplementary Aeroplan Reserve fee of $199 with all travel benefits shared.
There is a 2.5% foreign transaction fee on all credit cards.
Summary
An increasingly popular credit card for even a leisure traveler, providing benefits on Air Canada that are typically reserved for frequent flyers.
If you are an Air Canada frequent flyer, the roll-over E-Upgrade credits and SQM are very meaningful. If you are not a frequent flyer, having priority ground services could justify the annual fees.